Hospitals, clinics, and physician offices face the same challenge: an ever-increasing demand for healthcare services coupled with a shrinking budget.
As a result, every department in a healthcare facility must be on board to reduce spending while improving efficiency. The good news is that there are various ways to do so — from reducing staff hours to streamlining paperwork processes and more.
These pieces of advice are valuable for your organization.
Reduce the number of beds in a facility to meet current demand.
If the number of beds in your facility far exceeds the demand, consider closing one or more units. This will reduce staff hours and other expenses related to maintaining these unoccupied rooms while freeing up capital for further use.
Assess your facility. If more patients are coming in for a particular specialty, consider expanding that department and decreasing others. For example, suppose you’ve been maintaining an oncology ward and do not have cancer patients. In that case, you can divert the resources, facilities, and funds to expand emergency care if that’s where you are needed the most.
Create private rooms for patients with higher acuity levels and more complex needs.
It can be costlier to provide private rooms for these patients, but the benefits are worth it. By offering this option, you will likely improve satisfaction with your organization and boost revenue due to higher reimbursement rates from many payers.
Create shared-room options for low acuity levels or patients who require less attention during their recovery.
Shared rooms are an efficient use of space and can save money by reducing the number of nursing staff required to care for each patient. You will need to ensure that all patients have a place during their stay, regardless of acuity level or specific needs.
Implement new technologies, such as electronic medical records and digital X-rays to reduce costs and improve efficiencies.
Implement a streamlined workflow for administrative processes, such as ordering supplies or scheduling patient appointments. This can be accomplished by creating templates with the correct information already inserted that are then saved once they’re filled out and used again in the future.
You can also use data analytics to identify opportunities to improve efficiency and decrease spending in every area of your healthcare facility. Data analytics is a powerful tool that helps you make better business decisions with actionable insights instead of guesswork or assumptions.
Use technology like remote patient monitoring devices for patients who are recovering from surgery.
This will help you monitor their progress without the need to have them return for follow-up appointments, which can save staff time and costs.
Work with an expert in healthcare analytics to identify areas where spending is wasteful or unnecessary and brainstorm ways to reduce these expenses by 20%.
This can be done by identifying duplicate services and documenting procedures that are no longer necessary.
These suggestions will help you optimize your healthcare facility for efficiency and profitability while improving the experience of patients who rely on your services daily.
You can also consider partnering with a technology company to further streamline administrative processes or improve patient care in other ways that work best for your organization.
Engage partners to offer more specialized services and tests.
It takes a lot of money to invest in special equipment that patients need. Among these are dialysis machines, CT scanners, and MRI machines.
Draw up contracts with the best partners in your area to help you find a location that offers these services or negotiate rates for equipment rental if necessary — all of which can save money compared to purchasing expensive machinery outright.
Partnering is an excellent way to maintain profitability while offering patients everything they need without breaking the bank.
For example, it is a significant advantage if your on-site dialysis treatment partnerships include skilled nurses to administer dialysis treatment to patients. These healthcare professionals will be assigned to your hospital or facility for the length of their contract. They will provide dialysis treatment to patients who need it without requiring you to hire additional staff.
This way, your facility can be a full-service hospital that offers all patient needs in one place while also improving efficiency and profitability.
Offer incentives for staff members to lower the attrition rate.
You can also offer incentives for employees to lower the turnover rate. Every time you lose a valuable member of your healthcare facility, it costs money and takes time to replace them with someone new.
Instead of losing staff members because they are unhappy or undervalued due to low pay, try offering bonuses instead so that even if an employee leaves the organization, they have something to show for their time with your company.
The Takeaway
With the right advice and support, you can implement these ideas to make your organization more cost-effective. Be open to suggestions and change.