PA Consulting Group teams up with leading experts to discuss how we can improve health in our communities - and it's not all about data

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Oct 27, 2014, 03:11 ET

NEW YORK, Oct. 27, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- PA Consulting Group advances the conversation around improving health in the community by hosting a panel of thought leaders at a health business forum.

The panel of leading experts included:

Chris Steel – Healthcare expert, PA Consulting
Esther Dyson – Founder of HICCup and Chairman of EDventure Holdings
Kathryn Bowles RN – VP of Home Care Policy and Research at Visiting Nurse Service of New York (VNSNY)
Steve Epstein MD, MPP – Emergency Physician, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston; Department of Emergency Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Emergency Medicine delegate to the American Medical Association
Matt Portch – VP of Commercial Effectiveness, Global Innovative Products, Pfizer
Aneesh Kumar – Head of Consumer Engagement Strategy, Aetna

In the United States the impact of healthcare reform is driving important change across the industry. Chronic conditions are increasing as our population ages and our healthcare system is straining to address what is now a diabetes epidemic. That pressure is often most acutely felt in lower income areas and in remote rural locations across the country.

Amidst the many pressures of healthcare reform, we must ensure we commit to creating a rising tide which improves the health of all of our communities, rather than preserving the imbalances which have historically been the standard.

"We specifically chose health as opposed to healthcare as a focal point for this important discussion," said Chris Steel, healthcare expert, PA Consulting. "In particular we wanted to explore how best to improve overall health in areas which have been underserved by our healthcare system historically."

According to the experts:

We are data rich, but information poor. Becoming well versed in the types of cutting edge technology that will educate and engage patients to make important decisions about the kind of care they want to receive is critical. We are in need of access to a concise story about a given patient – we either have too much or too little information.
A network of trust needs to be built among patients and providers. Doctors are very successful at checking all the right boxes, but not good at measuring whether those steps were successful in treating the patient properly. As we look ahead to the future building a patient centered universe will be critical. Medicine is not just a science, it's an art.
It is not just about big data; it is about data liquidity for healthcare effectiveness. Behavioral changes are necessary so that we get the right patient, the right medicine at the right time. Public health funding has diminished drastically. Right now incentives are focused on sick care, not preventative care. We need to focus on keeping healthy patients healthy.
New business models have started to emerge. Email, video and remote diagnosis is becoming more prevalent. The choice of providers can decline at any moment. The industry has failed the consumer in providing easily accessible healthcare. Clinicians are now starting to recognize the value in extending their care team and look at their team with a broader lens. Preventative urgent and primary care should become the norm.

"If you want to produce genuine health in a community you need to do multiple self-reinforcing things," said Esther Dyson, Founder of HICCup and Chairman of EDventure Holdings. "Most community health efforts end up dissipating in the wind – you fix a neighborhood but then people move or funding runs out. We have begun to realize that community health efforts and relying on philanthropy is not the answer. We need to explore new business models which involve long term investments that will bring about meaningful change. How do we make the production of health profitable? - whether it's healthy school lunches and creating demand for healthy food, better management of chronic conditions, or employer investments in wellness."

The relationship between providers and insurance is broken and today's model is confrontational. The journey is far from over, but finding ways to deliver health profitably is key. Health insurance needs to reduce risk, not just distribute risk. Working towards a better definition of metrics will help both payers and providers understand costs and value.

If you are interested in additional insights from the discussion, please tune into the webcast here: http://www.meetingtomorrow.com/webcast/paconsulting

To join the social conversation, follow: @PA_healthcare

About PA Consulting

We are an employee-owned firm of over 2,500 people, operating globally from offices across North America, Europe, the Nordics, the Gulf and Asia Pacific. We are experts in energy, financial services, life sciences and healthcare, manufacturing, government and public services, defense and security, telecommunications, transport and logistics. Our deep industry knowledge together with skills in consulting, technology and innovation allows us to challenge conventional thinking and deliver exceptional results with lasting impact. www.paconsulting.com

About PA Consulting in Life Sciences and Healthcare

Far-reaching reforms are fundamentally changing the relationships between key players across the healthcare industry. One of the key drivers for the future lies in using information to create more personalized care and standardization at the same time. We are witnessing the 'industrial revolution' of healthcare, enabled by IT. This will increase access, drive up quality and reduce the overall cost of care.

In this period of major change for the industry, we are helping organizations across many different aspects of healthcare provision, including strategy for life science companies, medical technology development, drug delivery, research and development and regulatory compliance. We are also supporting the public sector in the delivery of healthcare.

We have several main areas of focus in the life sciences and healthcare sector, including:

Commercial strategy - Creating and implementing strategies for commercial excellence
Regulatory compliance - Assuring regulatory compliance for competitive advantage
Drug delivery - Delivering devices from concept to implementation
Research and development - Improving R&D effectiveness
Medical devices design and development - Speeding up the delivery of innovative products
Supply chain and manufacturing - Improving manufacturing and supply chain optimization
Technology enabled Business Transformation: Delivering major transformational programs in care delivery and care management enabled by information technology
Big Data and Analytics: Creating innovative analytics solutions, technology strategy and organizational models to make most effective use of data and analytics solutions in solving the top challenges in healthcare
Leveraging technology to enable new models of care: Delivering new care models by using technology to enable virtual care through remote monitoring, tele health and wearables
Population Health Management: Improving population health management through better care coordination, greater exchange of data and effective business models while improving patient engagement for better outcomes.

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SOURCE PA Consulting Group