Archive | December, 2013

2014 Healthcare Predictions and Trends

December 31, 2013 by George Van Antwerp 1 Comment

Happy New Year!  2013 has been an interesting year in healthcare with 2014 promising many more exciting developments.  A few of the biggest stories from 2013 include:

  • Healthcare.gov – the politics, the drama, and the missteps
  • Healthcare transparency and costs – new companies, new revelations, and an entire Time magazine focused on it
  • Healthcare engagement – ongoing focus on how to get consumers to engage
  • mHealth and QuantifiedSelf – apps and devices proliferate
  • Investment – a huge jump in VC and angel funding for healthcare
  • ACOs – do they work or not
  • Big Data – so much data…so many opportunities

Here’s my predictions for 2014:

  1. Transparency – The race to bring cost data to the forefront of the consumer mindset will move from a radical concept to an expectation.  With increased out-of-pocket costs and HDHPs, consumers will expect access and information to cost data.  They will look for systems that can predict what they need and push data to them in a timely fashion using location based services and predictive algorithms. 
  2. Exchanges – With big companies trying the private exchanges and moving their employees to the federal exchange, we’ll see the market holding its breadth to see what happens.  If this drives success on both sides of the equation – employers and payers, you can expect a large jump in this direction later in the year.   
  3. Mobile – The traditional member website will continue to die a slow death without mobile optimization in place.  More and more consumers will access the healthcare system through a smart phone or device like an iPad.  This will drive healthcare companies to figure out how to embrace user design and member experience in new ways as they strive to provide the sustainable app that consumers use more than a few times. 
  4. Providers – Providers will continue to cautiously embrace pay-for-performance, value-based healthcare, and models like ACOs and PCMHs.  They will want them to work, but they will continue to look for the Tipping Point in which their overall panel is part of these programs.  Providers will also begin to modify their workflows using technology based on Meaningful Use and the ubiquity of technology. 
  5. Engagement – Consumer engagement in healthcare will continue to be the elusive Holy Grail.  Companies will try behavioral economics, incentives, and mass personalization to try and get consumers to understand healthcare and take actions to improve their health.  There will be more shifting to include caregivers and embrace social media (e.g., Facebook) and peer-to-peer networks.  We will start to see documented case studies and results in terms of improved outcomes. 
  6. Devices – While 2013 was the year of device proliferation, we will see the number of people (early adopters and QuantifiedSelf groupies) maxing out.  I expect some further consolidation and a dip in adoption rate as we move into the period of disillusionment.  Devices will be less about a standalone solution and look at how they integrate with the smart phone and existing systems (at work and home).  Like smart pills and smart clothes, this will lead to increased data and integration into daily life.  This will require collaboration with providers and employers to figure out how to come through this period.
  7. Value-based – CMS will continue to be a big driver in pushing new payment models around healthcare as they struggle to figure out how to slow the tidal wave of costs coming in Medicare and Medicaid.  This will meet up with some of the progress in the commercial space with ACO and PCMH models leading to an evolving path in terms of how drive value.  This won’t be the breakthrough year, but we’ll see meaningful progress. 
  8. Investments – I don’t see any slowdown in healthcare investments.  Our health issues aren’t going away in the US or abroad.  China is just emerging with a long list of health issues and technology is creating new solutions in 3rd World countries. 
  9. Pills Plus – With pharma struggling with how to reinvent itself, they are going to look at new solutions like Merck is doing with Vree Health.  This will cause them to look at many of these trends and how they wrap services, technology, and incentives around their medications.  
  10. Specialty Care – Specialty pharmacy will continue to be a big growth driver with novel innovations coming down the pipe.  But, these pharmacies will realize that they can’t work in a vacuum.  They have to do a better job at integrating care management into their services and partnering with Case Management companies to holistically treat the patient. 
  11. Metabolic Syndrome – The overall global issues of obesity and diabetes will become a huge weight around the shoulders of the healthcare system.  While the focus will continue to be on the complex cases requiring massive dollars, the majority of people will be struggling with a chronic disease.  Metabolic Syndrome will become a big focus for payers, employers, and health services companies as they try to find ways to prevent further complications. 
  12. Prevention – While I don’t expect a huge shift here, I think we’ll start to hear more voices on the perimeter yelling about why we only spend 5% of our dollars on prevention.  They’ll point out other models outside the US spending more with better outcomes.  Health Reform will begin to enable some change here, but it will be slow. 
  13. Community Based Care – With more people coming back into the healthcare system with Health Reform, there will be a greater need for location based access to healthcare.  This will involve clinics but will be much broader.  Companies will need to look at how they embrace community resources like churches to engage the disengaged and poor who don’t trust the system and have limited access to the traditional channels.  
Healthcare
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Dung Beetles, Telomerase, Meditation, and Health

December 30, 2013 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

In Vic Strecher’s new book – On Purpose, he takes us through a journey inspired by the death of his 19-year old daughter.  This journey looks at a variety of research presented in a creative way, a graphic novel.  At the end of the story, I left with several interesting observations.  (For more on the book and the app he developed, go to www.dungbeetle.org.)

  1. Having meaning in your life can impact your health.  (see research and more research)
  2. Meditation can help limit stress (which impacts our health) and impact telomerase growth.  (see research)
  3. Using “fear arousal” to drive behavior change only works if people have “self-efficacy” which is really important to the carrot versus stick discussion.

