First-of-Kind Health and Human Services Survey Drives Home Sustainability Concerns

OVERLAND PARK, Kan.--Integration with primary care, the emergence of health homes, Meaningful Use, and recovery-based care are among key topics in the ongoing transformation of behavioral health care. However, in the first annual Health and Human Services Influencing Factors Survey, providers demonstrated that while they are embracing rapid change, they are also concerned with long-term sustainability.

Of nearly 500 providers responding to the Netsmart-sponsored survey, “General sustainability of my organization” emerged as the topic of utmost importance, followed by “Resources/funding.”

“We are aligned with the needs of the community,” said Netsmart CEO Mike Valentine. “Without question, they are being asked to do more with less. That’s why our entire CareFabric™ suite of solutions is designed to improve clinical, financial and operational efficiency. It’s all intertwined.”

Ability Beyond is an example of that interconnectedness. The New York and Connecticut provider focuses on developing new technologies and approaches as it offers support and opportunities to people with disabilities. Since it began using Netsmart’s myEvolv™ CareRecord™ (electronic health record), the organization has tripled in size. “The myEvolv EHR made managing such a rapid expansion possible,” said Ability Beyond’s Performance Improvement Manager Lori Ruckel. Ability Beyond has realized a 25 percent decrease in cost per person served, four more hours per month per supervisor, a five percent increase in staff efficiency (one extra day per month per person in the field) and 60 less payroll hours per week through reduced administrative support.

Understanding that sustainability and financial viability are vital to providers like Ability Beyond, Netsmart is offering no-cost web seminars every Wednesday in September.

Each 30-minute webinar will explore methods to streamline your business and reduce operating costs.

  • Driving Efficiencies Through Clearing-House Integration – How to Improve Cash Flow Utilizing Electronic Data Interchange
    Sept. 10, 2:00 p.m. EDT
  • No More Avoiding Trapping, Misplacing or Mishandling of Your Content – There’s a Solution to Storing and Retrieving Documents
    Sept. 17, 2:00 p.m. EDT
  • How the Cloud Enables Providers to Efficiently Deliver IT Services While Focusing on Providing Care
    Sept. 24, 2:00 p.m. EDT
  • Saving Time and Money is Attainable – How to Put E-learning to Work for You
    Oct. 1, 2:00 p.m. EDT

And if you missed our September 3rd kickoff webinar, Leveraging Data to Drive Actionable Insights – Bringing Knowledge to the Point of Action, each webinar is recorded for playback at your convenience.

About Netsmart
Netsmart is committed to helping health and human services providers deliver effective, outcomes-based care with Netsmart’s CareFabric™ solution, a tightly woven framework of innovative clinical and business solutions and services that supports integrated, coordinated delivery of health services across the spectrum of care.

More than 23,000 client organizations, including 450,000 care providers and more than 40 state systems, use Netsmart solutions to help improve the quality of life for more than 25 million people each day.

Netsmart is pleased to support the EveryDay Matters Foundation, which was established for behavioral and public health organizations to learn from each other and share their causes and stories. For more information, visit www.everydaymatters.com

Learn more about how Netsmart and the CareFabric solution are changing the face of healthcare today. Visit www.ntst.com, call 1-800-472-5509, follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook or visit us on YouTube.

CareFabric, myEvolv, CareRecord and Plexus are trademarks of Netsmart Technologies, Inc.

 

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