GE Healthcare and Jefferson Health have formed an eight-year arrangement that will put over 100 GE staffers into 13 network hospitals.
“What’s really different is, these guys are not coming in as consultants. They are going to be embedded at our place,” Stephen Klasko, Jefferson’s chief executive,
told Philly.com.
About 70 Jefferson employees will also transfer over to work as GE employees, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer site.
The different "embedded" nature of the GE staffers is thanks to the fact that the relationship is “shared-risk,” according to a joint statement.
That means that there are agreed-upon critical milestones and a part of GE Healthcare’s fees are linked to the level of success in achieving these integration goals.
As Helen Stewart, managing principal at GE Healthcare Partners, pointed out to Philly.com, the “risk-sharing” means that, “we won’t get paid” if the targets aren’t hit.
It is one of just five similar long-term relationships in the U.S. and the biggest for GE.
The hope is that it will create at least $500 million and perhaps as much as $1 billion in “efficiencies” in the Jefferson network over the 8-year period.
“We have a unique opportunity to become the region’s leader in delivering even greater value to our patients — offering them high-quality care at a lower cost, wrapped around an exceptional patient care experience — every time,” said Klasko.
Jefferson Health and GE staff will work side-by-side, focusing on strategic growth, operations, integration, and performance improvement opportunities, while leveraging technology to deliver the best possible care that is both convenient and affordable.
Given the demands faced by the health care industry, “it’s great to see health systems like Jefferson seek new and innovative ways to improve better outcomes for patients,” said John Flannery, incoming CEO and chairman-elect of GE, adding that “this collaboration, which is financially tied to our shared success, demonstrates the confidence we have to jointly deliver world-class health care for the community.”
To get ready for the launch of the multi-year arrangement, GE Healthcare’s senior-most leaders have already been onsite, according to Kathleen Kinslow, Jefferson Health’s chief integration officer and leader for the initiative. “They have become valued members of our extended team and their level of engagement has been exceptional,” she stressed.
The move for Jefferson is driven by the “need to transform our industry,” advised Klasko, who stated that it was vital “to embrace disruption, such as consumerism, to effectively change the way we deliver health care in this country.”
In April, GE Healthcare and Hartford HealthCare announced a collaboration to launch a
series of projects over a 7-year period. The projects will aim to help patients avoid unnecessary wait times and other factors that can delay care.
"We are focused on ensuring patients get the care they need, where they need it, and to coordinate that care so it is faster, safer and, ultimately, more affordable," Elliot Joseph, CEO of Hartford HealthCare, said at the time.