 Image

The book also reinforced several things:

  1. Our decisions and behaviors influence our health.  (80% of health care costs are driven by 8 factors)
  2. Our decisions and behaviors are influenced by where we live.  (your zip code influences your health)
  3. Motivational interviewing is key to health care engagement. 

So, as you look at your New Year’s Resolutions and your priorities for 2014, it might be worth looking at On Purpose and understanding why the Dung Beetle was chosen to symbolize focus in the book.  

Healthcare

8 Risks Drive 15 Conditions And 80% Of Healthcare Costs

December 30, 2013 by George Van Antwerp 2 Comments

This is one of my favorite images that I use all the time to talk about how our decisions drive our healthcare costs.  This is from the AON Hewitt 2012 Health Care Survey and based on the World Economic Forum’s data.

8 risks - 15 conditions - 80 costs - AON

Books / Articles, Care Management, Healthcare, Value Propositions

Why Healthcare Needs A New “Pope”

December 30, 2013 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

I was reading the Time magazine article about Pope Francis who is their Person of the Year.  In reading it, I was struck by the parallels with healthcare.

  • The church is a huge institution that is hard to change…like the healthcare system.
  • There is a need for transparency…like healthcare.
  • There is a need to address the needs of the poor…just like healthcare.
  • There is a need for new changes to embrace technology and cultural change…like healthcare.

I also looked at a few of the quotes in the magazine, and they could easily be relevant for healthcare also with a subtle change in words.

“It is necessary to broaden the opportunities for a stronger presence of [consumers] in the [healthcare system]”

“Who am I to judge”  His approach to dealing with [patients] is first about compassion not condemnation.

“How can it be that it is not a news item when an elderly homeless person dies of exposure, but it is news when the stock market loses two points.”

These parallels were reinforced this morning when I read an article about Amanda Levitt and obesity in USA Today.  We’re all familiar with the obesity bias that exists, and I certainly think obesity is an issue which we have to tackle.  That being said, we’re not going to address it by attacking overweight people and shaming them into behavior change.  If obesity is going to be a disease that gets treated, then we need to have patients and providers able to talk openly about it.

The article about Amanda and her efforts at http://www.fatbodypolitics.com also got me thinking about the link between purpose in life and health.  It’s certainly not just about a number like BMI.  If I go to http://www.dungbeetle.org (which is a new product from Vic Strecher), I pulled this quote:

Let’s begin by defining what we mean by purpose. A simple definition might be: the focused, active, values-driven pursuit of an identified and attainable goal within a given time frame. In our view, that time frame could last a day or a lifetime. In other words, your purpose is likely to change over the course of your life. Your purpose may also have different dimensions, including your family, your work, your community, and your own personal growth.

We all intuitively grasp, based on our own experiences, that we’re happiest when we have a strong purpose and the vitality to pursue this purpose. Recent groundbreaking science also tells us that a strong sense of purpose is associated with increased willpower, physical and mental resilience, and a revitalized sense of happiness and well-being.

Healthcare

The EveryMove 100 Ranks Health Insurance Companies…On Engagement and Empowerment

December 29, 2013 by George Van Antwerp 1 Comment

Engagement is such an essential part of healthcare.  I’ve talked about that many times and feel very passionate about how important engagement is to changing behavior and empowering consumers.  
 
I hadn’t had time to look at it when it first came out, but I finally got a chance to click on the press release from EveryMove which is a Sandbox and Blues sponsored company focused on health rewards and incentives.  
 
They put out the list of the top 100 health insurance companies in the US based on how well they engage and empower consumers – EveryMove 100 Health Insurance Index™ (https://everymove.org/everymove-100). In theory, if you could buy from any plan in any state in the exchange, this would be really helpful in selecting a plan.  Of course, as a researcher, I’d love to see some of the core data from a similar group of consumers to show how their engagement varied as they moved from one plan to another.  
 
They look at over 50 data points including:
  • mobile-friendly websites
  • mobile apps and app store rankings
  • self-service tools
  • incentive program offerings
  • community involvement
  • commitment to social engagement
  • consumer satisfaction
 The Top 10 include:
1.     Cigna 
2.     Kaiser Permanente of California 
3.     Premera Blue Cross 
4.     Humana 
5.     Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield 
6.     Independence Blue Cross 
7.     Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina 
8.     Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois 
9.     CareFirst 
10.   BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee
 
The bottom 10 (of the top 100) include:
90. Fidelis Care
91. Highmark BCBS
92. BCBS of VT
93. BCBS of ND
94. Rocky Mountain Health Plans
95. Concordia Plan Services
96. Molina Healthcare
97. PacificSource Health Plans
98. AvMed Health Plans
99. Vantage Health Plan
100. Lovelace Health Plan
 
Since Cigna was the first company in the payer space (that I know of) to have a Chief Experience Officer, perhaps this shouldn’t be a big surprise that they rank so highly here.  
Healthcare
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Top Health Issues From PWC

December 27, 2013 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

A few weeks ago, PWC’s Health Research Institute (HRI) published their list of 10 biggest issues for 2014.  Before I publish mine, I thought I’d share theirs.  I put my comments on each in [brackets].

1.  Picking up the pace of price transparency [this is an easy and obvious one…lots of energy here.]

Purchasers are demanding more information about the prices that providers charge and the government is giving it to them. Earlier this year, CMS released a trove of hospital pricing data for the first time showing significant variability in cost. Cost-conscious employers are making transparency a top factor in negotiations with health plans and providers. As more pricing information becomes public, how will consumers, employers, and insurers put the data to use and what does it mean for providers?

