Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1544994
58 RCM LEADER True ROI of health tech, according to finance leaders By Scott King, Writer and Event Specialist, Becker's Healthcare In revenue cycle and finance, the pressure to demonstrate a clear, measurable return on technology investment has never been greater. Health systems are being asked to do more with less — reduce denials, accelerate cash flow, lower the cost to collect, and free up staff to focus on higher-value work — all while navigating an increasingly complex payer landscape. For finance and revenue cycle leaders, technology is no longer a back-office convenience; it is a strategic lever that can determine whether an organization operates in the black or struggles to sustain its mission. Yet even among those closest to the numbers, a consensus is forming that financial ROI alone is an incomplete measure. e leaders driving revenue cycle transformation today are looking beyond spreadsheets and dashboards to ask deeper questions: Does this technology make our people more effective? Does it reduce friction for patients navigating the financial side of their care? Does it create capacity that can be reinvested in the work that matters most? Becker's asked 13 finance leaders in healthcare how they define ROI for a technology their system invests in. e leaders featured below are speaking at Becker's 11th Annual Health IT + Digital Health + RCM Conference, set for Sept. 14-17 at the Hilton Chicago. As part of an ongoing series, Becker's is connecting with healthcare leaders who will speak at the event to get their perspectives on key issues in the industry. Editor's note: Responses have been lightly edited for clarity and length. Question: How do you define ROI for technology? Marji Karlin. Chief Revenue Officer for NYC Health + Hospitals (New York City): ere are so many factors that go into demonstrating ROI for healthcare technology. e calculation is fairly nuanced to the type of technology we're considering. ere are some obvious metrics, such as direct cost savings, revenue li or risk-based returns. For some technology we'd consider clinical outcome metrics, and for others we'd look at operational efficiencies, clinician experience, or patient experience. Regardless of which metrics are chosen, it is always critical to define the measures of success up front. Atek Pandya. Director of Revenue Cycle for Northwestern Memorial Healthcare (Chicago): I define direct ROI in technology by how much capacity it gives back to us. Since technology can either reduce or replace human intervention, it is important to measure the human component, and not just the dollars. In many cases, technology does not bring in the dollars directly, but if we can measure and repurpose that capacity it creates to getting people to work at the top of their capabilities, the ROI will be seen in the aggregate of cost, satisfaction and overall output. Tatyana Sushkina. Director of Revenue Cycle for Prosser (Wash.) Memorial Hospital: For me, ROI on technology isn't just about whether the numbers add up on paper. It's about whether it actually makes our lives easier and improves the financial health of the organization. If a tool helps us bring in cash faster, reduce denials, lower our cost to collect, or allows our team to focus on meaningful work instead of chasing claim statuses all day, that's a real return. In revenue cycle, where resources are always tight and expectations keep growing, good technology should help us do more with the people we already have, not just give us another dashboard to look at. I also look at whether the technology makes processes smoother for both staff and patients. If it reduces manual work, prevents errors and helps our team spend less time fighting the system and more time solving real problems, that's a win. And if it improves the patient financial experience along the way, even better. At the end of the day, ROI means the technology actually works for us, not the other way around. Otherwise, it's just an expensive way to make everyone click more buttons. Aron Klein. Vice President of Finance Operations and Supply Chain for Carle Health (Urbana, Ill.): Historically, Carle Health has focused the determination of ROI related to technology adoption in the revenue cycle space as a metric focused on revenue enhancement through improved realization rate or extending staff bandwidth. ese can be challenging metrics to measure due to the number of variables involved. e historical metrics we've tracked include soer metrics such as assigning a value to the calculation of staff capacity gains as well as proactive denial avoidance through automation of prior authorization processes. However, as we continue to push forward with additional investment and adoption in the technology space, we are focused on harder metrics like FTE and salary savings along with the efficiencies we create to reduce organizational overhead costs, making the system more affordable for our patients. We're focusing our metrics on improved yield and incremental collections per FTE including near real-time (weekly tracking) of net revenue and cash realization per FTE. is includes measuring legacy metrics like Cost to Collect, but also looking at our revenue cycle costs as a percentage of our system overhead expense and comparison to external benchmarks to create the most efficient team and processes possible while minimizing fatal denials. Sheila Augustine. Director of Revenue Cycle for Nebraska Medicine (Omaha): Defining return on investment for technology in healthcare can be particularly challenging because the value extends far beyond direct financial gains. While traditional ROI focuses on measurable cost savings or revenue increases, many healthcare technologies deliver benefits that are indirect, long term or difficult to quantify, such as improved patient outcomes, enhanced safety, reduced clinician burnout and better care coordination. ese complexities make it difficult to isolate the technology's true contribution and assign it a clear monetary value, requiring a broader, more holistic approach to evaluating ROI that includes both quantitative and qualitative outcomes. Kathleen Moriarty. Senior Director of Case Management for Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago: We continue to refine our work and utilize technology to establish the ROI. I support RN teams (utilization management team, denial team) that participate in the mid-revenue cycle functions. We are gaining efficiencies utilizing automation that reduces the time staff spend managing denials, allowing them to focus on more high dollar claims that need specific clinical acumen in the pediatric space. I am a huge advocate of patient/family and staff satisfaction. Streamlining processes can lead to a quicker resolution for patients, families and our staff. Trust is built with our families; the staff can celebrate denial prevention (UM team) and overturn rates (denial team) and PFS get rewarded with an increase in accounts receivable.