The US Efficiency Calculator: How much could your hospital save with Proximie?

Proximie is proud to announce the launch of its US Efficiency Calculator; a tool to enable senior US hospital managers, surgeons and operating room management teams to estimate the efficiency improvement return on investment (ROI) achievable when deploying Proximie in their hospitals.

By inputting a few simple variables such as the hospital’s number of operating rooms and target efficiency percentage, the US Efficiency Calculator will automatically provide an estimated ROI - both in dollars and operational hours saved - that a hospital could expect over the course of the initial year of Proximie’s deployment. This tool is designed to give our customers an immediate and tangible glimpse into what efficiencies Proximie can seamlessly unlock. 

The urgent need for efficiency‍

There are a number of growing macro healthcare challenges in the US driving an urgent need for efficiency savings. The combination of higher healthcare costs and the increased inability of employers, consumers and the government to meet rising prices is placing growing strain on hospital budgets. By 2027, US healthcare costs are predicted to be up to $590bn higher than pre-Covid-19 estimates made in 2019. (1) This is partly due to soaring inflation, but also the rising cost and shortage of clinical staff; the US is expecting a shortfall of more than 200,000 registered nurses and 50,000 physicians over the next three years. (2)

By 2032, the United States will have a shortfall of as many as 23,000 surgeons, an issue that will be exacerbated by a growing, aging population with increasingly complex health needs. (3) The number of people aged 65 and older is expected to reach 83.7 million in 2050 - almost twice the 2012 level of 43.1 million, according to the U.S. Census. (4)

Hospital managers and surgeons, however, face considerable challenges in streamlining OR process improvement, including:

• Limited tools and insights
  ‍A lack of access to effective tools to monitor, identify and address process hold-ups - or generate data and metrics to drive operational improvements - makes it difficult to pinpoint or remedy inefficiencies.

• Data reliability issues
  ‍Where data collection is prioritized, it often remains isolated in different systems, thereby preventing comprehensive analysis and actionable insights. Additionally, if the collected data is unreliable, its usefulness is compromised. 

• Staffing and scheduling hurdles
  ‍Hospitals are plagued by staffing and scheduling obstacles, for example delayed or unprepared operating rooms. 

Proximie’s cutting-edge clinical software is the single source of truth that can tackle these inefficiencies by providing actionable insights to drive impactful change in the OR. 

The USA Efficiency Calculator

The USA Efficiency Calculator provides a means of visualizing the ROI of deploying Proximie in healthcare organizations - both in financial terms (a cash sum) and in operational terms (hours saved) - whether that be through reduced costs or increased revenue potential. 

Using parameters established through the analysis of academic research, hospital surveys and Proximie usage data, we developed a health economic framework that identifies opportunities for improving OR efficiency and estimates the extent to which Proximie could achieve efficiency gains based on a given set of variables. The calculator asks users to set their desired efficiency goals in the following areas:

• Target improvement of system efficiency 
• Target reduction in adverse event and claims
• Target reduction in medical defense costs of medical defense claims
• Target improvement of surgical training

Based on this information, the calculator then provides a data-driven estimate of potential ROI for the user’s hospital. 

How Proximie delivers efficiencies‍

The efficiency savings estimated by the US Efficiency Calculator are based on Proximie’s ability to deliver improvements in three key areas:

1. System Efficiency‍

Equipping ORs with Proximie empowers surgical teams to streamline workflows by mapping and redesigning processes, e.g. minimizing the amount of downtime between surgeries; improving turnaround times; identifying and capitalizing on times when ORs are out of use.

Proximie also supports the standardization of practices across surgical networks - including those in rural settings - making it possible to share efficiency saving best practices with other hospitals in the same network. Streamlining workflows and sharing standardized best practice ultimately leads to two key benefits:

• Reduced operating costs (by reducing unnecessary expenses through optimized workflow and standardized practices).
• Potential revenue increase (as a result of more efficient procedures and optimized use of surgical capacity).

The US Efficiency Calculator will present these savings as the potential system efficiency cost saving from time and supplies, and the number of operating room hours saved/released by process design.

2. Patient Safety‍

Through more reliable data gathering, surgical network collaboration and continual development of surgical skill, Proximie-enabled ORs contribute to greater patient safety, which in turn delivers savings for hospitals on two fronts:

• Reduced risk of adverse events: improved communication and checklist compliance among surgical teams helps minimize errors and complications. Meanwhile, enhanced knowledge and shared insights into the causes of adverse events across the surgical network empowers teams to proactively mitigate risks. 
• Lower medical defense costs: fewer adverse events result in lower medical defense costs. 

The US Efficiency Calculator presents these savings in terms of potential savings from reduction of adverse events per annum, and potential savings from reduction in medical defense costs per annum. 

3. Training‍

The remote access to ORs - in addition to remote access to a vast library of surgical videos - made possible by Proximie represents a leap forward in access to expertise and skill development for surgeons and trainees. 

Proximie makes it possible for a greater number of surgical residents to prepare per procedure, increases the speed and objectivity of performance assessments, and expands access to Continuous Professional Development for consultants, which is particularly beneficial when it comes to honing skills relevant to new procedures and new or existing medical devices in the OR. 

The US Efficiency Calculator presents these savings in terms of the potential reduction in costs of hosting residents and for training. 

How much could your hospital save with Proximie?

Find out how Proximie’s data-driven efficiency savings could transform your hospital by using our US Efficiency Calculator, here.

‍

References:

(1)  Addie Fleron and Shubham Singhal, The gathering storm: The uncertain future of US healthcare, September 16, 2022, McKinsey & Company.
(2) Addie Fleron and Shubham Singhal, The gathering storm: The uncertain future of US healthcare, September 16, 2022, McKinsey & Company.
(3) The Association of American Medical Colleges: Desperately seeking surgeons report: April 26, 2019.
(4) An Aging Nation: The Older Population in the United States, Population Estimates and Projections Current Population Reports Issued May 2014.