2.  Employers explore new options with private exchanges [an interesting and surprising effect of Obamacare…I don’t think most people predicted this would happen quickly]

More large employers are using private exchanges as a way to provide healthcare benefits to their workers. This trend will likely grow in 2014 as employers continue to explore strategies for holding down costs, shedding the administrative burden of providing coverage, and expanding plan choice for employees. 

3.  Pharmaceutical supply chain security: Combating counterfeit drugs [a long time issue…not sure if 2014 will be the year for this]

A new federal law – the Drug Quality and Security Act – is aimed at eliminating counterfeit medications in the drug supply chain. The law imposes a tight timetable on implementing the first step toward a nationwide “track and trace” system to document the journey of prescribed medications from manufacturer to patient. Drug makers will be required to begin tracking prescribed drugs in large bundles or “lots” starting in 2015. And in 2017, the industry must begin assigning serial numbers to individual “saleable units” of every prescribed product sold in the U.S. PwC estimates that the program will cost drugmakers $10 million to $50 million per manufacturer.

4.  Medicaid’s march toward managed long-term care  [agree…Obamacare will drive more people here making this critical to long-term budget management]

States are struggling to contain rising Medicaid costs in the face of an aging baby boom population that has not saved enough for health costs in retirement. Demographic and economic trends point toward many years of rising long-term care costs. States are looking to a familiar tool – managed care – to help hold the line on long-term care spending. Ten years ago, only eight states had a Medicaid managed long-term care program; in 2014, that number is expected to climb to 26.

5.  Companies rethink their roles in the new health economy  [new models will become the norm as people stop focusing on ROI and focus on how to improve overall wellness with shift to prevention]

In the new health economy, money will move differently as consumers exercise greater control over spending and more companies compete for a piece of the healthcare dollar. Competition from new entrants, incentives to take on more risk, pressures to reduce costs, and the growing influence of consumers are all forcing healthcare organizations to rethink who they are and what they offer. Many are striking new alliances, marrying their own healthcare experience with the likes of big box retailers, technology companies, and wellness companies to diversify their brands and gain an edge over their competitors. Others are forging ahead on their own by expanding beyond their core competencies. 

6.  A new mantra for healthcare innovation: fail fast, frequently, and frugally  [not sure this is new…been the mantra for years but now more mainstream]

Converging forces in 2014, including reduced government funding, will necessitate a new and leaner innovation model. Instead of fearing failure, organizations must embrace it. A discovery process focused on failing fast and frequently can help arrive at solutions in less time and with less cost. By fostering an innovative culture that brings more rigor to the process and views failure as a means to an end, companies can achieve high-impact innovations in less time and at lower cost.

7.  Social, mobile, analytics, and cloud technologies prime health industry for new business models  [new models yes…business models and ways of making revenue – TBD]

A single ecosystem of mobile sensors, devices and apps are enabling us to track everything from steps we walk to the calories we consume. Although separately these tools are not new, they are now being used to improve the practice of medicine and coordination of care. Instead of prescribing drugs, providers are prescribing exercise regimens and using data to keep patients on track to meet health goals. In 2014, the trend has the potential to fundamentally alter how health organizations interact with patients and one another to deliver care and manage health while keeping costs down.

8.  Corporate venture capital picks up the slack  [will continue with some big fails…more likely go to fund managers like the health plans have done]

As traditional venture firms pull away from funding life sciences start-ups, corporate capital will pick up the slack in 2014. With many corporations cash rich – but R&D poor – new venture funds may be a solution for stagnating innovation. New and unusual marriages are occurring between corporate cash and traditional venture capital, injecting not only money, but fresh innovative thinking and industry insights. Start-ups can benefit from a steady stream of funding that can last throughout the development phase and draw upon corporate expertise to help commercialize products.

9.  Technology is redefining the healthcare job market  [this will continue…not sure any net new changes here]

With millions of new customers, the rise of quality-based payments, and more discerning consumers, healthcare organizations require new workforce capabilities that stretch beyond traditional clinical roles into more convenient, consumer-focused technologies.  Healthcare organizations need to use technology to extend care and build a workforce that is skilled at engaging digitally with patients.

10.  A new lens on clinical trials  [big changes coming for pharma over the next few years]

In 2014, as the pharmaceutical industry comes under increasing pressure to replenish its product pipeline faster and with fewer dollars, drugmakers must re-think their research methods. Precision medicine and the continued focus on specialty products are giving rise to new clinical trial designs, such as non-randomized studies. These changes will present new challenges for drugmakers as they work to ensure the integrity of their data, recruit appropriate patients, and determine product pricing. New technologies, such as virtual clinical trials, may offer a solution. According to HRI, nearly 70 percent of consumers surveyed agree that biomedical research is an important economic growth engine, but they are unsure of their role.

 

The list is informed by HRI research and the input of PwC’s Health Industries professionals who work with hospitals, physician groups, pharmaceutical and medical device companies and employers. In the fall of 2013 HRI also conducted a poll of 1,000 U.S. consumers on a range of healthcare topics covered in the report. The report provides further analysis of the top issues for 2014 and outlines implications for key stakeholders. For the full report, videos with industry experts and graphics illustrating each issue, visit: www.pwc.com/us/tophealthissues.

