VizMetrics Success Stories

A payer mix analysis tool for Texas Children's Hospital

The challenge: Quarterly changes in payer and service line mix affected financial results, but it was not evident which contracts and payer classes were affecting the bottom line the most.

The solution: a VizMetrics report showing trends and metrics for every financial status class, and a matrix showing trends for every service line within every financial status class.

Results: a clear picture of payment trends within each payer class, allowing focused action plans and contract negotiation.

A financial and operational scorecard for the Scott & White Clinic

The challenge: This multi-facility clinic serving central Texas needed a way to monitor progress toward seven strategic objectives, each of which has several metrics.

The solution: a VizMetrics one-page report showing all the key metrics for every department, including 2-year trend graphs with actual vs. plan.

Results: a method of quickly finding troublesome trends; a way of prioritizing action based on overall impact to the organization; a visual understanding of each department's needs and overall financial contribution to the clinic.

A patient safety dashboard for a large, urban hospital

The challenge: A large urban hospital needed to bring additional visibility to its many patient safety initiatives. The patient safety staff collected a multitude of safety and quality related metrics, including measures for IHI, Leapfrog, internal goals, Joint Commission, APHQ, participation in the event reporting system, Patient satisfaction, pay-for-performance metrics, and state-mandated measures.

These metrics and graphs were scattered among several spreadsheets, PowerPoints, and reports. Patient safety staff spent several days each quarter creating multi-page, customized summary reports for presentation to the Board and hospital leadership.

However, it was difficult to assess quickly the state of the hospital's patient safety efforts.

The solution: a VizMetrics one-page report showing the latest value and two years of history for 64 patient safety metrics in six categories. Also shown are counts of reported events, by unit and event type.

Results: Regular, ongoing Board-level visibility for key safety initiatives; a faster way to communicate goals and progress to executive and physician leadership; an easy-to-use resource for staff training and building a strong culture of safety