Perspectives on Kaiser Permanente from Germany and Canada
In our recent Power Hour, we featured two Harkness Fellows from the Commonwealth Fund who spent a year inside Kaiser Permanente. Angel Arnaout, MD is a surgical oncologist from Canada who spent the year with our Excellence in Cancer Care team, focusing on the potential for digital transformation. Benedikt Simon, PhD, is a medical economist working for hospital systems in Germany. His time was spent with our Institute for Health Policy and focused on integrated care strategies that had positive clinical outcomes while reducing costs.
The Case for Integrated Care
This session prompted a dynamic discussion about the structure of Kaiser Permanente’s integrated care system, alignment of incentives, and the impact on patients and physicians.
Watch the full recording here →
The discussion generated great questions and references to additional resources. See additional resources below.
Integrated Care Outcomes
Benedikt Simon referenced several articles in his slides.
- Improving the Quality of U.S. Health Care — What Will It Take? (N Engl J Med 2020; 383:801-803) Elizabeth McGlynn, Kaiser Permanente’s Vice President of Research, shares blood control rates in the U.S. and at Kaiser Permanente specifically.
- Same-Day Joint Replacement Care: Achieving the Quadruple Aim. (NEJM Catalyst Innovations in Care Delivery 2021; 02)
Answering one question that expanded on the topic of population health, we have also seen lower heart attack and stroke rates.
Digital Transformation in Cancer Care
Angel Arnaout focused on the digital transformation in cancer care. Kaiser Permanente has had several articles highlighting that shift during COVID-19.
- Physicians and cancer patients embrace virtual care in a pandemic
- Telehealth in Oncology during the Covid-19 Outbreak: Bringing the House Call Back Virtually
- Waste in the US Health Care System: Estimated Costs and Potential for Savings
Social Health
There was a question about the ROI on social investments. Kaiser Permanente is a tax-exempt organization, and we make investments in the community as part of our tax-exempt status. We also believe in the value of social health. A recent 10-year study shows the impact of different social interventions.
Expansion
There were multiple questions about why Kaiser Permanente is not in more locations in the United States. A report highlights how previous expansion efforts did no succeed and shares some of the reasons.
“Top of License”
Angel shared how Kaiser Permanente works to have everyone on the care team practice to the top of their license. We use medical assistants to support physicians, and partner across disciplines for the care of the patients. The following article talks about our highly-leveraged primary care practice.
- Managing the Most Expensive Patients (HBR, Jan-Feb 2020)
Looking for more insights on the value of an integrated health system?
Join us for the remaining 2021 Power Hours. And, subscribe to our newsletter to hear about all of 2022 programs discussing the foundations of integrated care and our newest initiatives.
