Health Information management and its scope of application is a highly strategic product of mapping out processes and identification of precise information block for further processing. For the healthcare organization, the decision to outsource is more than just freeing up time and saving up on costly data entry tasks. Instead, these organizations are looking for more than data entry as providers for health information shared services now offer an end to end processing system that will streamline the organization’s information procedures.

Aside from information streamlining, other values such adopting standards via service platforms offer organizations the capability to augment their data protection and information handling capabilities.

As health information is being reshaped by standards, compliance and direct market influences from vendors, patients and movement by healthcare providers, the climate of the industry remains as challenging as ever where administration resources are being strained by the sheer volume of information being processed, on-demand and with compliance being a strict measure.

Decision Making

By entering a shared services agreement in health information process outsourcing, the healthcare organization must look at the outsourcing provider’s overall capability and the values being absorbed by the organization:

• Industry certification of information processing
• Operating platform
• Security and Privacy
• Process Management
• Risk and Business continuity measures

In understanding the above, the organization and shared service provider can engage in a highly-customized and efficient process setup where roles are defined, challenges addressed and monitor key areas of performance.

More than Cost

Traditionally, outsourcing entailed cutting cost as the primary reason to act on this route. Today, value-based incentives are variables that organizations must recognize when signing an agreement with a shared service provider. In an outsourced setup, your internal fixed costs are often converted into variable costs which is calculated either through rates agreed upon or metered as an inclusive service. Lowering cost still matters but cost itself is a variable where cost is not just limited to X amount of hours incurred with the existing overhead. There are costs that are incurred through resources spent and time spent in completing an information process cycle.

If a shared service setup lowers your cost projections while augmenting your efficiency, then you are achieving the streamlined objective.

Time and Efficiency

The timeframe needed to implement the shared service setup is a factor that has its own set of tasks for the organization and the shared service vendor. The whole setup is not a plug and play agreement that you can start right away. There is a blueprint in transitioning from your existing operations blueprint to the shared service setup. During the nurturing stage, optimal process time splits may need to be taken into account for benchmarking. This way, data processing information can be proactively optimized for even greater efficiency.

Industry Factors

The decision for many healthcare organizations to outsource parts of their information processing chain is driven by industry factors. These factors are often based on compliance certificates, achieving certain operating standards or simply the market forces that drive up demand for the volume of data needed – which in turn, strains our data processing system. When engaging a shared service provider, make sure that the market challenges where your internal operations are lacking is being augmented through reinforcing quality and improving your processing times.

As the industry is adopting technology platforms such as Blockchain, Analytics and Artificial Intelligence, shared service providers are also procuring the same provisions in order to keep up with the industry challenges as technology has been proven to solve industry problems through solutions.

When considering a shared service provider, a vendor’s capabilities in technology should be greatly considered as well as their market reputation in order for healthcare organizations to greatly benefit when outsourcing health information.

DynaQuest is a Health Information Management Outsourcing company in the Philippines and is among the providers that have a good track record of supplying outsourced health administration services through working with healthcare organizations in identifying their cost drivers, process stoppers and other business challenges. The company is crafting a unique outsourced service based on customized roles and process applications. With Blockchain, DynaQuest works with a number of accelerator programs to form an effective network that consists of consultants, administrators, developers and specialized support to help healthcare organizations transition into Blockchain.