A recent survey conducted by the newly launched Optum Institute for Sustainable Health reveals three challenges and four opportunities to make healthcare more sustainable.
This survey was conducted online from October 19-28, 2011. The survey touched on a variety of topics, including healthcare cost, quality and sustainability. A final analysis of these topics was based on feedback from 1,000 physicians, 2,000 adult consumers and 400 hospital executives. Based on the feedback, Optum Institute determined these areas of opportunity:
Challenges
1. U.S. adults believe that patients always or often receive needed preventive healthcare only a third (33 percent) of the time, while physicians think this is true half (50 percent) of the time.
2. Nearly two-thirds of physicians (64 percent) say that there are "significant differences in the quality of care provided by physicians" in their local community.
3. U.S. adults believe that healthcare costs in their community could be reduced by approximately 30 percent without negatively impacting quality.
Opportunities
4. Only 16 percent of adults, 9 percent of physicians and 16 percent of hospitals describe healthcare delivered in their community as extremely or very coordinated.
5. Almost all surveyed physicians expect to be using electronic medical record systems within 2-3 years, but only a third (35 percent) of physicians report having a computerized system in place.
6. Half (49 percent) of physicians say they currently feel "not at all prepared" to accept greater financial risk for managing patient care. In addition, forty percent of hospitals expect that more than a quarter of revenues will be at risk for the quality and/or efficiency of care delivery.
7. Less than half (47 percent) of adults are aware that significant variations in healthcare quality exist.
This survey was conducted online from October 19-28, 2011. The survey touched on a variety of topics, including healthcare cost, quality and sustainability. A final analysis of these topics was based on feedback from 1,000 physicians, 2,000 adult consumers and 400 hospital executives. Based on the feedback, Optum Institute determined these areas of opportunity:
Challenges
1. U.S. adults believe that patients always or often receive needed preventive healthcare only a third (33 percent) of the time, while physicians think this is true half (50 percent) of the time.
2. Nearly two-thirds of physicians (64 percent) say that there are "significant differences in the quality of care provided by physicians" in their local community.
3. U.S. adults believe that healthcare costs in their community could be reduced by approximately 30 percent without negatively impacting quality.
Opportunities
4. Only 16 percent of adults, 9 percent of physicians and 16 percent of hospitals describe healthcare delivered in their community as extremely or very coordinated.
5. Almost all surveyed physicians expect to be using electronic medical record systems within 2-3 years, but only a third (35 percent) of physicians report having a computerized system in place.
6. Half (49 percent) of physicians say they currently feel "not at all prepared" to accept greater financial risk for managing patient care. In addition, forty percent of hospitals expect that more than a quarter of revenues will be at risk for the quality and/or efficiency of care delivery.
7. Less than half (47 percent) of adults are aware that significant variations in healthcare quality exist.
Related Articles on Sustainable Healthcare:
Report: Number of Sustainable Health Information Exchanges Increases 33%
3 Steps to Managing Variability in Cost and Quality
Is it Time for the Healthcare Industry to Make Cost Management a Priority?