Net Health® Announces New AI-Powered Solution for Hospital Outpatient Rehab Therapy Clinics

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Nov 11, 2022, 08:00 ET

Missed Visit Prediction Indicator an industry-first that provides actionable insights that can boost revenue and improve patient outcomes

PITTSBURGH, Nov. 11, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- To help outpatient rehab therapy clinics reduce the number of missed patient visits, boost revenue and improve patient outcomes, Net Health® recently released a first-of-its kind predictive analytics solution for hospital-based rehab therapy organizations called the Missed Visit Prediction Indicator.

A feature of the Net Health Therapy for Hospitals - Outpatient EHR solution, the Missed Visit Prediction Indicator was built to alert rehab therapists and staff when patients have a medium-to-high chance of missing their next appointments.

This information enables outpatient rehab therapy teams to take necessary steps toward ensuring plan-of-care compliance while preventing future no-shows and cancellations. By taking these steps, hospitals can realize a five-fold return on investment (ROI).

The Missed Visit Prediction Indicator works by analyzing several relevant, patient-specific data points (i.e., demographics, history, appointment timing, etc.) to objectively determine the likelihood individual patients may miss their next appointments.

"Missed visits are detrimental to the daily operations of hospital outpatient rehab therapy departments, and we saw an opportunity to revolutionize how missed visits are managed and prevented," said Josh Pickus, CEO of Net Health. "This is a great example of how artificial intelligence can dramatically improve the operations of a healthcare facility."

The Cost of Missed Appointments

According to a recent study, an average of 27% of all healthcare appointments are missed in the U.S.¹ The total annual cost of these missed appointments adds up to approximately $150 billion per year.²

On a micro scale, each time a patient cancels an appointment or simply does not show up, the missed visit costs individual rehab therapy clinics between $165 and $200.³ Additionally, the cost can be considerable for the patient, as well.

Following just a single missed appointment, for example, a patient is two times more likely to stop treatments altogether.⁴ This not only means they will likely fail to achieve their own functional and/or performance goals; it also could lead to worsening symptoms that, in the future, could require more invasive and expensive treatments.

A Call to Action for Outpatient Rehab Therapy Teams

Missed visit prediction is an actionable insight around which rehab therapists and their outpatient teams (i.e., directors, schedulers and front-office staff) can take both immediate and long-term steps to improve patient attendance and compliance.

Some steps they can take to maximize rehab therapist productivity by vastly reducing or eliminating missed visits and last-minute cancellations include:

Offering high-to-medium-risk patients alternative appointment days and times
Adjusting the intensity of appointment reminders (i.e., calls, texts and emails)
Expanding patient discussions on the clinical consequences and impact of missing appointments
Identifying and problem-solving around obstacles that may lead to missed appointments
Booking appointments more tightly, or overbooking
Tightening policies around no-shows and cancellations
Implementing patient engagement solutions

Learn more about Net Health Therapy for Hospital – Outpatient EHR.

About Net Health
Net Health provides specialized solutions for specialized care anywhere. Net Health solutions are trusted in more than 23,000 facilities across the continuum of care. Our EHR software enables caregivers and their organizations to engage effectively with patients, streamline documentation, staff efficiently, secure maximum appropriate reimbursement and maintain regulatory compliance. Our unique approach to analytics seamlessly presents insights in clinical and operational workflows to improve care and business performance. Net Health is a portfolio company of The Carlyle Group, Level Equity and Silversmith Capital Partners. www.nethealth.com.

References
¹ National Library of Medicine, "Data Analytics and Modeling for Appointment No-Show in Community Health Centers," Nov. 17, 2018
^{2 3 4}Healthcare Innovation, "Missed Appointments Cost the U.S. Healthcare System $150B Each Year," April 26, 2017

SOURCE Net Health Systems, Inc.