Of the survey respondents, 80% were C-level executives, and two-thirds represented hospital networks with 251 or more beds—of those, more than 20% represented networks of 1,500 beds or more.
Where Value-Based Care Fits In
The patient leakage survey results offer insight into a crucial but seldom-discussed issue for health systems that are facing evolving and challenging demands—not just because of the pandemic, but also due to the emerging value-based care landscape.
For example, when patients receive care from a competitor's health system, the original health system may suffer two negative financial impacts. One impact is a loss of revenue because it will not receive payment for services delivered by a competitor. The other impact is tied to value-based care payment models, such as the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP). In some versions of the MSSP, affiliated groups of providers as part of accountable care organizations (ACOs) assume all care costs for an attributed population of Medicare beneficiaries, even if that beneficiary receives care from an unaffiliated provider. That is why it is in the ACO's best interest to ensure that beneficiary receives care from a provider in its network.
In The Patient Leakage & Keepage Report, 80% of executives said value-based care models have made addressing patient leakage more important, but more than 38% either were unconfident or didn't know if their organization had visibility into leakage.
Other highlights of the Patient Leakage & Keepage Report include:
75% said patient leakage is a significant obstacle to their financial goals
Only 31% of the healthcare systems who definitely have a strategy to reduce patient leakage said they have the right tools to get it done
Organizations that don't use technology to quantify patient leakage were less likely to know which service lines were most affected by loss of patients
Patient Transfers Essential, But Overlooked
A major patient leakage improvement priority for health systems is attracting and retaining new patients. Specifically, health systems want to increase patient transfers from community hospital emergency departments (EDs) to their specialized tertiary care facilities, such as a stroke or trauma care center. In fact, only 22% of healthcare executives who participated in the survey responded that their own EDs "definitely" drive enough patient volume to their specialty centers. They estimated only 35% of specialty center referrals are coming from their own EDs, which means referrals from community hospitals must fill the gap.
