Many hospitals leading in healthcare quality have begun outsourcing data abstraction of Registries and Core Measures. But why? What are the benefits of outsourcing data abstraction when your facility has historically handled this in-house? In this article we explore just that.
1. They’re saving money.
Outsourcing Core Measures and registry data abstraction is a cost-efficient way of expanding your team of experts. The salaries and benefits afforded outsourced abstractors become the responsibility of the company you’re partnering with. You also won’t have to worry about the costs associated with turnover when an abstractor leaves your department. The savings you can generate through the elimination of hiring, training, and the lags in productivity that come with on-boarding new staff make outsourcing undeniably practical.
2. They’re saving time.
Accurate chart abstraction is tedious and eats up valuable time. In addition to completing lengthy forms and performing follow-up, outsourced abstractors can take on the task of scouring over specification manuals to keep your team up-to-date on ever-changing reporting requirements. And think about it, when you’re down a team member, what happens? You scramble. You stress. You may even have to step in and start abstracting those charts yourself. Is that the best use of your time? When you have ongoing professional help, you’re in a completely different position. You have back-up! You can essentially “turnover proof” your department. The company you’re partnering will have a team of abstraction specialists, with expertise in a long line of measures and registries, who can step in when needed, and you’ll be free to manage the department in a manner that maximizes your team’s output.
3. They’re USING their data.
So many Quality departments get bogged down in the data collection process. But the fact is, you can report numbers all day, every day, but if you can’t find the time to actually look at and analyze that data, critical learning opportunities slip by. With the support of an adept abstraction service, your team can reclaim hours spent on chart abstraction and focus on analysis. Together, you can turn those numbers into insights — into data-driven improvement strategies.
Data abstraction outsourcing allows Quality Directors to realign their department’s resources — financial and human. In doing so, they can increase exponentially what they are able to achieve and rest easier in the process.