Plummeting ED volumes offer an opportunity to re-imagine hospital finances

By Pamela J. Gallagher

In 2019, emergency departments (ED) across the U.S. saw an average of 2.1 million patients per week, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Over the past several decades, healthcare organizations have invested large amounts of money, time, and effort to study the trend of ever-increasing numbers of high-utilizers in the ED and discover solutions to slow this growth. Hospitals have offered care navigators, clinics for less emergent issues, and countless other alternatives, but with next to no progress. People, it seems, just wanted to come to the ED.

Future of HealthcarePamela J. GallagherJuly 28, 2020COVID-19, coronavirus, emergency department, emergency room, emergency, ED, hospital, finance, healthcare, operations

Are tech solutions the only solution?

By Pamela J. Gallagher

Within the next five years, technology could be performing as much as 30% of tasks commonly performed by people in today’s workplace, according to Supply Chain 24/7.

People tend to react to statistics like this in one of two ways. Some throw their full confidence behind the inevitability of technology, believing it to be the solution to nearly every financial or operational issue. Others view these numbers through the lens of a “doomsday-er,” prophesying that technology will upend business-as-usual—for the worse.

Whether 30% of people-powered tasks will be fueled by technology a few years from now, I can’t say. But here’s what I do know: The future of the workplace and of the healthcare industry will look different than it does today. We just have to make sure it’s going to be better. With the costs of technological solutions playing a role in the skyrocketing cost of healthcare, hospital executives must think critically when considering tech solutions to operational issues.

How can you tell if a tech solution is 1. necessary, and 2. worth the time and money to implement?

Healthcare and TechnologyPamela J. GallagherSeptember 5, 2019Healthcare, technology, solutions, process, implementation, operations

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