Bringing Harmony to Case Management

In a value-based world, case management is an important role

As we move to a value-based system, acute-care organizations are placing more energy and focus on ensuring patients remain healthy after they leave the four walls of their facilities. Case Managers play a vital role in this area, working with patients after discharge and with the Long-Term, Post-Acute Care (LTPAC) partners of the acute-care organization.

Unfortunately, Case Managers do not have a lot of digital tools to help them monitor the status of their patients in LTPAC facilities. They often have to call their LTPAC partners directly to get an update or arrange a weekly visit to observe their patient firsthand. The lack of digitization limits the number of patients that can be assigned to a Case Manager.

PointClickCare, the largest provider of software to post-acute organizations in North America, wants to help Case Managers through their Harmony offering.

“The idea behind Harmony was really about saying that – No longer can providers in the post-acute space, live in their little silos,” says BJ Boyle, EVP and General Manager of Post-Acute Insights at PointClickCare. “The days of having a referral (patient) in a hospital who then gets placed into a Skilled Nursing Facility and then waiting to get an update is no longer viable. Post-acute providers need to work in closer harmony with the rest of the network.”

With Harmony, Case Managers at hospitals can see their case load across multiple LTPAC facilities. They gain the ability to see the latest vitals, medication information, activity levels and other relevant patient observations no matter what facility they have been transitioned to.

Facilitating this seamless sharing of data reduces the risk of readmissions – something that neither the patient nor hospital wants to occur.

“Today, Case Workers are using spreadsheets and paper forms to record their observations of patients,” continues Boyle. “They have to schedule an onsite visit with their patients once a week, say on a Wednesday. But what happens if their patient starts to show signs of decline on Thursday? That patient will typically be sent right back to the ED. Now in most cases that might be the best option, but in some cases directing that patient to a different level of care might be more appropriate. If the case manager could see what was going on, in real-time, then they can be more actively involved in helping ensure their patient gets the care they need.”

Boyle and PointClickCare are driven to improve the transition of care between acute-care facilities and their LTPAC partners. They see firsthand the positive impact, real-time sharing of medical information has on patients, their families and the organizations that care for them. Their new offering, coupled with their 60% LTPAC marketshare puts them in good position to address this need.

Be sure to check out the video of my discussion with Boyle (below). If you are attending EXPO.health 2019, please join me as I continue my conversation with Boyle, on-stage in a fireside chat on Thursday August 1st in Boston.

About the author

Colin Hung

Colin Hung is the co-founder of the #hcldr (healthcare leadership) tweetchat one of the most popular and active healthcare social media communities on Twitter. Colin speaks, tweets and blogs regularly about healthcare, technology, marketing and leadership. He is currently an independent marketing consultant working with leading healthIT companies. Colin is a member of #TheWalkingGallery. His Twitter handle is: @Colin_Hung.

   

Categories