When it comes to quality, healthcare providers want much more than just an initial splash from regulatory reporting functions—they look to feel the ripple effect of better outcomes along with operational and financial improvements that can be facilitated with excellent vendor quality, according to a new report from the Orem, Utah-based research and consulting firm, KLAS Research.
According to the report, “Quality Management 2013: The Ripple Effect,” providers surveyed tended to report different levels of impact in terms of how their vendors helped them focus on quality and improvement.
Regulatory reporting was used by 81 percent of providers in the report; performance improvement was the second most used, at 56 percent; external benchmarking was used by 51 percent of providers; and safety/risk management was not as widely adopted (32 percent).
Of total respondents, 56 percent said their vendors did “very well” at helping their organization focus on quality and improvement. Vendor tools most used for external benchmarking tended to drive opportunity identification and were seen as most impactful.
While quality-management vendors may have not designed their solutions for population health, almost a third of providers using them see these vendors as part of their population health strategy.
"This research helps confirm several important things about quality management," Joe Van De Graaff, report author and research director at KLAS, said in a statement. "Quality management goes well beyond mandatory reporting to CMS and is a key part of the journey toward more accountable and sustainable outcomes. The measurement of quality will continue going forward, and healthcare providers need great vendor partners to help them meet their goals."
