By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    healthcare cybersecurity
    4 Helpful Tips on How to Protect Your Medical Practice Against Cyber Attacks
    October 24, 2021
    Health Check Diagnosis Medical Condition Analysis Concept
    6 Health Woes With Online Remedies
    January 19, 2022
    Eight Things Men Should Know About the Male Menopause
    Eight Things Men Should Know About the Male Menopause
    April 24, 2022
    Latest News
    The 6 Most Common Injuries Resulting from Motorcycle Accidents
    January 30, 2023
    6 Essential Strategies for Improving Your Medical Practice
    January 25, 2023
    Staying Positive While Living with Mesothelioma
    January 24, 2023
    The Many Health Benefits of Being Outdoors
    January 17, 2023
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Ultraprocessed Foods Lead to Chronic Illnesses
    April 18, 2011
    Cancer/Cell Phone Connection Challenged
    June 7, 2011
    States Ranked by Percent Obese Highlights Pervasive Negative Trend
    July 11, 2011
    Latest News
    Why Is a Referenced Based Pricing Tool Necessary?
    February 3, 2023
    Simplifying the Genetic Testing Process: How At-Home Kits are Changing the Game
    January 25, 2023
    9 Hospitals That Have Introduced Green Initiatives
    February 1, 2023
    Why a Health Retreat Can Be the Best Medicine
    January 12, 2023
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Five Ways to Lead an ACO to Failure
Share
Sign In
Notification Show More
Latest News
Why Is a Referenced Based Pricing Tool Necessary?
Health care
struggling with addiction
6 Signs Someone You Know Is Struggling With Addiction
Addiction Addiction Recovery
regrow teeth naturally
Advances in Stem Cell Research Can Help Regrow Teeth Naturally
Dental health
air pollution and cancer
The Proven Links Between Air Pollution and Cancer
News
investing in senior care
5 Reasons Why Investing in Senior Care Is a Wise Choice?
Senior Care
Aa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Aa
Search
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Business > Finance > Five Ways to Lead an ACO to Failure
BusinessFinanceHealth ReformHospital Administration

Five Ways to Lead an ACO to Failure

andrewmellin
Last updated: 2015/02/23 at 9:00 AM
andrewmellin
Share
5 Min Read
aco mistakes
SHARE

aco mistakesOver the past few years, I have had the opportunity to talk to and learn from many accountable care organization (ACO) leaders.

aco mistakesOver the past few years, I have had the opportunity to talk to and learn from many accountable care organization (ACO) leaders. Creating an ACO in a health system or network requires new organizational structures, new IT capabilities and most importantly, new leadership skills.  When I see ACOs struggle to achieve anticipated quality improvements or cost savings, I know that their leaders have most likely made a few poor choices in their initial decision-making. With the benefit of hindsight, here are five mistakes that experienced, successful leaders tend to avoid.  Make sure not to:

  1. Place the entire burden of success on the shoulders of individual practicing physicians.  It is essential that leaders educate individual physicians about your ACO’s values, goals and programs, but execution success requires a team approach.  The burden of the day-to-day work of identifying and closing gaps in care, or of providing intensive care management, should be managed by the care team.  The physician should provide clinical direction, support care processes, and embrace value-based care concepts. At the same time, members of the care team should be empowered with protocols and processes to operate at the top of their licenses in order to complete any task that doesn’t require direct physician intervention.
  2. Ignore the complexities of data acquisition. Data is the lifeblood of successful programs. The data required to understand where to focus management programs in your ACO comes from a myriad of potential sources, including numerous individual practices, payers and inpatient and post-acute facilities. The state of healthcare today makes it virtually impossible to include every bit of available data in your healthcare analytics. However, an experienced leader will take a pragmatic but aggressive approach to identifying the most meaningful sources of data. A good leader will invest in the infrastructure and staff required to obtain and manipulate the data in order to produce meaningful analytics.
  3. Neglect to solicit the support of other leaders. Until an organization provides 100% of its care in an ACO or capitated model, there will always be tension between volume and value. For example, an ACO leader may implement a highly effective program to minimize the use of advanced imaging for back pain.  While this advancement will improve ACO contract performance, it will also result in greatly decreased utilization of MRI machines, causing financial challenges for another part of the organization.  Strong leaders understand this tension, and work closely with their colleagues to achieve alignment and optimize the system’s overall financial outcomes during the challenging transition from fee for service to value-based care.
  4.  Underestimate the difficulty of ACO success. Only 25% of CMS Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) ACOs earned shared savings in their first year. I suspect that a number of the ACOs were under the impression that earning these savings would be easy. Perhaps a consultant helped them complete the application, and then the leaders simply thought they could sign up a bunch of physicians and review some basic analytics about gaps in care and utilization. In year two, many of those organizations will realize what the seasoned leaders already know. Success requires a fundamental change to the care delivery model, and the only way to see sustained success is to realign how care is provided across the system to support value, not volume.
  5. Under-invest in support staff. Finding capital to support the up-front infrastructure costs of an ACO remains a difficult challenge. At the same time that the organization is looking to cut costs, the ACO leader is asking for investments in staff and IT tools. ACOs cannot succeed by operating blindly.  The necessary clinical and financial insights can only be achieved with appropriate investments in IT and the necessary analytic support staff.  In addition, capital is needed to support the leadership and staff in their effort to design and implement practice transformation, new care models, and care management programs.

Successful leadership of an ACO is a challenge — even for an experienced leader. The topics discussed here represent only a fraction of the decisions ACO leaders have to make.

accountable care / shutterstock

More Read

should nurse practitioner forms an LLC

Should Nurse Practitioners Form an LLC?

Maximizing Outcomes Through Effective Patient Engagement Strategies
Robotic Technologies Can Improve Hospital Working Conditions
How to Attract More Clients to your Wellness Business
Why Work With A Healthcare Recruitment Agency & How To Choose One

Sign Up For Daily Newsletter

Be keep up! Get the latest breaking news delivered straight to your inbox.
By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.
andrewmellin February 23, 2015
Share this Article
Facebook Twitter Copy Link Print
Share
Previous Article Children's Hospital NASCAR’s Hendrick Motorsports Takes Lead As Health Care Role Model
Next Article The Uncertainty of Cancer

Stay Connected

1.5k Followers Like
4.5k Followers Follow
2.8k Followers Pin
136k Subscribers Subscribe

Latest News

Why Is a Referenced Based Pricing Tool Necessary?
Health care February 3, 2023
struggling with addiction
6 Signs Someone You Know Is Struggling With Addiction
Addiction Addiction Recovery February 2, 2023
regrow teeth naturally
Advances in Stem Cell Research Can Help Regrow Teeth Naturally
Dental health February 1, 2023
air pollution and cancer
The Proven Links Between Air Pollution and Cancer
News February 1, 2023

You Might also Like

green hospitals
Hospital Administration

9 Hospitals That Have Introduced Green Initiatives

January 20, 2023
saving money in healthcare
BusinessGlobal HealthcareHospital Administration

Best Money-Saving Tips for Health Managers

January 12, 2023
HR staff must deal with divisive views in healthcare
BusinessGlobal HealthcareHospital AdministrationPolicy & Law

HR Must Navigate Polarizing Views in Healthcare Workplaces

January 4, 2023
cybersecurity options for hospitals
BusinessHospital Administration

Should Hospitals Use SASE or Traditional Network Security?

January 4, 2023
//

We influence million of users and is the most authentic source of information on healthcare business and technology news.

Quick Links

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Subscribe

Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!

Follow US

© 2008-2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.

Removed from reading list

Undo
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?