The Client Challenge

Franciscan Alliance, a 14-hospital system in Indiana, saw an opportunity in their upcoming Epic “Refuel.” The health system was on a transformation journey to better meet changing consumer demands, engage and retain staff, improve competitive positioning, and prepare for reimbursement changes. Rather than take a technology-centric re-implementation of their electronic health record (EHR), they envisioned an operations-centric transformation effort to drive a stronger patient and caregiver experience and continuous performance improvement.

Opportunities to Drive Value:
  • Build internal competencies for technology-enabled transformation
  • Support higher-quality care
  • Enhance the patient experience
  • Improve engagement and satisfaction among healthcare professionals
  • Reduce variation within the system

Navigating to Next: The Solution

The Chartis Group partnered with Franciscan Alliance to set up the initiative for success. The engagement began with an assessment of critical structures, competencies, and capabilities to identify gaps and risks. Areas analyzed included communications, training, engagement, leadership and governance, change leadership, and benefits realization. The assessment confirmed the need for a cohesive training program and revealed improvement opportunities for end user communication, operationally-led governance, change management leadership tools, and benefits realization. Chartis worked with Franciscan to develop a vision, guiding principles, and goals specific to identified opportunities. The team co-established an approach in which operational needs — rather than IT-driven optimization preferences — were the driving force behind all decisions about selected projects, content, workflows, and training. Technology then became the enabler to activate the plan and galvanize engagement to meet these operational needs and organizational goals. The team developed a sustainable structure to support continuous improvement of care quality, efficiency, and experience.

Navigating to Next: Key Components

Case Study - From Refuel to Transformation

DECISION-MAKING

Develop operationally-led governance structure

Case Study - From Refuel to Transformation

COMMUNICATIONS

Establish mulit-modal communication framework, plan, and tools

Case Study - From Refuel to Transformation

OPERATIONAL READINESS

Design scalable operational readiness framework, and engage end users in workgroups for design

Case Study - From Refuel to Transformation

TRAINING

Redesign training program for employees and new hires

Case Study - From Refuel to Transformation

CHANGE LEADERSHIP

Mentor internal stakeholders in governance, change leadership, and communications

Case Study - From Refuel to Transformation

BENEFITS REALIZATION

Develop a robust benefits realization framework

Client Impact

By taking an enterprise-wide approach to technology-enabled transformation, Franciscan Alliance achieved greater EHR efficiencies and revenue gains in several operational areas. Early results demonstrate marked caregiver and patient experience improvements. Pre-surgical questionnaires on the patient portal streamlined patients’ pre-surgical experience. In the first quarter, 13,480 patients used electronic check-in prior to arrival. Caregiver experience improved as well. Nursing care efficiencies produced $2 million in annual labor cost savings while timely nursing documentation went up 35%. Utilization for Family Medicine providers rose 1,000 hours a month. Franciscan is poised to achieve continuous results that improve the bottom line and drive sustainability.

This project achieved $18.7M in benefits in just over 18 months.

Benefits across the board included:
113 +M

Projected 7-year benefits

22 %

Decrease in after-hours time spent in the EHR

34

Days: the average reduction in wait time for waitlisted patients


How We Are Making Healthcare Better

Chartis helped us pivot from a stars ratings-driven, module-centric technology deployment to an operationally led transformation program that achieved nearly $20 million in benefits and truly changed care outcomes and quality, and provider and patient experience. ”

Charles Wagner
Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Franciscan Alliance

Next Intelligence

Technology enablement can improve experience, performance, and value when executed well:
  • Shift mindset from technology-centric to operationally led technology-enabled program
  • Prepare operations for change through scalable readiness frameworks
  • Develop a robust benefits realization framework for sustained improvements

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