Healthcare

Interesting Articles, Companies, and Links From 2013 – Part I

December 27, 2013 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

One of the big challenges with healthcare is an explosion of new drugs, new technology, new business models, and information.  As I begin to plan for 2014, I’m trying to clean up my e-mails.  There are so many interesting articles that I never made it to this year. 

Here’s some quick summaries direct from the stories, e-mails, or newsletters that I saved, but I’ve never had time to share with you.  Enjoy!

TracFone Wireless and Voxiva, Inc. are creating a better way for Amerigroup to reach and engage millions of members and improve their health.  SafeLink Health Solutions, a service of TracFone Wireless, was created to assist partners such as Amerigroup to stay connected with their Medicaid population. Customers receive a phone, unlimited text messages, 250 minutes each month and calls to Amerigroup’s member services all at no cost.

Juniper Research’s latest report on the mHealth market forecasts cumulative cost savings from remote patient monitoring of up to 36 billion USD globally over the next five years – under Juniper’s most optimistic forecast scenario.

Sleep infographic from the NIH – http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/news/spotlight/fact-sheet/sleep-disorders-insufficient-sleep-improving-health-through-research.html

“Designing an Effective Behavior Change Platform” unveils the findings of a comprehensive research effort into how mobile is currently used to influence behavior, and identifies best practices within a new Mobiquity framework that furthers the goal of using mobile to achieve beneficial behavior change.

Three types of managerial activities can make a capability dynamic: sensing (which means identifying and assessing opportunities outside your company), seizing (mobilizing your resources to capture value from those opportunities), and transforming (continuous renewal). This framework, which I described in my paper “Explicating Dynamic Capabilities” [Strategic Management Journal, Dec. 2007] explains how to get the future right: how to position today’s resources properly for tomorrow.  (David Teece)

Great TED-Ed video “How to sequence the human genome”. http://lnkd.in/brdYsJf 




Turn our genes on and off like dip switches? A great and far-reaching conversation between Richard Dawkins & Neil deGrasse Tyson (1hr 17mins) http://lnkd.in/b2vKf_U

“The approach of the medical establishment to health care is to cure disease, and yet the potential exists, given the appropriate focus and funding, to eliminate most diseases.” http://lnkd.in/baM5gb6 


Gluten and carbohydrates may be at the root of Alzheimer’s disease, anxiety, depression, and ADHD. Dr. David Perlmutter is author of “Grain Brain: The surprising truth about wheat, carbs, and sugar; your brain’s silent killers” http://lnkd.in/buBmYmi

Top 10 Genetics Stories of 2013. http://lnkd.in/bXQKtzp

These last 5 are from Paul Sonnier’s newletter.  You can see an infographic on digital health by him here – http://storyofdigitalhealth.com/info graphic

Up is turning data into infographics if you haven’t seen any of them – http://jawbone.tumblr.com/post/69082031058/bookworms-bikers-or-bi-coastal-jet-laggers-the

One thing I think many healthcare companies miss is the customer experience perspective.  You should look at Bruce’s top 20 posts from 2013 on this topic – http://experiencematters.wordpress.com/2013/12/26/20-most-popular-cx-matters-posts-in-2013/

Keas (www.keas.com), the market leader in employee health and engagement programs, today announced the results of its 2014 Health Trends Survey. Employees have health at top of mind for 2014, with 82 percent resolving to lose weight, exercise more, or reduce stress in the New Year — and they are looking to their employers to create company cultures of health to help them make these resolutions stick. Employees report that key motivators would be cash and prize rewards for participating in corporate health programs (55 percent) and access to health programs and on-site gyms and fitness classes (38 percent).

THE NEW YORK TIMES: As Hospital Prices Soar, a Single Stitch Tops $500 – Hospital pricing is often convoluted, and hospital charges represent about a third of the total United States health care bill. In the latest installment of her health series, Paying Till It Hurts, Elizabeth Rosenthal focuses on the high price of getting stitches in an emergency room, one of the simplest procedures imaginable.  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/03/health/as-hospital-costs-soar-single-stitch-tops-500.html

Story about HHS and copay cards – http://aishealth.com/archive/ndbn112213-01?utm_source=Real%20Magnet&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=28181988

An infographic comparing US healthcare to the world based on WHO data – http://publichealthonline.gwu.edu/us-health-care-vs-the-world/

Holidays increase stress for everyone, especially caregivers. A new APA study found that more than 6 out of 10 Americans report significantly more stress during the holidays, and most of these are women. (Here’s the link.) 

The five semi-finalists in the Merck I Heritage Provider Network Innovation Challenge, a crowdsourcing competition that offers a total prize purse of $240,000 for breakthroughs in diabetes and heart disease research.

