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the SHIP Newsletter, Fall 2011
This past year has been a busy and productive time for the Szollosi Healthcare Innovation Program (SHIP).
There is much good news to share as SHIP continues to be recognized both nationally and internationally for creating innovative projects which deliver a better healthcare experience for all involved.
As part of this process, I have had the privilege of presenting to many different audiences about SHIP, about Peter, and about our vision for improving the healthcare system with innovative thinking. I have shared stories about our successful programs and encouraged others to follow our lead in thinking creatively about improving healthcare delivery.... always reminding people "Don't tell me what you can't do"!
This newsletter highlights what we've accomplished in the past year and gives some insight into our upcoming projects. We are very excited about what is on the horizon!
Thank you for your continued interest in Peter's legacy and best wishes to each of you.
Sincerely,
Lyle Berkowitz, MD, FACP, FHIMSS
Director, Szollosi Healthcare Innovation Program
Medical Director, IT and Innovation, Northwestern Memorial Physicians Group
and
Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine, Feinberg School of Medicine
at Northwestern University
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The Wind in Our Sails
SHIP wins Mayo Clinic Innovation Award!!
In September 2010, The Mayo Clinic's Center for Innovation had its Transform Symposium featuring a theme of "Thinking Differently about Healthcare". SHIP was named a winner of the Mayo Clinic's iSpot Competition for "Ideas that Will Transform Healthcare". This award recognized SHIP for developing wildly creative ideas about the future of electronic medical records (EMRs). For more information and to see a video of these ideas being presented: http://www.theshiphome.org/MayoClinicConf.html
SHIP Highlighted in the Harvard Business Review!
SHIP's work was also featured in the Harvard Business Review (HBR) in the past year! An article on healthcare innovation in the September 2010 issue of the publication highlighted SHIP's "Inflection Navigator" project. This project involves creation of a systemized process to help patients who've received a frightening diagnosis more easily navigate the ensuing flurry of necessary activity: follow-up tests, visits to specialists, decision making about treatment and care. Because a new diagnosis like cancer presents the patient with a profound inflection point, the process is called The Inflection Navigator. The HBR article explained how this project demonstates the importance of "service line innovations," which focus on increasing quality while also improving the patient experience. More information is available at: http://www.theshiphome.org/HarvardBusReview.html
AHRQ Innovations Exchange Features SHIP’s “ExpectED” Project
The U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) created the Health Care Innovations Exchange to speed the implementation of new and better ways of delivering health care. In July of 2011, the AHRQ Innovation Exchange published a profile of one of SHIP's earliest projects, “ExpectED”. The profile summary stated “Community-based physicians referring patients to Northwestern Memorial Hospital for emergency care send an electronic handoff note to emergency department personnel to notify them that a patient will be arriving and to provide clinical details pertinent to his or her condition…Feedback from physicians suggests that the program has improved physician efficiency and satisfaction, care coordination, and the quality and timeliness of care.” More information: http://www.theshiphome.org/AHRQ.html
The Government is Listening to SHIP
SHIP attended some important government meetings this past summer, including presenting on “Electronic Health Record Usability” at a large National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) workshop and sitting on an AHRQ Expert Panel for “Emerging Healthcare Technology”. More info at: http://www.nist.gov/healthcare/usability/usability-technical-workshop.cfm
Additionally, SHIP contributed to a report on "Re-inventing Primary Care" created by The Hope Street, a non-profit policy think tank based in DC. They presented a memo to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in which they highlighted SHIP's work at Northwestern as an example of an innovative service to improve quality and efficiency for both patients and physicians. More info at: http://www.theshiphome.org/HopeStreetGroup.html
Economic Analysis of Care Coordination
In early 2010, SHIP developed a mathematical model to determine the economic effects of the care coordination process created with the Inflection Navigator project. We worked with Northwestern's Urology Department and a health economist expert on analyzing this mathematical model and applying it to the diagnosis of hematuria (blood in the urine). With this mathematical model, we believe we can show the world that good care coordination can actually create a better experience AND economic benefits for the ultimate triad of patients, physicians and payors of care. Our initial findings were presented at the American Urological Association Annual Conference in May, 2011, and further work continues.
Diabetes Tune Up Project
Another early SHIP project was the “Diabetes Tune-Up”, where poorly controlled diabetics were identified and asked to enroll in a specially designed clinic to deal with their unique needs. Preliminary feedback has shown that enrolled patients have had tremendous improvements in their health. Formal research is being done this year on the numbers, and the program is being spread to several more diseases.
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Charting Our Course for 2012
In addition to continuing to expand current programs, SHIP continues its partnership with multiple other organizations in discovering and promoting innovative healthcare ideas to improve the patient experience. Below are some of our ongoing and newer projects.
The Healing Edge: The Power of Combining Innovative Thinking with Information Technologies in Healthcare
SHIP is helping sponsor a book being co-written by Dr. Lyle Berkowitz and Chris McCarthy, MBA (Director of Kaiser Permanente’s Innovation Consultancy). This book will include a compilation of stories from around the nation of how physicians are using healthcare IT in innovative ways to improve the quality and experiences of care for patients and their families. It is scheduled for publication in 2012.
Extreme Diabetes Ethnography
SHIP is currently working on a joint project with the National Health Service (who runs Britains’s public health system) to study poorly controlled diabetic patients (“Extreme Diabetics”). We will be using an innovation technique called ethnography, where we will actually go to a patient’s home, professionally interview them and videotape them in their normal life routine. Furthermore, we will be sharing our data virtually across continents in a unique manner that has the potential to greatly expand our brainstorming capabilities. A considerable amount of this project work is being donated by Northwestern Memorial Hospital and GravityTank, a Chicago based innovation firm. This project is also being done in coordination with the Innovation Learning Network, an international consortium of non-profit healthcare innovation organization.
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Helping Keep This SHIP Sailing Strong
As our healthcare system evolves, innovation continues to be an extremely important tool with which to improve both the quality and experience of care delivered. We appreciate all your support to date and hope that you are able to continue supporting Peter's legacy as we look towards continued growth and expansion.
Our web site, www.theSHIPhome.org, has more information about SHIP as well as details about making a tax-deductible donation online. For correspondence by mail (including donations):
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