As the move toward value-based care intensifies, many health systems are caught between equally critical priorities: accelerating adoption of value-based care models while creating holistic programs to improve community health. At NorthShore – Edward-Elmhurst Health (NS-EEH), a data-based approach to value empowers the health system to fundamentally improve population health faster by developing targeted interventions that matter.
The NS-EEH Clinically Integrated Network has grown significantly over the past several years and today includes more than 3,000 physicians and nine hospitals. Together, we have nearly half a million lives in value-based contracts, creating a powerful opportunity to create meaningful change for the communities we serve. While each of our legacy organizations has some experience with value-based care, we knew we needed to create system capabilities that enabled local connection. We needed the ability to share and use data in information to create value and make a deep and sustainable impact in the communities we serve.
Identifying new measures of success and a collaborative path forward
In our journey to accelerate our path to value, we allowed ourselves to ask big questions. Instead of measuring growth by the number of patients we see or the tests we administer, we began to consider: “What if we could measure growth by the number of people who are impacted by our care and the negative outcomes we prevent? What would it look like to measure our success in terms of patient activation and the degree to which people truly understand their care so their health improves?”
The context of declining overall health across our communities created a sense of urgency and we realized that we needed deeper capabilities and outside expertise to execute and grow and transform our value-based program to accelerate impact.
Conversations with Lumeris, our value-based care enablement partner, not only showed us that our goals were possible, but also opened new doors to value performance. Together, we have a strong and collaborative partnership, sharing economic (financial) and operational execution risks as we strive towards our shared objectives. Lumeris brings a proven data platform and population health capabilities. They offer a comprehensive solution that combines cutting-edge technology, advanced analytics, streamlined automation, and aligned human processes to drive performance and maximize the effectiveness of our value-based efforts across the network.
Connecting – and empowering – multiple stakeholders
When patients enter our doors, they come to us with a lifetime of accumulated health and personal needs. Historically, clinical teams have not been able to engage with and support multiple facets of a patient’s life that impact their health. Value-based care models enable providers to put more emphasis on building the social connections that patients crave by providing them with the right team, care, and support. These care models also require that we connect with partners in our communities to uncover and address the social determinants of health that contribute to health and health literacy.
Leveraging Lumeris' population data platform, our physicians and clinicians will have a more complete view of their patient’s whole health needs and experiences so the team can engage with the patient more holistically. This capability allows providers to meet patients where they are and walk more closely with them throughout their healthcare journey. The ability to use actionable data to establish more meaningful connections between patients and their care teams helps to strengthen health literacy, engagement, and outcomes throughout a community. Our value-based strategy will enable us to give patients the best opportunity for their best outcomes.
But patients aren’t the only ones who benefit from new approaches to value-based care. As an industry, we've seen a huge decline in fulfillment for health professionals. Every person who is on a healthcare team wakes up every morning to try to do something good for somebody, and if we've created models of care that make that so hard to do, they go home wondering, “What did I do today? Was I able to help as many people as I could?”
Are we setting up providers so that they can fully engage with the individuals who come through their doors? Do they have the freedom to think creatively about their patients’ care? Giving providers the proper tools to lean into value-based care delivery fuels a deeper level of care and, ultimately, gives them a greater sense of fulfillment. Through actionable data, deep knowledge of our patients, and aligned and engaged teams NS-EEH will benefit from Lumeris’ expertise to accelerate clinical impact.
Embracing value-based care is about fundamentally transforming healthcare and delivering tangible value to our patients and communities through deep relationships, understanding, and partnership. By shifting our focus to value, we have the opportunity to achieve the Quadruple Aim of improved clinical outcomes, patient experience, provider experience, and health care costs. Value-based care is essential to create a future where healthcare is truly patient-centered, efficient, effective, and fulfilling for those who provide it. Together, with our communities, partners, and providers, we are poised to usher in an era of transformative care that will positively shape the lives of those we touch today and in the future to positively impact the arc of health in the communities we serve.
About Lakshmi Halasyamani, MD:
Lakshmi Halasyamani, MD, is Chief Clinical Officer for NorthShore – Edward-Elmhurst Health, where she leads the strategy and implementation of programs to advance quality, safety, and care coordination to ensure excellent and equitable patient outcomes and experiences.
Do you want to learn more about how to succeed in value-based care? Click here to review the Lumeris 6 critical drivers of value-based care.