Population Health 2014 Perception
Who are providers betting on?

WORTH KNOWING

THE VENDOR FLOOD CONTINUES:

Fifty-three vendors were mentioned as currently playing a PHM role in provider organizations—that is one vendor for every two providers interviewed. Only 21 are best-of-breed PHM vendors. The remaining 32 are normally associated with EMRs, HIEs, BI, and other areas as disparate as hospital interactive patient systems and home patient monitoring. Only 10 vendors were mentioned more than twice.

EMR VENDORS ARE PHM VENDORS:

Providers tagged enterprise vendors as the most frequent source for population health management functionality. Most offer standalone PHM products, but only McKesson has a majority of PHM customers using competitors’ core EMRs. Beyond serving as sources for patient data, solutions from enterprise vendors are being used for care management (55%), risk stratification (39%), and patient outreach (44%). Among the most mentioned vendors, Epic’s efforts were rated somewhat higher, but still mediocre (7.5).

A COMPELLING FANTASY: THE ONE-STOP SHOP:

While some vendors claim to offer comprehensive solutions that meet all PHM needs, few providers agree that such a solution exists. Many would prefer a single, comprehensive solution if they could get it, but few believe such an option exists. Some hope their enterprise vendor will eventually be that one-stop shop.

READY TO BUY:

69% of providers interviewed are planning investments, and 41 vendors were named as being in consideration—16 of which are not currently in use by any participant. Enterprise vendors are the most considered vendor category, HIE vendors the least. Focus is shifting from risk stratification to care management. Custom development is being avoided. Two-thirds of providers said they would make their next round of purchasing decisions within the next 12 months.

When asked which solutions they use for population health management (PHM), 105 providers mentioned 69 unique vendors currently in use and/ or being considered for the future. These vendors come from diverse backgrounds and serve diverse needs in the key areas of risk stratification, care management, and patient engagement. Nevertheless, they compete for the same mindshare and budgets. In this report, KLAS examines how providers’ perceive† the PHM marketplace and on which vendors they are placing their population health bets.
 
^† See Introduction in Drill Deeper section for more detail on report scope

BOTTOM LINE ON VENDORS

ENTERPRISE VENDORS

Most-used source for PHM functionality. Providers seek to leverage existing vendor relationships/investments. Even though functionality is sometimes seen as shallow or immature, enterprise vendors are expected to meet more needs over time. Most-mentioned vendors have diverse approaches: Allscripts and McKesson acquired standalone solutions, Cerner is building an EMR-agnostic solution, and Epic is adding PHM functionality directly inside their EMR.

BEST-OF-BREED VENDORS

Speed-tovalue based on packaged content, proven expertise, and customer hand-holding. Able to integrate multiple data sources for providers with heterogeneous EMRs. Sometimes seen as short-term solution for specific programs until other vendors (often enterprise) expand capabilities. Only three vendors mentioned more than twice: Advisory Board, Optum (Humedica), and Conifer.

BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE/ ANALYTICS VENDORS

Has appeal for providers with goals for comprehensive data warehouse. Able to aggregate data from any source (with work). PHM-specific content often lacking, though some vendors are strengthening content portfolios. Small BI/reporting vendors deliver ease of use for PHM and beyond. Only four BI vendors were mentioned more than once: IBM, Microsoft, QlikTech, and Xerox.

HEALTH INFORMATION EXCHANGE VENDORS

Providers leverage HIE tools that are already bringing data together from disparate systems. HIE vendors are keen to add value beyond basic connectivity by adding analytics and care-management capabilities. Five vendors mentioned, only CareEvolution and Medicity more than once.

OTHER SOLUTIONS

Beyond basic PHM functions of risk stratification, care management, and patient outreach, creative providers are beginning to include other means of driving physician behavior (Health Endeavors and PromptALERT) and patient behavior both inside the hospital (GetWellNetwork) and at home (Omron).