by Angela Guess
A recent release out of IBM reports, “In an effort to apply data-driven insights to one of the most fundamental aspects of running a health care system, UPMC announced today that it has formed Pensiamo, an independent company that aims to help hospitals improve supply chain performance through a comprehensive source-to-pay offering, including cognitive analytics with IBM Watson Health technologies. IBM is a minority owner of Pensiamo. Supply chain costs are the second-largest and fastest-growing expense behind labor costs for health care providers. The Institute of Medicine estimates that nearly one-third of health care spending is waste. In today’s dynamic environment, providers face mounting pressure to improve the effectiveness of patient care while controlling costs. Increasingly, providers need to understand their costs at a patient-specific level to succeed under performance-based payment systems. Yet today, few can derive such insights.”
The release continues, “One of the nation’s largest integrated health care delivery and financing systems, with $12 billion in revenue, UPMC will own a majority of the new Pittsburgh-based company and be the initial customer under a long-term contract. UPMC is widely recognized for creating one of the nation’s most efficient and effective health care supply chains. The entity regularly ranks among Gartner’s annual list of top 25 health care supply chain organizations based on leadership in improving patient outcomes and lowering costs.”
Photo credit: Pensiamo