Benchmarking gauges total customer experience
Benchmarking gauges total customer experience
MGMA conference outlines steps
Benchmarking is fundamentally linked to continuous quality improvement, and the two should be implemented together, said Stephen M. Shortell, PhD, a leading health services researcher who spoke at a recent conference sponsored by the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) in Englewood, CO.
"Integrative benchmarking" provides measures across the continuum of care and looks at how various health care processes affect patient satisfaction and the "total customer experience," Shortell said, who is a Blue Cross distinguished professor of health policy and management and professor of organization behavior at the University of California, Berkley, at the School of Public Health.
He contrasted that approach to data collection focused on isolated episodes of care or projects that track cost without considering patient satisfaction. Medical groups also need to know how to use data to improve processes, he said.
"CQI is a building block," Shortell told physicians and practice managers at the June conference in Chicago, which was cosponsored by North-western University's J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management in Evanston, IL. "Don't try to do benchmarking if you haven't had strong experience in CQI. It won't produce meaningful, long-lasting results."
MGMA is promoting benchmarking through its upcoming Physician Profiling product, annual cost survey, and practice comparisons. At the conference, MGMA Survey Operations director David N. Gans, MSHA, CMPE, offered these 10 steps to benchmarking:
1. Establish practice objectives.
2. Identify performance indicators.
3. Identify available benchmark sources
4. Collect data.
5. Perform data comparison and variance assessment.
6. Communicate findings.
7. Develop action and assessment plans.
8. Implement plans and monitor progress.
9. Assess practice objectives, evaluate benchmark standards, and recalibrate measurements.
10. Repeat the steps.
Measuring Health Outcomes Using Patient-Reported Data - Sept. 14, Minneapolis. Sponsored by Stratis Health, 2901 Metro Drive, Suite 400, Bloomington, MN 55425-1525. Telephone: (612) 853-1817. Fax: (612) 858-9189. E-mail: [email protected].
Moving to Quality: Advanced Techniques for Designing Effective QI Studies - Sept. 17-18, San Diego. Sponsored by the National Committee for Quality Assurance, Education Department, 2000 L Street, N.W., Suite 500, Washington, DC 20036. Telephone: (202) 955-5697. Fax: (202) 955-3531. E-mail: [email protected]. World Wide Web: http://www.ncqa.org.
23rd Annual Educational Conference - Sept. 26-30, San Diego. Sponsored by the National Association for Healthcare Quality, 4700 W. Lake Ave., Glenview, IL 60025. Telephone: (800) 966-9392. Fax: (847) 375-4777. E-mail: [email protected]. World Wide Web: http://www.nahq.org.
Medical Group Management Association 72nd Annual Conference - Oct. 4-7, Denver. Sponsored by MGMA, 104 Inverness Terrace East, Englewood, CO 80112-5306. Telephone: (303) 799-1111. Fax: (303) 643-4427. World Wide Web: http://www.mgma.com.
5th Annual Congress on Health Outcomes & Accountability - Oct. 11-13, San Diego. Sponsored by The Zitter Group, 90 New Montgomery, 8th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105. Telephone: (800) 270-8440 or (650) 326-7790. Fax: (650) 326-3945. World Wide Web: http://www.zitter.com.
The following are sources used in this month's issue of Patient Satisfaction & Outcomes Management.
American Medical Accreditation Program, Chicago. William Jessee, MD, Vice President for Quality and Managed Care. Telephone: (888) 881-AMAP.
American Medical Group Association, Alexandria, VA. Julie Sanderson-Austin, Vice President, Operations and Quality Management and Research. Telephone: (703) 838-0033, ext. 356. E-mail: [email protected].
Foundation Health Systems, Woodland Hills, CA. Ron Halbert, MD, Director, Quality Initiatives Clinical Operations. Telephone: (818) 676-8694. E-mail: [email protected].
Lawson & Associates, Sacramento, CA. Alfredo Czerwinski, MD, Principal. Telephone: (916) 455-2083.
MEDSTAT Group, Ann Arbor, MI. Andree Joyaux, Manager. Telephone: (313) 913-3295.
National Committee for Quality Assurance, Washington, DC. Barry Scholl, Spokesman. Telephone: (202) 955-5197.
PacifiCare Health Systems, Santa Ana, CA. Sam Ho, MD, Vice President and Corporate Medical Director. Telephone: (714) 825-5178.
Sharp Mission Medical Group, San Diego. Lorraine Ybarra, MBA, Marketing Manager. Telephone: (760) 901-5255. n
Subscribe Now for Access
You have reached your article limit for the month. We hope you found our articles both enjoyable and insightful. For information on new subscriptions, product trials, alternative billing arrangements or group and site discounts please call 800-688-2421. We look forward to having you as a long-term member of the Relias Media community.