From the January 2011 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine
The point of data analytics – and health management based on data analytics – is to ensure that every communication about patient health is personal, relevant, and effective. Success often stems from finding the right health management partner to provide a strategy based on data analytics that provide comprehensive health information, a complete analysis of the data and potential individual and organizational solutions.
The ability to personalize medical care allows patients and physicians alike to make better health care decisions and tailor preventive, wellness and treatment methods. Data analytics also provide decision-support tools, remote monitoring tools and real-time care when it is needed, based upon the idea that effective care continues even after the patient leaves the doctor’s office.
As workforce health begins to improve, companies, organizations and communities will be able to use data analytics to reassess individuals and key health issues, whether it’s diabetes, obesity or chronic heart conditions. Population performance can be reported on a monthly or quarterly basis for maximum effectiveness. At-risk individuals can also be identified and monitored. Ideally, individuals previously enrolled should be reclassified into lower-risk categories as their health improves. In this way, the severity of at-risk health categories and health care costs diminishes overtime.
Going forward
Despite the uncertainty surrounding health care reform’s future, companies, organizations and communities are more motivated than ever to implement wellness and prevention programs for their workforce. Collaborating with a health plan management partner that relies on powerful data that can be consistently refreshed and reanalyzed makes all the difference. Together with predictive modeling, it enables health issues and cost drivers to be identified so that effective, long-term wellness strategies can be designed and implemented for healthier individuals, lower claims costs, and increased productivity.
Joseph Berardo Jr. is chief executive officer and president at MagnaCare. He is responsible for the strategic management and financial performance of MagnaCare's business operations.
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