·         Fit4D (@Fit4D): Fit4D has developed a scalable and personalized program using an optimized mix of its Pathways technology platform and expert clinical service providers. The platform synthesizes workflow, data capture, device integration, and reporting– enabling personalized service delivery via coaches within Fit4D’s national network of nurses, dietitians, exercise physiologists, social workers & pharmacists. (http://fit4d.com )

 

·         Frame Health: Frame Health leverages the world’s largest personality characteristic database to produce comprehensive patient adherence profiles for the first time. In a 6 minute session, the platform determines the psychological triggers that will be most effective to use to attain medical adherence with each patient. (http://www.framehealth.com )

 

·         Sense Health (@SenseHealth): Sense Health crafts interactive conversations so providers can better support patients in between appointments. The Sense Health concept helps providers both create care plans and monitor care plans (and thus patient progress), while delivering SMS support to patients. (http://www.sensehealth.com )

 

·         Vital Score (@VitalScore): Vital Score is a new vital sign for the primary care visit, modeled on the APGAR score and checklist — simple interventions that radically improve care. Now, for the first time, the behavioral referral — whether for smoking cessation, medication adherence or care management — is as easy as writing a prescription. (http://vitalscorehealth.com )


·         Well Frame (@WellFrame): Wellframe reinvents the care plan using mobile devices, artificial intelligence, and human-centered process redesign. Wellframe has developed a clinically proven proprietary method of delivering care plans to patients as dynamically generated personalized multimedia daily to-do lists on mobile devices. (http://www.wellfra.me)

An article and interview with the author of The Lean Startup – http://www.strategy-business.com/article/00224?gko=82198&cid=TL20131121&utm_campaign=TL20131121

Healthcare Shifts from à la Carte to Prix Fixe article – http://www.strategy-business.com/article/00220?gko=4b689&cid=20131119enews&utm_campaign=20131119enews

Aetna (NYSE: ΑET) and Consultants in Medical Oncology and Hematology, PC (CMOH) have launched a first-of-its-kind patient-centered medical home model for oncology. Combining the proven results of evidence-based decision support in cancer care, enhanced personalized services, and realigned payment structure, Aetna and CMOH are collaborating to help increase treatment coordination, improve quality outcomes and reduce costs.

More to come as I catch up…

Healthcare

Verizon As A Healthcare Company? – Converged Health Management

December 20, 2013 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

You know that something has become mainstream when the large Fortune 500 companies (not already in healthcare) begin to jump into the space.  So while some people in healthcare are still trying to figure out what to do about remote monitoring, Verizon has jumped into the pool with their Converged Health Management solution. 

Now, don’t forget, people have been forecasting huge growth in this space while at the same time some of the start-ups in this space haven’t taken off as fast as expected.

I was hoping to talk with Verizon about this new effort, but they declined.  Since I had already prepared to interview them, I’m sharing my thoughts here.

What is Verizon doing in healthcare?

Verizon appears to be doing several things in healthcare.  While a lot of it is critical but less exciting back-office technology, they are starting to move into more of a consumer strategy (I think).

  • Networking
  • Cloud connectivity
  • Mobile
  • Security

What is Converged Health Management?

Converged Health Management is a “remote patient-monitoring medical platform designed to help clinicians and patients manage patients’ health in between doctor visits.”  This sounds really intriguing.  I was hoping to find out more about the device, the apps, the data, the platform, and how this is being integrated into the provider workflow.  But, for now, I’ll have to live with this video.

Why is this important?

This is important because about 50% of consumers have a chronic disease, and there’s no cost effective way to manage and monitor these consumers without using technology.  Remote monitoring of patients to provide a “bridge” between physician visits and nurse consultations is critical.  But, there are several key issues to be addressed:

  • How does the device get “prescribed” to the patient?
  • How does the patient learn to use the device?
  • How easy is it to set up the device?
  • What is the cost of the device?
  • What data is captured by the device?
  • How is this data transmitted and to whom?
  • How is the data used by the patient?
  • How is the data used by the clinician?
  • How does the solution change patient behavior?
  • What rules are written to monitor the data to create escalations to the physician, their care manager, or their caregivers?
  • How are outcomes demonstrated?
  • What is the ROI?

What I learned from the Press Release…And More Questions

I was able to learn some things from the latest press release on this solution, but it also drove lots of questions:

  • “The Converged Health Management solution enables patients to use biometric devices to take health information such as blood pressure, oxygen saturation levels, glucose levels and weight from home or on the go.” [Who provides the devices?  Are these additional costs?  How are they coordinated?]
  • “Patient data is then automatically transmitted through a wireless connection to a secure server that resides in Verizon’s HIPAA-ready cloud for analysis and intervention by the patient’s clinician, including a reward system that incents patients to make healthier lifestyle choices.” [Does the MD have to log-in to a portal?  Can the data be pushed to their EMR?  What is the reward system?  Who’s running that?  Are the rewards financial?]
  • “Patients can access this information and find personalized health-enhancing suggestions via the Converged Health Management smartphone app or Web portal.  [Is this free?  Can I use it or does my plan / employer have to sign up for it?  Who provides technology and member support for this?  How many people are using it?  What’s their response been?]
  • “As part of their health program, patients can take advantage of related health information, including videos and webinars.”  [Who provides the health information?  Is it URAC or NCQA accredited?  How does this integrate with the information from their health plan?  Does the nurse and physician have access to see the same information?  Can they see what information the consumer has accessed?]
  • “In addition, patients can connect anonymously with other patients in a secure “social networking” environment, where they can ask questions, and share ideas and experiences.”  [Is this like PatientsLikeMe?  Is the data sold to pharma?  Is the environment monitored?  Does Verizon provide experts to share opinions here?]
Care Management, Healthcare, mHealth, Technology

New Harris Interactive Data Supports Focus On Hospitals And Retailers

December 16, 2013 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

As I’ve discussed before, trust is critical in engaging consumers.  The question always is “Who does the consumer trust in healthcare?”  We certainly know that individuals like physicians, nurses, and pharmacists are trusted, but they often aren’t the ones doing the big campaigns to engage consumers.  It’s the pharma manufacturers, the hospitals, the PBMs, the payers, the retail pharmacies, and other entities.  In my presentation at the CBI conference, I hypothesized that this is why retail pharmacy should (could) take a bigger role in the future.

