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Healthcare systems and individual hospitals can evaluate their very own metrics against industry data to evaluate cost and revenue implications of an investment in on-demand telepsychiatry.
(October 22, 2020) – Array has launched a customized capability using a value calculator to help hospitals and healthcare systems evaluate costs associated with their current process for managing behavioral health patient demand against savings and revenue opportunities.
The unique tool responds to a long-standing need for hospital administration to quantify the expected return on investment of behavioral health coverage via on-demand telepsychiatry. This new capability comes at a critical time as the industry faces unexpected operational and financial challenges. Many facilities are seeing a rise in demand for mental health services, while a simultaneous drop in ED visits in the wake of COVID-19 is presenting financial strain.
For hospitals and healthcare systems considering on-demand telepsychiatry to meet growing patient need for mental health services, implementing a financially sustainable and scalable program is essential:
On-demand telepsychiatry can have a positive financial ripple effect that extends well beyond emergency departments, including reduced reliance on scarce inpatient psychiatric resources, reduced inpatient psychiatric admissions, improved emergency department throughput and increased capacity for med-surg admissions. It allows healthcare systems to allocate resources to populations with heightened need and acuity to reduce strain on clinicians and improve operational metrics.
Array's value calculator uses proprietary logic based on more than two decades of experience implementing programs and delivering telepsychiatry services within hospitals and health systems. Customizable to organizations of all sizes, the tool uses validated data, clinical research and demonstrated outcomes to help organizations determine the financial impact of on-demand telepsychiatry applied to their specific use case. It takes into account actual direct and indirect costs using current behavioral health demand within the facility in order to quantify specific areas of cost savings and highlight untapped revenue opportunities.
Using key data on current behavioral resources and gaps, such as patient length of stay, bed capacity and existing clinical coverage, hospitals and health systems can:
“We understand the key role on-demand telepsychiatry can play in helping hospitals deliver financially sustainable care, but it has typically been challenging for leadership to quantify its impact at a detailed level,” says David Cohn, Chief Growth Officer at Array. “Now, this capability allows us to collaborate with healthcare organizations and give them a fresh, detailed view of their current cost exposure and expected operational outcomes and financial returns from on-demand telepsychiatry programming.”
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Array Behavioral Care is the leading and largest telepsychiatry service provider in the country with a mission to transform access to quality, timely behavioral health care. Array offers telepsychiatry solutions and services across the continuum of care from hospital to home with its OnDemand Care, Scheduled Care and AtHome Care divisions. For more than 20 years, Array has partnered with hundreds of hospitals and health systems, community healthcare organizations and payers of all sizes to expand access to care and improve outcomes for underserved individuals, facilities and communities. As an industry pioneer and established thought leader, Array has helped shape the field, define the standard of care and advocate for improved telepsychiatry-friendly regulations. To learn more, visit www.arraybc.com.
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