Business Intelligence in Healthcare and Resort Management

Introduction to Business Intelligence

In the process of effective decision making for improving the opportunities and performance of a business, a vital role is played by Business Intelligence (BI). Business Intelligence systems understand the environments of organizations and follow a systematic information process. These systems carry significant development costs but are widely created, implemented, and used in mid-sized organizations, hospitals, resorts, and hotels.

Business organizations face ever-increasing demands and competition; they must make decisions using appropriate knowledge, as it plays an essential role in effective decision making. Business information is embedded in past decisions, data, external and internal environments, climatic conditions, technical advancements, and government policies. In response to these complexities, knowledge management systems and knowledge repositories have evolved. Systems such as Business Intelligence generate appropriate and actionable knowledge.

Organizations that have implemented Business Intelligence within their systems have moved toward more effective decision making. BI provides analysis and consolidation of data, along with the capacity to process that data into executable information for decision making. There are various information systems, and Business Intelligence is one of the most widely adopted. Countless clinics, hospitals, hotels, and resorts are generating value through BI implementation. Examining how, where, when, and why Business Intelligence systems were implemented in clinics and resorts yields several important lessons.

Before moving further, it is important to understand the basics of business intelligence tools and how they are implemented within an organization. Business Intelligence is described as a broad category of technologies and applications for collecting, storing, and analyzing data in order to help enterprise users make sound business decisions.

Through the implementation of BI, organizations can easily access, analyze, understand, and act on business information, anywhere and at any time. "BI systems provide sophisticated functions for effectively analyzing business information to support and improve management decision making. BI systems build upon integration of databases, data warehousing technologies, data mining technologies, web services, and advanced visualized interfaces" (Venkatadari, Sastry, & Manjunath, 2010). Organizations focus on acquiring customers, outpacing the competition, and increasing profitability and revenues. In order to improve their operating efficiencies and to transform data into meaningful, useful information, they need Business Intelligence. Medium-sized organizations are now able to implement business decisions quickly through BI. "BI spectrum is very broad in terms of its tools and functionality. At its core are the traditional capabilities of query, reporting, and analysis. This is complemented by data quality and data integration to accurately and consistently consolidate data from multiple sources" (Schiff, 2007).

BI Systems and Organizational Frameworks

An organization employs various individuals who work within the organization's environment using available technical systems. Every organization is grounded in social, technical, and socio-technical systems. A social system present within an organization is based on people-organization relationships. Organizational behavior interprets these relationships in order to achieve social, organizational, and human objectives, thereby building productive relationships. The technical system refers to the structure of technical elements present within an organization. The most important is the socio-technical system, which is an approach used to recognize the interaction between people and technology within a given system.

BI systems have enabled various healthcare centers, clubs, and resorts to track their data, execute effective decision making, and generate revenue efficiently. Business Intelligence connects these organizations with effective control and distribution systems, and specifies which employees can access which reports or data, ensuring both security and accountability.

Business Intelligence in Healthcare and Clinics

"There is the growing realization that many organizations are losing money when it comes to managing patient information and operational flow… causing a rapid increase in interest in BI. A strategic approach to BI identifies and plugs gaps that appear within the chain of activities and can lead to inefficient care" (The McGraw-Hill Companies Incorporation, 2009). Healthcare centers have lagged behind in adopting BI, but they have now shifted toward statistical thinking from purely tactical approaches. They have achieved evident results such as cost savings, improved margins, improved patient satisfaction, and better patient care. The primary motivation for healthcare organizations to pursue BI has been cost savings.

The widening use of BI enables greater performance overall. "Integrating clinical and operational performance can empower healthcare providers and organizational executives to make informed, timely decisions based on accurate information that can impact the financial viability of their units and organizations" (Jackson, 2009). Additionally, "the timing for implementing BI is excellent. Rapid advances in processing speed, innovative data warehouse design, and pioneering concepts of data display such as dashboards are opening up new opportunities for data management" (University of Arizona, 2009).

Utilization of Business Intelligence in clinics and healthcare centers has enabled them to eliminate waste data. They store excess data to recoup and examine denied claims. Several clinics have implemented a balanced scorecard program, improving their gross margins as a result. Research shows that some of the best healthcare organizations in the world have achieved a 15% increase in patient satisfaction through the use of analytics and Business Intelligence tools. These organizations are also able to identify non-compliant and high-risk patients. Increasingly, healthcare organizations are focusing on better cost availability.

They have begun to manage staff, resources, and billing through service line analysis. These service lines include intensive care, emergency medicine, and cardiac surgery. One of the best applications of BI in clinics and healthcare organizations is the sorting of patients by provider and clinic. Patient information can now be directed to the appropriate consultant or physician in a graphical format that is easily understood, saving time and effort for both patient and doctor. Business Intelligence systems offer utilization of functions that handle the necessary back-end work, including the reconciliation of built data warehouses and disparate systems.

According to this analysis, adopting and implementing BI solutions is the most effective answer to the challenge of improving patient satisfaction. Healthcare organizations must meet stringent regulatory standards and reduce medical costs — both of which are attainable through Business Intelligence systems. Clinics and healthcare organizations can deploy BI technology successfully by creating a culture of accountability through balanced scorecards and dashboards, extending beyond top-management agreement, and improving capabilities to track patients and assets. They can also incorporate information from diverse clinical and business systems, involve physicians in the planning process, and conduct training courses that demonstrate the concrete benefits of Business Intelligence.

Conclusion

Any organization can benefit from Business Intelligence. BI can help in solving issues related to in-depth analysis, location of important information, and the retention of historical values. Advanced analysis functionality provided by Business Intelligence permits all organizations to define their hierarchies and make better-informed decisions.

The lessons of effective decision making through Business Intelligence systems are clear. Initially costly, BI systems have become more affordable as they have been adopted globally, with costs gradually decreasing over time. BI systems are now greatly influencing the education, health, and entertainment sectors, providing greater opportunities every day while maintaining high levels of user satisfaction. As technology continues to advance, Business Intelligence will remain a cornerstone of strategic management across a broad range of industries.

References

Figure from Prosperity-planet.blogspot.com. Business Intelligence — A Modern Business Operation. Retrieved July 28, 2012, from http://prosperity-planet.blogspot.com/2011/01/business-intelligence-modern-business.html.

Jackson, L. C. (2009, March). Leveraging Business Intelligence for Healthcare Providers. Oracle. Retrieved July 28, 2012, from http://www.oracle.com/us/industries/046976.pdf.

Rudd, D. P. (2008). Innovative technological advances in modern club operations. Journal of Technology Research. Retrieved July 28, 2012, from

Schiff, M. A. (2007). Business Intelligence: The definitive guide for mid-size organizations. Business Objects. Retrieved July 28, 2012, from http://www.businessobjects.com/pdf/smallbusiness/wp_bi_for_midsize.pdf.

The McGraw-Hill Companies Incorporation. (2009, February). Business Intelligence for Healthcare: The new prescription for boosting cost management, productivity and medical outcomes. Retrieved July 28, 2012, from http://mediakit.businessweek.com/Products/Research_Services/White_Papers.

University of Arizona. (2009, March). Business Intelligence implementation. Retrieved July 28, 2012, from http://mosaic.arizona.edu/files/files/BI_3-2-09.pdf.

Venkatadari, M., Sastry, H. G., & Manjunath, G. (2010, November). A novel business intelligence system framework. Universal Journal of Computer Science and Engineering Technology, 1, 112–116.