The new survey from Harris Interactive reinforces that.  Of course, 42% of people don’t believe any companies, but with some healthcare companies being barely trusted more than tobacco companies, consumer engagement isn’t easy.

Harris Interactive - Trusted Industries 2013

The additional bad news from the survey is that people think more regulation is necessary in healthcare.

Harris Interactive - Regulated Industries 2013

 

Books / Articles, Healthcare, Research

Interview With IMS Health About AppScript – #mHealth13

December 10, 2013 by George Van Antwerp 1 Comment

“Today, there is growing recognition of mobile health’s potential to transform healthcare – to advance doctor/patient engagement and empower consumers to better monitor and manage their own health,” said Stefan Linn, senior vice president, Strategy & Global Pharma Solutions, IMS Health. “That potential can only be realized through a systematic evaluation of the clinical benefits of healthcare apps, clear professional guidelines around their use, and effective integration of apps with other aspects of patient care. With these game-changing solutions, IMS Health is establishing an intelligent, secure infrastructure for mobile health, backed by our market-leading real-world evidence capabilities and the most advanced technology platform in healthcare.”

Most of you that read the blog on a regular basis know that I was really intrigued by the idea of “prescribing information and technology” early on.  With 90,000 different health related applications, the question is which ones should you use and how should you find out about them.  Happtique started to get into this space earlier in the year, and I spoke with them at length about integrating this into a care management platform.

I was really surprised to learn that IMS Health which I think of as a healthcare data company was jumping into this space.

IMS Health is the world’s leading information, services and technology company dedicated to making healthcare perform better.

By applying cutting-edge analytics and proprietary application suites hosted on the IMS One intelligent cloud, the company connects more than 10 petabytes of complex healthcare data on diseases, treatments, costs and outcomes to enable our clients to run their operations more efficiently.

Drawing on information from 100,000 suppliers, and on insights from more than 40 billion healthcare transactions processed annually, IMS Health’s 9,000+ expert resources drive results for over 5,000 healthcare clients globally.

Customers include pharmaceutical, medical device and consumer health manufacturers and distributors, providers, payers, government agencies, policymakers, researchers and the financial community.

I talked with Matt Tindall who’s their Director of Consumer Solutions about this a few days ago (but was waiting for their press release to be out and their presentation at the mHealth Summit – which I am very disappointed to be missing for the second year in a row.)

I also read their press release about their new solutions.

IMS Health today announced the immediate availability of AppScriptTM, an mHealth app prescribing solution designed to help healthcare providers and health plans create proprietary formularies based on an objective assessment of healthcare app functionality and value. The company also announced the launch of AppNucleusTM, its customizable, cloud-based hosting platform that will enable developers to build secure, industry-compliant healthcare apps at very low cost. Both new products will leverage IMS Health’s comprehensive data on diseases, treatments, costs and outcomes.

The AppScript Software-as-a-Service solution classifies and evaluates more than 40,000 mobile healthcare apps currently available for download on iOS and Android platforms, categorized by stage of the patient journey. Each app is assessed using the company’s proprietary IMS Health AppScore, which ranks apps based on functionality, peer and patient reviews, certifications, and their potential to improve outcomes and lower the cost of care. As part of wellness, prevention and treatment regimens, physicians can organize these apps into formularies based on their specific patient population and practice preferences. In addition, AppScript enables them to securely prescribe, reconcile and track app use by patients from any mobile interface.

AppNucleus is the company’s innovative healthcare app development and hosting platform that makes it easier for app developers to offer HIPAA- and HITECH-compliant solutions. The platform, compatible with all mobile operating systems, uniquely integrates IMS Health information and analytics at every stage of app development to support design and performance evaluation decisions. AppNucleus features a suite of plug-and-play solutions, enabling patients and physicians to exchange health information on mobile devices via a secure, encrypted channel to protect patient information. It also offers app developers a highly economical way to build security into their apps and protect patient information.

Here’s my notes and key observations:

First off, I quickly learned that I missed a very interesting report that they put out in October.  This report titled “Patient Apps for Improved Healthcare: From Novelty to Mainstream” has lots of great information which I share below.  It also is essentially the business case for these new solutions.

In talking with Matt, he shared with me how IMS Health, a 60 year old company, is using their consumer solutions group to transform how people learn and manage their health.  He talked about how they want to make mobile safer, more effective, and easier.

I really wanted to understand how they determined where to look given all the apps out there.  A lot of it is in the report, but he shared how they looked at 40,000 apps and used over 25 different criteria (such as type of information, functionality, communication process used) and peer reviews to determine a shorter list to focus on.

We discussion how the short-term success of mobile is engagement, but the long-term success will have to be tied to clinical outcomes.

He walked me through the process for getting the app prescribed:

  • The physician would be using a white labeled platform (provided by their health plan, provider group, others).
  • They would select an app based on a curated formulary.
  • The patient would get a secure e-mail or a text message with a link to the app.
  • The patient would follow the link and enter a proprietary passcode.
  • This would take them into the app store.
  • They can then download the app.

