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Virtual health projected to save $10 billion in primary care
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Implementing virtual health solutions in primary care settings could save $10 billion annually, according to a report released by Accenture at the U.S. News & World Report's Hospital of Tomorrow Forum.
The report analyzed workflows measured by the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) and referenced Medscape salary data and American Academy of Family Physicians data on averaged hours worked. Accenture conducted the analysis with THINK-Health LLC in September 2015, according to the release.
Investigators assessed the application of virtual health solutions in three care scenarios to measure value.
They found that implementing digital tools, including a virtual medical assistant, analytic diagnostic engine and biometric devices, would allow physicians to streamline annual patient visits and save an average of 5 minutes per encounter. That equates to 37,000 primary care physicians in time saved, or 18% of the primary care physician workforce. The economic value was estimated to be more than $7 billion annually.
Additionally, implementing eVisits for hypertension management in half of patients' visits would save approximately 1,500 primary care providers in time and $300 million annually, according to Accenture.
Implementing virtual health solutions specifically for diabetes self-care would save 24,000 primary care physicians in time and $2 billion annually.
“There’s a lot of capacity sitting in U.S. health systems that can be freed by applying digital-enabled productivity strategies,” Kaveh Safavi MD, JD, global managing director of Accenture Health, said in the release. “This type of virtual health can boost the supply of primary care doctors — without adding or training professionals — at a time when there’s a projected shortage of 31,000 professionals expected in the next decade.”