Shifting Focus from Cost to Outcome in Healthcare

Healthcare expenditures are on the rise and cost-controlling seems not to work as intended. Instead of focusing to keep cost down, focus on value for the patient. The approach was introduced by Michael Porter a few years ago and is getting more and more respect.

The Boston Consulting Group conducted a broader study on the effects of value-based payment methods and health outcomes - with promising effects.

Check out the full article at BCG-Perspectives.

Brief summary:
Focusing on patient-value instead of cost should be a key priority for healthcare and pharmaceutical providers. Not only does the payment method influence the focus of healthcare providers but the effectiveness of the treatment itself (Exhibit 1).

The re-focus from cost-savings to improved healthcare value for the patient remains one of the most interesting fields of research in the healthcare sector. Let's see how this will develop over the next few years.

Movember - the final days

Movember is close to the end. Nick Offerman shares his final insights with you and your stache :)

Movember Preparation 101

Ron Swanson gives some advise on the manliest month of the year. Be prepared for Movember

Mortality after Surgery

I stumbled across a very interesting article today. A study conducted by the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine and the European Society of Anaesthesiology researched the deadly outcomes of surgeries across Europe, and revealed some rather shocking information. 

The mortality rate was higher than anticipated with a great spread among different countries. While in Iceland - the lowest mortality of all the researched countries - the post-OP mortality was around 1.2% it reached out to the highest level - Latvia - with a shocking 21.5% mortality rate. The study was conducted using multiple regression analysis (p < 0.05). Over all 4% (1855 of the sample, n=46 539 patients) died before leaving the hospital. 

Further, the data reveals strategic and structural errors done in the after surgery process. Only 27% of all patients who died after the operation were transferred to the critical care. 73% (n=1358 patients) were not transferred to the critical care department any time after the surgery. 

Overall, the study might reveal a critical error between the time immediately after leaving the OP and handing over the patient to the regular care system. At this point further research could implement solutions, that directly contribute to save lives. A possible research fields might include communication training for the surgeons, improved communication routines, standardized transfers to critical care or technological solutions such as databases offering the data needed on a mobile platform. 

The study conducted is not available online (at least not for free) but the link to the abstract can be found by following the link below.

http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(12)61148-9/fulltext

Improving Health Care Value [BCG]

All across the globe, the cost for health care is increasing. In some countries (just like Switzerland) health care became the federal expense No. 1. Never the less, for a position as important and costly as the health system it's quite surprising how little effort has been put into the "simple" definition of the problem.

While almost everyone will approach the health care spendings from the cost side, the Boston Consulting Group - alongside with the US National Academy of Science - tackle the issue from another point of view. BCG asks the question how we can create more value with the same amount invested into health care.

The focus of the text aims at unveiling unused potential in large scale data registries - especially potential considering the inferential statistics that can be concluded from the data. In addition to the high quality data registries, the bias towards transparency - obviously an almost inescapable but positive force - drives value creation up. The transparency bias is especially effective among the poorest performer; since those performers are the most likely to loose customers and money likewise, this tendency is certainly positive.

      (Exhibit 4. Public Disclosure of Registry Data. BCGperspectives, 2011)

Summarizing, the article unveils some very important key aspects about the future of healthcare research. First, even though we work in a "social" and often public sector the need for "cold" models and data is undeniable. Especially as healthcare handels human beings in some of their most needy situations, we really need models that enable to provide not the cheapest but the best affordable solution.
Second, the tendency to unveil processes, registers and figures is more and more a proven driver for organizational success. It will not take all to long until this trend will be notable in the public sector as well. To ensure that the health sector - one of the most sensitive when it comes to privacy and data protection - is ready to face the task, it is necessary to invest in the development of the technological and personal resources.

The full article is online available at bcg.perspectives. The link is listed below.

bcg.perspectives - Improving Health Care Value

The Chinese Opportunity

The way most western people perceive China could be very, very misleading. This video by McKinsey & Company stresses the importance of rethinking our view on China. In line with the incredible growing speed of social media in China, the Chinese consumer emerges.

I can't wait to see this country, hopefully I will be there next year

The Key to Great Leadership: Boringness?

What makes a leader great? Are there common traits great leaders share, and if so what are these traits?
The article below approaches the leadership and personality topic from an unusual way.

Although the idea sounds reasonable, I wouldn't rely on boringness being a plus in your next interview...


Boringness: The Secret to Great Leadership - Joel Stein - Harvard Business Review