This process will allow them to track “intent to download” and then whether they did download.  The key next step will be partnering with the apps and getting the patient consent to pull data back to know not only if it was downloaded but whether it was used and how often.  And, ultimately, this will have to be integrated with the provider platform.

We talked a little bit about why IMS and he talked about their knowledge of the prescriber and ability to recommend apps for their formulary based on their patterns of prescribing.

Ultimately, I think they may be in a good position to succeed here.  I think there are several key questions:

  • How are the apps evaluated?  Do clinicians evaluate the clinical algorithms?
  • How do you determine the financial viability of the apps?  Are they one-hit wonders or shiny objects or will they be around for years.
  • How do you modify the “formulary” based on user and prescriber feedback?
  • How do you integrate the tools into the physician’s workflow?
  • How comfortable will the physicians have to be with each app?  (Won’t the users have questions for them and will that be a barrier?)

From their report on healthcare apps:

  • Only about ½ of the 40,000 apps they looked at justified a deeper dive.

IMS Consumer App Functionality

  • They categorized the apps by:
    • Inform: Provide information in a variety of formats (text, photo, video)
    • Instruct: Provide instructions to the user
    • Record: Capture user entered data
    • Display: Graphically display user entered data/output user entered data
    • Guide: Provide guidance based on user entered information, and may further offer a diagnosis, or recommend a consultation with a physician/a course of treatment
    • Remind/Alert: Provide reminders to the user
    • Communicate: Provide communication with HCP/patients and/or provide links to social networks

They also looked at apps by therapy area and by which part of the patient journey they focus on.

IMS Apps By Patient Journey

“There’s a group [of patients] who each have several medical problems and often they have several specialists, all making recommendations. It’s often overwhelming for the patient and for the caregiver. They get overwhelmed by the number of pills and the number of recommendations that they have been given, so I feel that if everybody starts prescribing apps it could quickly lead to app overload”

Leslie Kernisan – Geriatrician and caregiver educator

IMS MD Hurdles To Apps IMS App Maturity Model

 

Books / Articles, Healthcare, Innovation, mHealth, Press, Technology

Interview With Kent Dicks From Alere Connect – #mHealth13

December 9, 2013 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

While I couldn’t make it to DC for the mHealth Summit to take advantage of my press pass.  I did get the chance to set up interviews with some of the presenters. 

This morning, I met with Kent Dicks who’s the CEO of Alere Connect. 

From the Alere website:

Alere™ Connect develops remote health monitoring devices that deliver streamlined, cost-effective connectivity and automated transmission of secure health information across patient home, care provider, and electronic medical records. Our goal is to drive down healthcare costs by improving workflow efficiencies, patient compliance and care delivery.

Our devices provide a gateway to the Alere CloudCare™ platform, a comprehensive health information platform and suite of cloud-based tools that enables healthcare practitioners to extend their services to a broader patient population, and experience the proactive, cost-avoidance benefits and efficiencies associated with remote health monitoring. 

Kent Dicks’ bio from the Alere website:

Kent Dicks has over 25 years of successful entrepreneurial experience providing dynamic and strategic leadership in the demanding environments of Information Technology, Engineering and Aerospace/Defense. As a results-oriented leader and entrepreneur, with a strong performance record, Mr. Dicks brings his expertise in identifying niches within specific markets and his aptitude for innovation, to the field of Telehealth, specifically remote patient monitoring.

 In 2006, Mr. Dicks formed MedApps, Inc., taking his unique vision and business model for a wireless health monitoring system from concept to market innovator, at the forefront of mHealth (mobile health) today. Under Mr. Dicks’ leadership, Alere™ Connect (formerly MedApps) has developed a comprehensive remote patient monitoring system that incorporates wireless, M2M and cloud computing technologies to bring user-friendly hardware, with robust software and applications, to deliver a pioneering healthcare solution to market.

Mr. Dicks’ innovative work in this field has been acknowledged by industry and government organizations alike. As Founder and CEO of Alere™ Connect (formerly MedApps,) Mr. Dicks actively speaks on industry and government panels, discussing wireless technology’s growing role in healthcare.

As I told his PR people, I was really interesting in learning about how Alere is integrating mobile and remote monitoring into their care solutions. 

Here were my key takeaways:

