Optimizing Accountable Care: The Vital Role of a Senior Clinical Strategist in Enhancing Patient-Centered Healthcare

Introduction

Introduction: Understanding the Role of Project Management in the Context of a Senior Clinical Strategist

Project management in the business and corporate sector is a critical competency that encapsulates the methodical approach to organizing, executing, and concluding projects. A Senior Clinical Strategist involved in Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) must deftly employ project management skills to accomplish the multifaceted tasks at hand. This role is pivotal in reshaping the framework of care provided to ACO REACH attributed lives, fostering enhanced patient-centered care through strategic partnerships with healthcare providers and networks.

As the healthcare landscape continues to evolve, Senior Clinical Strategists based in dynamic urban centers like Chicago, Illinois; NYC/Long Island, New York; and Columbus/Dayton, Ohio, are expected to stay ahead of the curve. A significant part of the workweek will involve local travel, comprising a moderate 25% of their time, while maintaining standard business hours that afford a desirable work-life balance with no nights, weekends, or holiday shifts.

The core of a Senior Clinical Strategist's daily responsibilities hinges on continuous refinement processes to improve quality and patient experience. This involves spearheading robust analyses of provider performance, dissecting operational capabilities, and steering this data into actionable and strategic roadmaps that usher in profitable growth, all while maintaining a keen focus on reducing the total cost of care.

Key Components of Project Management:

1. Scope Definition: Identifying and outlining the specific objectives, deliverables, and milestones pertinent to the ACO model.

2. Resource Allocation: Efficiently managing both human and material resources, ensuring that the right expertise is applied to key project areas.

3. Risk Management: Anticipating potential challenges or obstacles and proactively developing mitigation strategies to ensure project continuity.

4. Stakeholder Communication: Implementing transparent communication channels with providers, clinics, and team members, which are essential to collaborative efforts.

5. Performance Evaluation: Defining success metrics and performing continuous assessments to guide pivotal healthcare decisions and project adjustments.

Benefits of Project Management in Accountable Care Senior Clinical Strategist Role:

1. Improved Delivery of Care: Project management structures streamline processes, resulting in higher-quality care and improved health outcomes for attributed lives.

2. Cost Efficiency: Careful planning and monitoring of project resources lead to reductions in total care cost by eliminating inefficiencies and ensuring better use of funds.

3. Strategic Alignment: Organized project flows ensure that all activities are in harmony with the overarching goals of patient care excellence and sustainability.

4. Collaborative Synergy: As this role interacts regularly with various stakeholders, project management facilitates a more coherent and unified approach to care, enhancing the overall patient experience.

5. Enhanced Accountability: Clear goals, benchmarks, and documentation practices foster greater transparency and accountability in the care model strategy.

In summary, the Senior Clinical Strategist serves as a catalyst for innovation and efficiency in the Accountable Care model, with project management being the backbone of driving transformative change and achieving both clinical and commercial success.

KanBo: When, Why and Where to deploy as a Project management too

What is KanBo?

KanBo is a comprehensive project management platform that serves to streamline work coordination through its integration with Microsoft products such as SharePoint, Teams, and Office 365. It provides a real-time view of work, efficient task management, and seamless communication, employing a clear hierarchical structure for organizing workspaces, folders, spaces, and cards.

Why?

KanBo is instrumental in enhancing project management because it facilitates the organization of teams and projects with a flexible, customizable environment. It supports both on-premises and cloud-based data management, ensuring compliance with data protection regulations. Deep integration with Microsoft environments allows for a connected and efficient workflow, making it easier for users to collaborate on projects, manage tasks, and share important information—all essential in project management.

When?

KanBo should be utilized whenever there is a need to manage projects, tasks, or workflows effectively. It is designed to be used throughout the entire lifecycle of a project—from initial planning and task allocation to execution, monitoring, and completion. The tool can be used for single projects as well as ongoing, operationally critical activities that require continuous attention and management.

Where?

KanBo can be used in a variety of professional environments, including corporate offices, remote work settings, and hybrid workplaces. As it supports both cloud and on-premises deployment, it can be accessed from anywhere, providing a centralized platform for team members to stay connected and informed regardless of their physical location.

Accountable Care Senior Clinical Strategist should use KanBo as a Project management tool for:

A Senior Clinical Strategist involved in accountable care initiatives should use KanBo for project management to ensure a structured, standardized approach to managing multiple projects and assignments efficiently. With KanBo's project visualization features, such as Gantt Chart, Time Chart, and Forecast Chart views, strategists can predict project trajectories, manage time dependencies, and optimize resource allocation. The card-based system allows strategists to break down complex tasks, monitor deadlines, and address potential issues promptly. Furthermore, KanBo's secure environment ensures that sensitive healthcare data is managed according to compliance standards, making it a reliable choice for healthcare strategy project management.

How to work with KanBo as a Project management tool

As a Senior Clinical Strategist tasked with managing accountable care projects, effective project management is essential for ensuring that resources are optimized and strategic goals are met. Using KanBo as a project management tool offers a visual and interactive method to manage workflows and collaborate with teams. Below are step-by-step instructions on how to work with KanBo for project management:

1. Create a Workspace

Purpose: The workspace in KanBo serves as the central hub for all project-related activities, allowing for organized management of different facets of the accountable care project.

Instructions: From your KanBo dashboard:

- Click on the plus icon (+) or select "Create New Workspace".

