Ardentia Launches Activity Flow Analytics Tool to Give Trusts Affordable Intelligence on Patient Referrals

Solution provides customisable intelligence on GP referral trends to maximise effectiveness and quality of care

30 June, 2009 – Healthcare intelligence specialist Ardentia has announced the launch of its Activity Flow Analytics tool, a solution that provides healthcare providers and commissioners with more customisable and affordable patient activity intelligence about the source of hospital referrals.

The Ardentia solution helps trusts to develop their services by highlighting any gaps in healthcare provision, indicating where improvements can be made to optimise referral flows. Customisable intelligence on where GP referrals are coming from enables business development teams to develop services more strategically and maximise income.

By evaluating referral patterns, trusts can view the indicative revenue that they have both made and also lost out on. This information, based on HRG and national tariffs for inpatients and specialty and national tariffs for outpatients, gives trusts an indication of the monies involved in their activity and highlights areas where they are missing out on revenue.

Commissioners, on the other hand, can quickly check to see the hospitals to which their practices are referring cases. They can view this information down to the level of HRG and specialty, so that they can easily spot variations in referral patterns caused by case mix differences.

David Beeson, Ardentia’s Development Director, said: “Activity Flow Analytics is an essential tool for anyone trying to maximise the effectiveness and quality of the care they deliver. Its customisable reporting coupled with Virtual Earth technology means providers and commissioners can quickly access the information they need to optimise care delivery in key areas and ensure best quality care is commissioned as cost-effectively as possible.”

According to Ardentia, a key advantage of its new analytics tool is that it offers a more cost-effective way for acute trusts and commissioners to evaluate referral patterns. The solution gives trusts information on GP referrals across all clinical units and compare them with other trusts in their area, highlighting where improvements can be made.

Drop-down menus allow managers to drill down through a range of selectors including speciality, HRG, location, age or gender, meaning trusts can understand how referral flow and market share change according to the kind of case involved and commissioners can monitor changes in their practices’ referral patterns. Historical data can also be accessed to assess whether referral rates have increased or decreased, and to help identify the cause for any change.

Ardentia’s Activity Flow Analytics tool uses Microsoft’s Virtual Earth technology to map patient referrals, giving a clear visual indication of where patients are being referred and by which GP practices.

The solution also enables healthcare commissioners to discover where GPs are referring cases for acute care, helping them to identify the providers used, and whether these are the providers that offer the service most effectively, to ensure the best possible use of available budget.

NHS organisations looking to arrange a free trial of Ardentia’s Activity Flow Analytics tool should contact Bev Lewis on 01785 238000 or visit www.ardentia.co.uk for more details.

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About Ardentia

Stafford based Ardentia employs 58 staff and works exclusively on the delivery of software for healthcare. With over 100 clients in the NHS, it is the largest dedicated supplier of such systems, with customers at all levels of the health service: hospital trusts, Primary Care Trusts, Strategic Health Authorities and national service suppliers such as Connecting for Health.

www.ardentia.co.uk

For further information:

Ardentia Contact

David Beeson

01785 238000 / 07808 319581 / david.beeson {at} ardentia.co(.)uk

Press Contact

Context Public Relations

Luke Ford/Megan Bennett

01625 511966 / ardentia {at} contextpr.co(.)uk / www.contextpr.co.uk