Top 10 Reasons the C-Suite Should be on Board with Business Intelligence in the Lab – Part 3
In parts 1 and 2 of Top 10 Reasons the C-Suite Should be on Board with Business Intelligence in the Lab, we broke down all 10 ways that good quality, easy-to-access healthcare data analytics can help your lab flourish. Big data healthcare can help you run and track tests better, coordinate equipment needs with testing demands, and even give you ways to improve customer relations, so you can be more competitive in the marketplace.
But why stop there? Where is this high tech BI leading, and what future value does it have for your medical lab?
Here are the questions you should be asking yourself…
The Takeaways and Applications of BI in the Lab
Am I seeing the full picture, and am I seeing it clearly?
How do all your data indicators interact with each other? For example, can certain financial trends at your lab predict trends in what kinds of tests you’ll run in the future and what kind of equipment you’ll need – and vice versa? We’ve talked a lot about how lab volume and technical life cycle management are dependent upon each other. The data also influences staffing and other departmental interdependencies. What things will come to light when your data analytics are giving you a clearer business picture?
How can I use healthcare data analytics to prepare for the future of healthcare?
How can you actually get ahead of trends? And how will BI help you get ahead faster than your competition? Here’s one intriguing example that’s centered around the patient-centered medical home. Healthcare IT News reports in two different articles that medical care is not only being redefined but is also extending beyond clinics and hospitals into people’s homes – but each article states different reasons for the shift.
The first article, “Why it’s time to redefine the care team,” looks at how getting medical data from a patient in their home environment can give providers a fuller picture of a patient’s condition than what a few clinic visits alone can give. The article suggests that data gathered from mobile devices, patient portals where lab results can be aggregated, digital sensors, and telehealth can all work together to make this ideal a reality.
The second article, “Lab staff shortages call for better point-of-care diagnostics,” suggests that this kind of home and local care can answer the staffing shortages labs are sure to face around the world. Bringing the point-of-care closer to home can be more comfortable for patients (particularly the growing elderly population) and take some of the strain off labs. Marketing-wise, it can be a selling point to healthcare providers to persuade them to choose your lab over another.
In yet a third related article, “Salesforce aims for ‘a panoramic view of the patient,’” even the cloud-based CRM tool Salesforce claims it can be used to aggregate healthcare data from many sources, such as mobile devices and EMR, to make it easier for providers to get the full, 360-degree view they want and need for their patients.
Healthcare data analytics are vital for aggregating, analyzing, and making sense of all your medical data. The proper business intelligence can help medical laboratories and their partner clients get ahead of this trend.
These reasons for getting strong healthcare data analytics in your lab should help you determine not only that you need BI but also if your current BI efforts are adequate to meet your organizational goals. Once you see the strong business case for including more sophisticated data analysis in your organization, getting all your managers and C-suite executives on board with business intelligence for the lab should be easier.