Assist Technologies Inc. Announces Breakthrough In Health Outcomes Analysis.PHOENIX--(HealthWire)--June 19, 1996--Phoenix-based Assist Technologies Inc. announced the release of the Outcomes Analyzer analyzer /ana·ly·zer/ (an´ah-li?zer) 1. a Nicol prism attached to a polarizing apparatus which extinguishes the ray of light polarized by the polarizer. 2. , a revolutionary new software package designed to quickly and inexpensively help healthcare providers identify which treatments and physicians provide the best outcomes from the patients' point of view. Such analysis has profound significance for managed care organizations. Customers increasingly use outcomes data to select and reimburse re·im·burse tr.v. re·im·bursed, re·im·burs·ing, re·im·burs·es 1. To repay (money spent); refund. 2. To pay back or compensate (another party) for money spent or losses incurred. providers, and the ability to determine outcomes accurately and improve results immeasurably im·meas·ur·a·ble adj. 1. Impossible to measure. See Synonyms at incalculable. 2. Vast; limitless. im·meas has become a competitive necessity. In an article in the July/August 1995 issue of Group Practice Journal, Dr. Alan R. Zwerner wrote, "The marketplace is now forcing doctors to ask themselves - and to tell the public - how they are doing...As outcomes quality becomes the basis for evaluating physicians, the answers to these questions will determine which providers survive and which do not. Outcomes analysis is `where the rubber meets the road.'" Assist Technologies' founders observed organizations on the forefront of outcomes research struggling with outcomes analysis and designed the software to overcome the common hurdles they were facing. "We realized that if you're limited to tabular-type reports that take months to produce and you can't do `what if' analysis, you're limited in the value that you can get from your data," said Joy Hebert, a partner at Assist Technologies. The Outcomes Analyzer provides thousands of possible views of outcome data in colorful, easy to read graphs. Outcomes can be analyzed an·a·lyze tr.v. an·a·lyzed, an·a·lyz·ing, an·a·lyz·es 1. To examine methodically by separating into parts and studying their interrelations. 2. Chemistry To make a chemical analysis of. 3. by disease, procedure, physician, intervention A procedure used in a lawsuit by which the court allows a third person who was not originally a party to the suit to become a party, by joining with either the plaintiff or the defendant. , age group, payor and co-morbid condition. It helps to identify which physicians have sicker patients before and after treatment; identify which patients are likely to be hospitalized within a set time, or experience job loss, depression, or mortality; evaluate specific individual dimensions of health over time; and address parameters sought by payers or employers. Additional information such as population norms, disease norms and confidence intervals confidence interval, n a statistical device used to determine the range within which an acceptable datum would fall. Confidence intervals are usually expressed in percentages, typically 95% or 99%. can be added at the click of a button. To date, healthcare organizations have not had the opportunity to interact with outcomes data to such an extent. "The nice thing about the Outcomes Analyzer is that it is based on years of experience and research," said Mark Kosinski, research associate with The Health Institute at the New England New England, name applied to the region comprising six states of the NE United States—Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. The region is thought to have been so named by Capt. Medical Center. "It does all the hard work for the user." The latest research by outcomes leader John Ware This article is about the cowboy and rancher. For the U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania, see John H. Ware, III. John Ware (c. 1845 – 12 September 1905) was an African-American born into slavery in South Carolina, or, according to another source, in northern and his team at the New England Medical Center's Health Institute was used in developing the interpretation guidelines guidelines, n.pl a set of standards, criteria, or specifications to be used or followed in the performance of certain tasks. displayed by the Outcomes Analyzer. For example, the software alerts clinicians to patients at high risk for hospitalization hospitalization /hos·pi·tal·iza·tion/ (hos?pi-t'l-i-za´shun) 1. the placing of a patient in a hospital for treatment. 2. the term of confinement in a hospital. , depression and mortality. Analysts can use the software to identify patients at high risk for job loss and whether changes in scores are likely to impact work performance. "There's a tremendous need for user-friendly tools like the Outcomes Analyzer," Ware said. "Many healthcare organizations and employers are gathering outcomes data, but do not have an easy and scientifically sound way to analyze it." Assist Technologies was formed in 1992 by two healthcare executives who wanted to support the movement towards patient-assessed outcomes. The innovative software company also has pioneered unique touch-screen and interactive voice response software packages that collect outcomes directly from patients. The company's mission is to provide the most powerful, reliable and affordable outcomes collection and analysis tools on the market. CONTACT: Assist Technologies Inc. Tahnja Wilson, 602/460-4125 or Lisa Hill, 602/874-9400 |
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