CUSTOMER SUCCESS STORY

Banner Health Achieves 7x ROI by Optimizing Surgical Scheduling

A team of surgeons in an OR representing the surgical facilities at Banner Health
Regional IDN
Arizona
Cerner EHR
33 facilities
THE CHALLENGE

OR utilization was falling short of patient demand

Banner Health was focused on maximizing OR utilization to continue delivering world-class care while accommodating increased demand in services. More patients were seeking care, and even though OR utilization was not near its peak, it was difficult to find available OR time. Manual scheduling processes and significant amounts of unused, unreleased block time added to the challenge.
Banner was looking for a technology solution that would solve these challenges. The solution needed to integrate with its EHR, demonstrate clear ROI and ongoing value, scale with the growing needs of the health system, and be flexible enough to be implemented at various facilities with different processes.
Surgical professionals walk down a hallway in a hospital facility representing Banner Health
Surgeons performing a procedure at an OR representing the surgical facilities at Banner Health
QVENTUS DEPLOYMENT

Our AI surgical scheduling software unlocked OR capacity

The Qventus Perioperative Solution automates every step of the scheduling process and eliminates the manual steps that cause scheduling bottlenecks and mismatches.
The AI-powered software combines pattern recognition and predictive capabilities with principles of behavioral science to address all of Banner Health’s most serious scheduling problems.
“Qventus automations help us identify where OR time was going unused. Their technology has improved our efficiencies, allowing us to predict and meet the evolving needs of our patients.”
Nirav Patel, MD, FACS
Physician Executive, Surgical Specialties
“The results after the first six months have far exceeded our expectations. The solution has increased access to the OR and streamlined the block management process.”
Nicole Fiore
Senior Director, Division Operations, Surgical Services
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RESULTS

Qventus impact

of block time released early each month
359 hrs
increase in primetime utilization
6.3 %
robotic cases added per month
13
of OR requests through Qventus accepted
89 %
SOLUTIONS

What we deployed for Banner Health

A close-up view of a surgeon in a headlamp who represents the surgical services team at M Health Fairview

Qventus Perioperative Solution

Simplifying surgical scheduling: Qventus’ digital booking interface, TimeFinder, enables schedulers to easily find open time slots. The software determines the best-fit slots for any given case—factoring in things like day of week, time, the type of room and any special equipment needed, duration of procedure, and more—and offers a list of available slots that most closely fit the criteria. The clinic scheduler can book the time and submit the case request information with just a few clicks.

Improving block time utilization: Machine learning algorithms learn from a surgeon’s historical practice patterns and use that data to predict, up to a month in advance, time within each surgeon’s block that is unlikely to be used. When the system identifies a slot with a significantly high probability of going unused, it sends an automated “nudge” to the surgeon’s scheduler, requesting a release of the slot. To incentivize the release, the nudge includes a calculation of how much the release will improve the surgeon’s block utilization rate.

Proactively filling unused slots: Under a manual process, unused slots are often filled with the first available procedure, rather than the most appropriate one. The Qventus Perioperative Solution’s Available Time Outreach functionality analyzes the characteristics of available slots, matches them with surgeons’ predicted needs, then offers the best-fit slots via email to the surgeon who’s most likely to use it and who also represents the highest value to Banner Health. The scheduler can accept or decline with a few clicks. If they decline, the system automatically moves to the next most likely candidate.

SOLUTIONS

What we deployed for Banner Health

Inpatient Solution

Simplifying surgical scheduling: Qventus’ digital booking interface, TimeFinder, enables schedulers to easily find open time slots. The software determines the best-fit slots for any given case—factoring in things like day of week, time, the type of room and any special equipment needed, duration of procedure, and more—and offers a list of available slots that most closely fit the criteria. The clinic scheduler can book the time and submit the case request information with just a few clicks.

Improving block time utilization: Machine learning algorithms learn from a surgeon’s historical practice patterns and use that data to predict, up to a month in advance, time within each surgeon’s block that is unlikely to be used. When the system identifies a slot with a significantly high probability of going unused, it sends an automated “nudge” to the surgeon’s scheduler, requesting a release of the slot. To incentivize the release, the nudge includes a calculation of how much the release will improve the surgeon’s block utilization rate.

Proactively filling unused slots: Under a manual process, unused slots are often filled with the first available procedure, rather than the most appropriate one. The Qventus Perioperative Solution’s Available Time Outreach functionality analyzes the characteristics of available slots, matches them with surgeons’ predicted needs, then offers the best-fit slots via email to the surgeon who’s most likely to use it and who also represents the highest value to Banner Health. The scheduler can accept or decline with a few clicks. If they decline, the system automatically moves to the next most likely candidate.

A close-up view of a surgeon in a headlamp who represents the surgical services team at M Health Fairview

Future Solution

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Two healthcare professionals check in on a hospitalized patient in a facility representing M Health Fairview

Future Solution

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Two healthcare professionals check in on a hospitalized patient in a facility representing M Health Fairview

Future Solution

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Praesent quis nunc euismod, interdum purus eu, condimentum mi. Donec lacinia risus in consequat pharetra. Pellentesque habitant morbi tristique senectus et netus et malesuada fames ac turpis egestas. In eu elit lectus. Aliquam at velit massa.

Ut blandit pulvinar volutpat. Cras egestas sem turpis, non accumsan justo cursus viverra. Proin ipsum arcu, dignissim a enim eu, tristique eleifend orci. Etiam commodo dignissim nisi, sed finibus metus auctor in. Nulla venenatis porttitor risus non pretium. In rhoncus tempor mauris. Orci varius natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus.

Two healthcare professionals check in on a hospitalized patient in a facility representing M Health Fairview
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