Analytics and risk management saves Franciscan Alliance $2.2M

With care management and engagement tools, the Franciscan Alliance Health Ministry was able to generate $2.2 million in savings through multiple Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans, according to an announcement Wednesday.

The Franciscan healthcare system used the Innovaccer platform to reduce readmissions, automate emergency department workflows and improve the patient experience, the company said.

Creating savings with risky protocols

Notably, the Indiana-based multispecialty network implemented customizable polypharmacy protocols that manage high-risk prescriptions to coordinate care.

Automated pre-visit scheduling helped prevent downstream uses, such as hospital visits, while helping to provide more comprehensive patient care. That saved Franciscan $481,000 for its MSSP population and $388,000 for its Medicare Advantage population and avoided a total of 75 inpatient visits in both populations during the measurement period.

The 493 polypharmacy protocols enabled clinical outpatient pharmacists to maintain medication plans for at-risk comorbid populations and maintain ongoing engagement with patients post-discharge, saving more than $985,000.

The health system’s ambulatory physician network uses Innovaccer’s population health management suite to improve clinical processes and streamline operations. Electronic health record systems are used by many stakeholders, including the healthcare system’s medical coders.

With the integration of streamlined coding processes and advanced risk adjustment analytics that leverage historical claims and clinical data, Franciscan eliminated HCC code identification at the point of care, achieving a 2.8% improvement in the percentage of coding gaps identified in could close the populations.

Automated coding processes helped Franciscan realize a value of $312,000, according to Innovaccer.

To streamline emergency department discharge planning and expedite follow-up care, automated alerts helped Franciscan nurses conduct more timely outreach and record episodes of care

Automating processes to improve patient care

Franciscan has long looked to technology to automate processes including outpatient appointment registration and check-in and check-out during visits, said Craig Miller, administrative director of outpatient services.

During the COVID-19 pandemic Franciscan expanded its telehealth offerings and remote patient monitoring programs to identify opportunities to better connect patients with care teams across the care continuum, Miller said Healthcare IT news in December.

Nasty closing gaps in care: “We have been focused on a broad rollout among our physicians and providers to support both outpatients and inpatients, and to close the gaps in care transitions, or fragmentation,” he previously said.