  • MedApps is one of 90 companies that Alere has acquired over the years.  These include companies for Health Information Exchanges (HIEs), analytics, and informatics on top of the more traditional care management services. 
  • Kent has been working in this area for the past 6 years trying to establish the marketplace.  He pointed out some of the challenges of disparate systems and viewpoints with no common platform.  There is a definite need for some consolidation. 
  • He said that they are focused on building “the Onion” where clients can pick and choose what they want in terms of services and technology.  (i.e., a one-stop shop for customers)
  • We talked a lot about mobile and smartphones.  I’ve talked to a lot of people over the years, but he’s one of the first that wasn’t overly enamored with the promise of the ubiquitous smartphone.  He’s trying to solve the problem of mobile engagement for the 15% of people driving healthcare costs and acknowledges that they may be elderly and indigent.  If they have cell phones, they might be pre-paid ones.  They may not have WiFi at home. 
  • He talked about their efforts to develop an end-to-end solution that integrates with the cloud sending small packets of data.  We also talked a little about how Partners is giving this to people who are less technology savvy based on their initial experiences.
  • He also mentioned CardioCom and Ideal Life as two companies with similar focus on this 15% of patients and using technology to address their needs.
  • He said that Alere is already one of the largest users of remote monitoring and will deploying the solutions to tens of thousands of patients this next year. 
  • We talked about simplicity and having the user do nothing but press a button where updates can be pushed to them and their devices through the hub.  I think this is critical.  We also talked about my experiences with a hypertension remote monitoring program and the challenge of educating the consumer.  It’s one thing to make the device simple to use.  You still have to get the patient to use the device on a regular basis and use it properly.  We both agree that this is still a huge barrier. 
  • Another challenge we talked about is creating too much data.  As we put devices in the home, we have to have ways to assimilate the data in an organized manner and then run algorithms on the data to put it into context based on age, weight, gender, disease, and other factors.  Then, that has to be linked into an automated workflow to trigger a communication, a message on the device, or a call from a nurse. 
  • We talked more about clinicians and devices.  He had a good point about “making clinicians be clinicians not technicians”.  I think that gets lost sometime. 
  • He also pointed out that one of the big value propositions is that a real-time monitoring solution helps the nurses to focus on the right population that’s not being compliant.  That’s a win for both the consumer and the nurse. 
  • He said they have 40,000 people on remote monitoring today and are finding it extremely cost effective.  They’re not using it with every patient, but with the sickest of the sick.  As they’ve dropped cost, this allows them to keep the devices with patients longer as they’ve seen others only use them for 90-120 days. 
  • He talked about using the technology to reduce 30-day re-admission rates. 
  • My last topic of discussion was how to use this to help the provider (think ACO or PCMH).  He talked about the fact that providers want integrated data in one place with key information.  They’ve developed a portal for providers and are working with Virtua to integrate it into their EMR. 

It was a great discussion.  He seems to have some great experience in the space blended with a practical approach to what needs to get done and how to get it done.  There are a lot of shiny objects in this space.  Kent seems to have a good long-term approach as to how to make this into an integrated strategy that could ultimately move the needle for Alere.  

Healthcare
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Could The Blues Build Their Own Optum?

December 4, 2013 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

I’ve suggested this to a few people in the Blues community, but the recent projections from United Health Group about the growth in their Optum business unit compared to the rest of their business got me thinking about it again.  

Image

If you think about Optum, they were basically composed of Ingenix (data and consulting), Prescription Solutions (PBM), and Optum which included utilization management, disease management, wellness, case management and many other services.  

So, if we look at the Blues today, they have several investments that could be used to create an Optum competitor.

If you pulled some of the services back out of the Blues that they’ve insourced over the past few years from companies like Healthways, they would have all the technology and services that Optum has.  They would need a few Centers of Excellence models which I don’t know that they have, but if this is the growth engine for the healthcare industry, there seems to be some great opportunities here.  

Healthcare

Are Sports Good For Kids?

December 2, 2013 by George Van Antwerp 0 Comments

This was an interesting question that I was thinking about this morning.

I could take this several directions:

  • I could look at the benefits of exercise from sports (assuming the kids actually got enough exercise in practice – see older blog post).
  • I could look at the benefits of working in a team which I see from team sports.
  • I could look at the recovery benefits of losing and coming back which is very important in business and life. (how do you handle adversity)
  • I could look at the dangers of sports.
  • I could look at concussions in football and the discussion of helmets for soccer.
  • I could look at the negative impacts of parents on their kids relative to sports.
    • Fighting at sport events.
    • Pushing their kids too far.  (below are some things I’ve heard and seen)
      • Just keep running even if you throw up.  You’ll be fine.
      • If you have to pee, just pee in your swim suit.  You can’t be distracted during the meet.
      • If you do that again, we’re going to get up at 5 in the morning and go to the gym and practice it 100x before school.
      • You need to work harder so you can be in the Olympics at 16.
      • This is our college plan.  They have to be the best at this sport.
      • I pulled them out of school so they could practice more.  (The kid was 7.)

But, I saw an article about the time that kids start school, and it got me thinking about sleep and sports and the impact on kids.

Let’s start with some established facts:

sleep guidelines

Now, let’s assume most grade schools start around 8:00.  (My kid’s school starts at 7:30.)  That means that they likely have to get up by 7:00 at the latest.  So, they should be in bed by 9:00 PM on average probably earlier for most kids and families where people are catching the bus or driving to school.

If their sports are starting practice or games after 6:00 PM, how likely is it that they’re home, calmed down, with their homework finished, and in bed by 9:00 PM?  Even if they are, how many parents are getting their kids to bed by 9:00?

“Sleep may be the most important, though overlooked, contributor to your children’s development and health. The reality is that children can survive without exercise and on little food (though I don’t recommend either), but all children need sleep. It’s often unnoticed because you don’t usually see your children sleeping and its benefits are not readily apparent (though its costs usually are).

The influence of sleep on children is profound. Quality sleep has been found to be associated with improved attention, reduced stress, greater emotional control, better mood, improved memory, greater ability to learn and return information, better grades, improved mental health, lower risk of obesity and other health problems, and longer life.” (From a good article on kid’s sleep in the Huffington Post)

So, just to be clear…I think kids should be in sports.  I just think we (as parents) need to be more concerned about making sure we don’t sacrifice our kid’s sleep on a regular basis for them to play sports and lead them into health issues and school issues.  The tradeoff isn’t worth it.  (IMHO)

Books / Articles, exercise, General Thoughts, Healthcare, Research