Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/182667
Executive Briefing: Value-Based Contracting 24 1. Optimize network management. A fundamental principle of value-based contracting is finding the physicians who deliver the most appropriate care in the most appropriate setting at the lowest cost. Dr. Snowden says physicians can be lowcost, high-quality providers if they utilize the right subspecialists and structure a network around those subspecialists. For example, if organizations direct heart patients to the most efficient, highest-quality cardiologists, and those cardiologists use high-quality subspecialists, suddenly the organization has built a highfunctioning network. Dr. Snowden says at Optum, he and others have seen an average of $10,000 to $15,000 in medical cost savings for care provided by a higher-performing specialist. "Physicians are quickly learning they can meet most quality and cost metrics by simply analyzing which of the subspecialists they use most often are delivering the best care," he says. Hospitals and physicians need to focus on making seamless transitions because a bad handoff could potentially lead to poor outcomes and higher costs. 2. Manage care transitions across the continuum of care. The healthcare system is split predominantly into two categories: inpatient, facility-based care and outpatient, ambulatory-based care. The handoff between the two groups can often be "tricky," Dr. Snowden says. "Hospitals have done a good job of preparing people to exit the hospital door, but discharge planning assumes the patient understands the instructions," he says. "No one in the hospital setting is following Unexplored terrain is an opportunity for stronger collaboration. Mapping the next level of transitions across the continuum of care www.optum.com/journey the patient down the street and back home to make sure there are no physical/mental/ community barriers." Hospitals and physicians need to focus on making seamless transitions because a bad handoff could potentially lead to poor outcomes and higher costs. Poor care coordination also does not live up to the goal of taking care of a defined population, Dr. Snowden says. He recommends including physician gain sharing incentives in value-based contracts so physicians will have a finan-