Business intelligence (BI) has fueled the growth of many businesses through the years, especially in the finance and manufacturing industries. Today, BI and big data also benefit healthcare businesses that are aiming to improve their processes and lower their readmission rates.

At its core, BI software is all about data analytics. BI software is capable of accepting staggering amounts of data in short periods of time. It uses advanced analysis algorithms to search for trends in the data that even the most experienced statistician cannot find. Because BI can quickly provide deep insights, businesses across industries have utilized different BI software to gain competitive advantages and streamline their workflows. For instance, healthcare organizations use BI to manage their readmission rates.

What is readmission?

Readmission refers to the instance a healthcare institution admits a patient within 30 days of that patient’s previous hospital stay. Readmissions usually occur because of:

• Complications arising from the preceding treatment
• Errors committed by hospital staff (e.g., leaving a sponge in the patient’s body after surgery)
• Patients not following their doctors’ recommendations
• Insufficient access to proper medical services and medications in the patient’s community

Why should hospitals want to reduce their readmission rate?

There are three main reasons why hospitals must strive to keep patients from returning for additional treatments:

1. Readmissions are financially crippling and more medically risky for patients
   Medical care in America is one of the most expensive in the world. While the degree of how much medical expenses affect people’s decisions to file for bankruptcy is up for debate, such expenses are nevertheless a contributing factor. Having to be treated more than once is therefore backbreaking for Americans, especially for those who are living paycheck to paycheck. Not only that, but the likelihood of getting hospital-acquired infection also increases the more one visits and/or the longer one stays in a healthcare facility. This results in a costly downward spiral no one wants to be in.
2. Medicare and Medicaid won’t pay for complete coverage
   Readmissions also take a toll on Medicare and Medicaid. This is why the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) impose a payment reduction penalty of up to 3% upon hospitals that exceed certain thresholds for readmission rates. That is, CMS only pays 97% of covered medical costs instead of the entire 100%. The penalty is arguably also a tool to keep hospitals from profiteering.
3. Having a high readmission rate can reduce a hospital’s reputation
   Once people find out that your hospital has a high readmission rate, they may begin to avoid your institution, thinking it provides poor-quality care.

How can business intelligence help hospitals with readmission rate reduction?

BI can help reduce readmission rates in several ways. For instance, by using patient-centric data points such as income level, English proficiency, housing conditions, and community resources, hospital administrators will have greater insight into the welfare of their patients. This knowledge will enable healthcare professionals to factor in their patients’ circumstances, create special care plans to increase the likelihood that their patients will abide by their medical recommendations, and help them prevent expensive readmissions.

Furthermore, by using BI software to merge socioeconomic data with electronic medical records, medical professionals can easily create individual profiles that will predict how likely a patient is going to require readmission, even before care is provided. Predictive analytics allows doctors to adjust the initial care they provide certain types of patients so that the likelihood of readmitting such patients is dramatically reduced.

In addition to helping you lower readmission rates, BI software can also provide your practice with unprecedented levels of care and efficiency. Call us today to get started with proven IT experts.

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Most of us don’t normally associate Business Intelligence (BI) with small- or medium-sized businesses (SMBs). The huge investment required to hire data-delving specialists makes us think BI is only for larger organizations. But this is no longer the case. Not only does a growing selection of self-service tools make BI more affordable for SMBs, but it also makes data management more efficient, given that your business probably creates and holds more data than you realize, making it easier for you to get going. It’s time you start harnessing data that will help you to make more strategic business decisions.

You’ve already got the data you need

It’s easy to underestimate the amount of data your SMB already has at its disposal. In every area of your business, from finance and sales to customer relations and website management, the software packages you use to simplify your everyday operations are packed with reams of information that most of us don’t even think twice about. By talking to key stakeholders in your organization’s various departments, you can get an idea of the kind of data you already have, how it’s generated, and where it’s stored. You can then start to think about using BI tools to transform that information into meaningful business insights that will inform your decision-making. No need for you to invest in time-consuming data generation from scratch!

Self-service BI tools are plentiful — and affordable

The emergence of self-service BI puts useful business analytics within reach of smaller business owners who lack the fancy-pants budgets of larger corporations. In fact, there are numerous self-service BI tools that you can use to get started in this area without even spending a dime. Microsoft Power BI is a powerful application that’s pleasingly user-friendly, and most businesses will find the functions they need in the free version. Zoho Analytics has a low entry-level cost, too, and the slightly pricier yet still affordable Tableau is another option that’s worth exploring.

It’s easy to get started

BI is an intimidating term, especially for the average business owner. But by taking small steps, it’s easy for anyone to get started — and before you know it, you’ll be enjoying the benefits of having data-driven, intelligence-based insights that will enable you to make better business decisions.

Most self-service BI tools come with built-in suggestions for reports that businesses commonly run and find useful. Other worthwhile statistics to explore include the percentage of your clients who cancel within a set period, website landing pages that generate the longest visits, your most profitable individual products or services, the days or months in which you generate your highest revenues, and which of your clients bring in the most revenue and profit.

Truly harnessing data is the future of the business world — it’s how companies like yours can make smarter decisions that increase efficiency and profitability. And having self-service tools available means SMBs no longer need a crazy budget to be able to afford the benefits of BI. To find out more about putting in place the tools that can help you do smarter business, just give us a call.

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