Kaiser Permanente Case

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Pages: 7

Kaiser Permanente is an integrated managed care consortium that operates in eight states (Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, California, Colorado, Maryland, Virginia, Georgia) and the District of Columbia. Two to three distinct interdependent legal entities form the Kaiser system in each region. It is the largest managed care organization in the United States. They have more than 11.3 million members and is known for their quality health services dedicated to preventative care and paying their doctors a salary instead of a fee-for-service basis. They combine coverage and care via 39 hospitals, 677 medical offices, 200,000 plus employees and 23,000 non-employee physicians who contract exclusively with the health plan. Technology plays a huge roll in …show more content…
The founders, Henry J. Kaiser and Dr. Sidney R. Garfield, started the company to give healthcare to those working to build ships for military use in World War II. Their main goal was to offer preventive medicine and to educate their workers on maintaining their own health. Once the war ended, the shipyard workforce fell and to continue practicing their new form of healthcare delivery, Garfield convinced Kaiser to open the Permanente Health Plan to the public. In ten years, their enrollment grew to over 300,000 members in Northern California. Most of KP’s growth after World War II is due to their support from unions seeing that their healthcare was more affordable than what was currently available under the fee-for-service system. Though the company has had many ups and downs since then, it had managed to last this long and be able to give the greatest quality of care it could. In 2013, Kaiser received four out of four stars for meeting National Standards of Care from the California Healthcare Quality Report Cars for the work done in their Northern and Southern California …show more content…
First is the company’s run technology. Kaiser takes great pride in its Electronic Medical Record. Without it, the company wouldn’t be able to service its members to their full capacity. Having medical records easily available makes the already stressful doctors visit flow smoothly and without problems. Everything is ready to go when the patients doctor comes into the room, whether it’s their primary physician or not. Second is the company’s grow technology. Kaiser has multiple groups that’s sole purpose is to help the company move towards innovation. One group, The Innovation Hunters, are a group of innovation specialists appointed by their IT Business Information Officer to increase the velocity of innovation at Kaiser Permanente. The group aids in the delivery of services for the company. Each region has a group dedicated to innovation and implementing innovation programs. Kaiser is always trying to find the best new ideas to further the company and to stay as a leader in the healthcare industry. Using new ideas and implementing them will cause the business to continue to grow and bring more members to the company. Also, the company makes sure their IT department is constantly upgrading their tech apps. Having the latest technology available to members and physicians is important. Without it, the lag will cause members to feel as if they aren’t getting the best care