Reference BARMER Ostseeklinik - Strategy Development and Process Management in the Health Care Market
The Prerow Model – A Good One to Emulate
Rising costs and a seemingly bleak future in the face of a constantly fluctuating political environment were what spurred the BARMER Ostseeklinik in Prerow, Germany, to take urgent action. UNITY worked with the Clinic to help take on the host of challenges it was presented with and to launch it along a new strategic course. This work began in April 2005. The foremost task was to end the Clinic’s vulnerability to political instability and to realize the new vision without having to draw on additional resources.
The results are clear: a unique way of treating patients with lung disease (such as COPD and Asthma) that offers them a highly effective alternative to regular hospital stays, the success of which is gaining the Clinic a national reputation.
“The strategic development of our clinic is a question of our very survival. This can be achieved only on the basis of an efficient and effective organizational structure and a smooth flow of processes. UNITY, with its depth of specialist knowledge and structured approach, worked with my team to develop a long-term, future-oriented medical focus for us in the field of pneumology with the ultimate goal of developing a specialist lung clinic.”
PD Dr. med. Matthias John, Medical Director
In short, with this treatment: the patients’ quality of life improves, concomitant diseases can be treated at the same time, less in-patient treatment is required subsequent to the patient’s discharge, telemedical support is available, the patient’s own primary care providers and specialists who will continue to treat them after the stay are included in the process, and the per-patient cost for medical insurance companies is lowered.
The operational procedures necessary for the new types of treatment were brought into line with current procedures and optimized. The consequence of this has been that the increased demand and additional services can be supplied using just the available resources, meaning that even more time is available for individual care.
In this case, UNITY’s tasks ranged across strategic planning, process optimization, and implementation. The consistent application of tried-and-tested approaches and methods were important success factors for this project. The interaction of people, organization, and technology was considered in particular detail during the implementation phase. Transparency and the continual monitoring of processes and results using an individual performance indicator system gave the Clinic’s management a clearer view of past activity and – much more importantly – future processes.
