Consumer thinking drives patient-centered care models

Health systems know a patient-centered approach is important but tactical plans for quantifiably changing the patient experience in a consumer-focused way are difficult to implement. The task is daunting in its complexity as it spans clinical efficiency, operational performance improvement, and technology innovation – within the hospital and in outpatient and home settings. And, it must support a health system’s financial stability. One of the biggest stumbling blocks to a more patient-centric, delivery-of-care approach is the lack of clinical integration and effective communication across the health continuum. There still exists inconsistency in capturing patient data as well as the accountability, access, and sharing of information in an actionable manner from one care provider to another through the patient journey. 

But that is changing for some. Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth) looked to Philips to help them maximize their participation in New York’s Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment (DSRIP) program. We’re working with them to optimize their medical technology deployment and IT integration into a unified platform. This includes care coordination, data warehousing, health information exchanges (HIE), and telehealth programs. These initiatives will help WMCHealth work toward its end goal to reduce avoidable hospital use by 25 percent over the next five years.

WMCHealth also wanted to use telemedicine to bring a new level of care out into the communities where traveling to appointments was difficult. To do this, they needed to expand high-end services to remote campuses that did not have the infrastructure to provide such services. Philips helped WMCHealth address the complex challenges that arose as it expanded to deliver care more efficiently across the region. As a result, WMCHealth was able to add telemedicine as a new service for managing patients both inside and outside of the hospital and to a wider population that required different models of care to meet their unique situations.