American Hospital Association Environmental Scan

The 2013 American Hospital Association Environmental Scan provides insight and information about market forces that have a high probability of effecting the health care field.  It is designed to help hospital and health health system leaders better understand the health care landscape and the critical issues emerging trends their organizations likely will face in the foreseeable future.

This is a summary of the Environmental Scan:

Provider Organizations & Physicians

• Relying on the current primary care system is not going to be adequate
• A culture of performance excellence and accountability
• Hospitals and health systems will need to be much leaner in all ways

Quality & Patient Safety

• Medical schools are not doing an adequate job
• Cost savings opportunity in health care lies with supply-sensitive care
• Poor quality metrics could be penalized
• Enhancing care coordination during hospital-to-home transitions
• Concerned that public reports fairly and accurately reflect their performance

Information Technology & E-Health

• Delayed implementation of ICD-10
• Mobile health has been shown to reduce the need for hospital admissions and physician office visits
• This past year alone, health care generated an estimated 150 exabytes of information
• Coordinating care for patients with complex health conditions
• Hospital executives say they are very concerned about the cost and process of fully integrating EHRs

Consumers & Demographics

• Half of Americans will develop a mental illness
• Adult and childhood obesity
• Rise in chronic conditions
• 5 percent of the population accounted for nearly 50 percent of health care expenditures
• Most boomers are going to be working after age 65
• Families are the principal caregivers for our nation's older people

 The Environmental Scan 2013 is available at www.aha.org .  I recommend you to get the full scan on the website.