Taking financial steps to bridge the gap between the "have and have-not" hospitals is critical to hospital viability, The Joint Commission asserted in a report released Thursday.
Hospitals must respond in new ways as escalating healthcare costs hit record highs and the conditions and care needs of hospitalized patients grow more complex, the authors say.
The report is the work of an expert panel comprising hospital executives and clinical leaders, as well as experts in technology, healthcare economics, hospital design and patient safety. The roundtable analyzed how socio-economic trends, technology, the physical hospital environment, patient-centered care values and staffing challenges will impact the hospital of the future.
Health Care at the Crossroads: Guiding Principles for the Development of the Hospital of the Future urges hospitals to take steps to meet what the commission calls "the daunting challenges" of older and sicker patients, patient safety and quality of care, economics and the work force.
The report notes that while some hospitals enjoy healthy profit margins, many more are unprofitable - and that gap is growing. An aging population and a continuing decline in employer-sponsored insurance means hospitals can expect increases in publicly insured patients and uncompensated care. This is expected to create more competition for the fewer patients to whom costs may be shifted.
The Joint Commission recommends that hospitals, healthcare stakeholders and policymakers pursue the following financial goals:
- Align performance and payment systems to meet quality and efficiency-related goals.
- Use process improvement tools to increase efficiency and reduce costs.
- Pursue coverage options to ensure patient access to, and affordability of, healthcare services.
- Address how general acute hospitals and specialty hospitals can both fulfill the social mission for healthcare delivery.
"The importance of hospital-based care will not diminish in the future, but hospitals will have to meet the high expectations of the public and all stakeholders in an increasingly challenging environment," said Mark R. Chassin, MD, president of The Joint Commission. "As they have been in the past, hospitals must be equally transformative as the future unfolds."
"The Joint Commission has brought together broad expertise in healthcare to point to directions for optimizing healthcare in hospitals," said Herbert Pardes, MD, president and CEO of New York Presbyterian Hospital and the New York Presbyterian Healthcare System and the roundtable's chairman.
The report also calls for the adoption of healthcare information technology. The roundtable suggests the following:
- Make the business case and sustainable funding to support the widespread adoption of health information technology.
- Redesign business and care processes in tandem with health information technology adoption.
- Use digital technology to support patient-centered hospital care and extend that care beyond the hospital walls.
- Establish reliable authorities to provide technology assessment and technology investment guidance for hospitals.
- Adopt technologies that save labor and integrate across the hospital.
The report also offers recommendations on patient-centered care, staffing and hospital design.
How is this report likely to influence your healthcare organization? Send your comments to Bernie Monegain at bernie.monegain@medtechpublishing.com