- Name the workspace to reflect the accountable care project.

- Choose a workspace type: Private, Public, or Org-wide depending on access requirements.

- Assign roles to define who can view or make changes (e.g., Owner, Member, Visitor).

Why: Designating a workspace keeps project resources, documents, and discussions centralized, which helps in maintaining focus and aligning collaborative efforts.

2. Create Folders and Spaces

Purpose: Folders categorize Spaces for better organization, while Spaces allow for detailed project planning and task management.

Instructions:

- Within your Workspace, add Folders to group related Spaces.

- Create Spaces for individual components or phases of your accountable care project.

Why: By structuring your Workspace with folders and spaces, you can manage multiple dimensions of the project simultaneously while ensuring each task and document is easily accessible.

3. Add and Customize Cards

Purpose: Cards are individual tasks or items to be tracked, and they are the most fundamental units in KanBo.

Instructions:

- Within a Space, add Cards for each actionable item or task.

- Customize Cards with relevant details such as descriptions, deadlines, checklists, and attachments.

Why: Customizing Cards allows for clear task assignments and specifications, ensuring that each team member understands their responsibilities.

4. Define Card Relationships and Dependencies

Purpose: To manage the workflow order and dependencies between tasks.

Instructions:

- Create Card relations to establish a hierarchy or sequence among tasks.

- Observe any date conflicts and resolve them to prevent scheduling issues.

Why: Identifying relationships and dependencies prevents bottlenecks and facilitates more efficient project progress tracking.

5. Assign Roles and Responsibilities

Purpose: To delegate tasks and clarify accountability in the project.

Instructions:

- Within each Card, assign a Responsible Person who oversees task completion.

- Add Co-Workers to collaborate on the Card.

Why: Clear assignment of roles ensures that team members are aware of their responsibilities and facilitates accountability.

6. Monitor Progress with KanBo Views

Purpose: To visually track and analyze the progression of tasks and overall project status.

Instructions:

- Use the Gantt Chart view for a visual timeline of task deadlines and durations.

- Implement the Time Chart view to monitor efficiency metrics like lead and cycle times.

- Check the Forecast Chart view for project completion estimates based on performance data.

Why: Visual monitoring tools provide a quick and informative snapshot of project health, enabling timely adjustments and data-driven decision-making.

7. Communicate and Collaborate

Purpose: To maintain clear communication and teamwork throughout the project.

Instructions:

- Utilize comments, tagging, and real-time updates for ongoing communication.

- Share documents and updates directly within Cards and Spaces.

Why: Efficient communication and collaboration are critical for the success of complex projects, allowing for the swift resolution of issues and encouraging team engagement.

8. Review and Adjust

Purpose: To assess project outcomes and make necessary adjustments.

Instructions:

- Regularly review project performance against goals.

- Adjust strategies, tasks, and responsibilities based on data and team feedback.

Why: Continuous improvement ensures project management practices evolve to meet the dynamic needs of the organization and the accountable care initiatives.

By following these steps, the Senior Clinical Strategist can effectively manage accountable care projects using KanBo, driving the project toward successful outcomes with strategic planning, team collaboration, and ongoing assessment.

Glossary and terms

Glossary Introduction

This glossary provides definitions for key terms that are commonly used in the context of project management and task organization using modern digital platforms. Understanding these terms is essential for project managers, team members, and stakeholders to navigate and efficiently utilize project management tools. The following concepts form the basis for comprehensive work coordination within such systems.

Glossary of Terms:

- Workspace:

- A virtual area that groups related spaces associated with a particular project, team, or topic to facilitate organization and collaboration.

- Space:

- A collection of cards in a customizable layout, visually representing workflows to manage and track tasks, akin to projects or specific areas of focus within a workspace.

- Card:

- The fundamental unit of task representation that contains details such as notes, files, comments, due dates, and checklists, adaptable to various contexts.

- Card Relation:

- A connection between cards, indicating dependency, which allows for task breakdown and clarification of work sequences; most common as parent/child or sequential (next/previous) relationships.

- Card Status:

- A label indicating the current state of a card, such as "To Do," "In Progress," or "Completed," to organize work progress and facilitate tracking and management.

- Responsible Person:

- A designated user responsible for overseeing the completion of a task; this person is the primary point of accountability for a card's realization.

- Co-Worker:

- A user involved in the execution of the task; co-workers contribute to the task’s progress and may have specific responsibilities within the card.

- Date Conflict:

- Occurs when due dates or start dates of related cards overlap or are inconsistent, leading to scheduling discrepancies and prioritization issues within the space.

- Card Issue:

- A problem identified within a card that hampers its management, marked by color coding such as orange for time conflicts and red for blockages, indicating the need for resolution.

- Card Blocker:

- An obstacle or concern that prevents a card from progressing; blockers can be local (specific to the card), global (affecting multiple cards), or on-demand (arising in particular situations).

- Gantt Chart View:

- A space view that presents time-dependent cards on a timeline as a bar chart, sorted chronologically, useful for intricate, long-term planning.

- Time Chart View:

- A visualization tool within a space that tracks the time metrics like lead time, reaction time, and cycle time, allowing for process analysis and improvements.

- Forecast Chart View:

- A project monitoring tool displaying progress and offering data-driven completion forecasts based on historical performance, highlighting the balance between completed and pending tasks.

Understanding these terms will help team members to effectively communicate, organize work, and streamline task management processes within digital project management environments.