Enterprise Risk Management in Healthcare Whitepaper

Enterprise risk management (ERM) in healthcare supports a comprehensive framework for making risk management decisions that optimize value protection and creation by managing risk and uncertainty, as well as their connections to total value.

By employing effective risk management, healthcare organizations proactively and methodically safeguard patient safety as well as the organization’s assets, market share, accreditation, reimbursement levels, brand reputation, and community standing.

Traditionally, implementation of healthcare risk management has been centered on the critical role of patient safety and the reduction of medical errors that could put at risk an organization’s reputation, capability to achieve its mission, and ability to protect against financial liability.

However, as the healthcare industry experiences rapid changes in technologies, heightened cybersecurity concerns, and ever-changing shifts in the regulatory, legal, and legislative realms, healthcare risk management has become increasingly complex.

Furthermore, with the industry shift to value-based care and risk-bearing models such as bundled payments and CMS’s pay for performance programs, financial risk is gradually moving from payers to providers, subsequently requiring a broader view of risk management.

As a result, healthcare organizations are transforming their risk management programs from ones that are largely reactive and focus on patient safety and preventing legal exposure, to systems that are primarily proactive and perceived risk through the broader lens of the entire healthcare ecosystem.

Playing a larger role in risk management programs today is technology. Enterprise risk management emphasizes the use of technology to coordinate risk mitigation efforts throughout the entire organization and eliminate risk associated with siloed departments or business units.

Similarly, data analytics are being utilized to strengthen decision-making, departmental cohesiveness, risk prioritization, and resource distribution. Analytics are important for monitoring benchmarks as a means of demonstrating value – or, what costs were prevented – for enterprise risk management initiatives.

An organization must correctly identify, analyze, and control risks to prevent incidents. In the healthcare industry, countless sources of information and data highlight the common risks to look out for. However, each organization is unique; some healthcare organizations may face certain risks more frequently than others.

Therefore, healthcare organizations must look at their incidents to inform their risk management program, as they can provide a great deal of insight into current risks and faulty processes.

Reporting tools like incident reporting software empower organizations to capture hazards, near misses, and adverse events and analyze the information to identify risk areas. It also provides opportunities to develop interventions to mitigate exposure and reduce potential harm.

Incident reporting systems make it easy for staff to report incidents, quickly notify the risk management team of events, and provide real-time data to enable organizations to identify underlying issues to prevent future incidents from reoccurring. As a result, with an incident reporting system, risks are reduced, costs are cut, and process efficiency is improved.

Performance Health Partners’ incident reporting software enables organizations to share observations before they become patient safety issues.

Our user-friendly and fully customizable forms allow team members to report incidents, events, complaints, and near misses in under two minutes. Compatibility with desktop, mobile, and tablet devices makes incident reporting easy, and EHR interoperability allows for fast and accurate incident reporting.

Ready to enhance enterprise risk management at your healthcare organization? Request a demo with our team to learn how.