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Health Analytics

Analytics, just what the doctor ordered

Can Analytics and Optimisation be ‘Just what the Doctor ordered’ for struggling Australian Hospitals and Health Services?

In Australia consumers have more access to information than ever before and are demanding increasing accountability from their doctors, nurses health plans and, better health care quality. The Hospital and Health Services (HHS) industry despite struggling under the weight of an ageing population, a shortage in doctors and nurses, increased regulation, accountability, governance and budgetary oversight, are continually required to provide more with less.

The healthcare industry requires smarter, more informed decisions to enable improved efficiency, better service delivery and enhanced patient outcomes.

Research in 2012 by IBM into the Healthcare Industry in the US confirmed mounting evidence of entrenched inefficiencies and sub-optimal clinical outcomes. The report highlighted how building an analytics focus can help these Health organisations harness “big data” to create actionable insights, set their future vision, improve outcomes and reduce time to value.

The authors note that the abundance of data that bombards healthcare professionals both facilitates and complicates the ability of healthcare providers to achieve and influence desirable outcomes. It appears clear that entrenched systemic inefficiencies in the health systems are at least in part attributed to the ineffective gathering, sharing and use of information

The glut of information makes it hard to differentiate data which can be used to generate powerful insights, from clutter. In fact, the dilemma presented by too much data and too little insight – is cited in the research as an increasingly daunting obstacle standing in the way of better service delivery and improved patient outcomes.

The daunting challenges facing the healthcare industry today make for compelling arguments to expand the role of analytics

The study confirmed that analytics can provide the mechanism to sort through this mountain of complexity and data, and help healthcare organizations deliver on efficiency improvements and better patient outcomes. In Australia the introduction of Activity Based Funding (ABF) has promoted the use of data as the essential input informing critical decisions by Managers, Administrators and Clinicians. Not surprisingly HHS are increasingly looking to move from data processing to data analysis and applying insights to financial outcomes. Australian HHS are just starting to recognise how the power of mathematics through analytics and optimisation can be utilised to consume, unlock and apply new insights from information.

Analytics can provide the mechanism to sort through this mountain of complexity and data

Despite the availability of new methods of analytics that can be used to drive clinical and operational improvements, Australian HHS continue to function with a traditional baseline of transaction monitoring using basic reporting tools, spreadsheets and application reporting. As in the US Health system Australian HHS must face-up to the challenge to move from the traditional model to one that incorporates predictive analytics and enables organizations to “see the future,” and create more personalised healthcare and predict patient behavior.

Advanced analytics and optimisation approaches can take full advantage of the ‘Data deluge’ to generate powerful insights which deliver better outcomes

Today, most HHS use some form of descriptive analytics. They are typically using reporting tools and applications descriptively to understand what has happened in the past and to classify and categorize historical data. However, as their analytics expectations mature, HHS are looking more toward predictive analytics techniques, which take an understanding of the past to predict future activities and model scenarios using simulation and forecasting. The report notes that Enterprise analytics, evidence-based medicine and clinical outcome analytics can all be supported by these more advanced capabilities. For example, analytics can enable the compilation of information about trends, patterns, deviations, anomalies and relationships and reveal key insights.Biarri Optimisation Software Banner

Some Hospital and Health Services are taking a proactive approach

Gold Coast University Hospital (GCUH) is one example of an Australian HHS organisation leading the way by embracing predictive analytics to improve demand for better service delivery and enhanced patient outcomes. Most recently Biarri Optimisation worked with GCUH to enhance their understanding of expected future demand and to develop insight into opportunities to better allocate resources. Through the application of customised predictive analytics and optimisation GCUH improved their knowledge of forecasted demands for the next Financial Year, allowing improved capacity planning requirements for physical resources and staffing resources equating to better workforce optimisation.

Biarri and GCUH demonstrated the value of quantitative analysis in forecasting patient admissions and QWAUs and used this to provide more efficient capacity and resource planning.

For most organisations today, data visualisation, historic trend analysis and forecasting, and standardized reporting are the analytics elements that provide the most value. However, that is likely to change. The research showed that while data visualisation will always be a critical element, increased emphasis will be placed on simulations and scenario development and analytics that are applied within various business processes.

Biarri Commercial Mathematics

To learn more about how Biarri can help your HHS organisation benefit from advanced analytics and optimisation go to www.biarri.com or contact

Sam Rowse: Email: sam.rowse@biarri.com, Mobile: +61 458 004 220

Analytics for a Competitive Advantage

Analytics for a Competitive Advantage

Are you serious about using analytics for a competitive advantage?

Based on a global executive survey with 2,000+ respondents and interviews with more than thirty executives, MIT Sloan Management Review and SAS Institute Inc. report that analytics has become a common path to business value and through proper use, businesses can drive analytics for a competitive advantage.

Companies that incorporate analytics into their culture are finding success in the new digital era

The report discusses how organisations are now being challenged to step up their use of analytics, whether they are just getting started or are seasoned practitioners. The implications for industry competition are coming into focus—companies that incorporate analytics into their culture are finding success in the new digital era.

In new research released by MIT Sloan Management Review and SAS managers surveyed, report that an analytics culture is the driving factor in achieving competitive advantage from data and analytics, more important than any of the other capabilities measured in the study.

Companies must continuously innovate with analytics to maintain the edge

The new report, “The Analytics Mandate,” based on results from a global survey of more than 2,000 business executives and personal interviews with over 30 senior managers, also finds that companies must continuously innovate with analytics to maintain the edge it affords.

“We found that in companies with a strong analytics culture, decision-making norms include the use of analytics, even if the results challenge views held by senior management,” said David Kiron, executive editor for MIT Sloan Management Review. “This differentiates those companies from others, where often management experience overrides insights from data.”

The research also indicates that companies with a top-down mandate for fact-driven decision making are experiencing gains with analytics to a far greater extent than other organizations. Executive support, leading by example and evangelizing “a lot of little wins” helps to both push and pull employees towards an analytics culture.

This study, now in its fourth year, suggests that analytics is no longer a new path to value; it’s a common one. Access to useful information continues to increase, and the vast majority of respondents are investing in their analytical capabilities to leverage their data.

Biarri helps to turn your data into a competitive advantage

Biarri can help to take a repository of data and knowledge and turn it into a greater competitive advantage for your business. By taking a snapshot of your historical data, we can create custom software within 90 days which gives you the power to make better, data driven decisions. We develop bespoke solutions to Advanced Planning and Scheduling, Workforce Management, Supply Chain Optimisation and Business Analytics problems, across multiple Industries and value chains.

Contact us today to see how we can help turn your data into a competitive advantage!

Coal Train Crew Scheduling

An optimised approach to Coal Train Crew Scheduling

Rail is frequently used for moving coal between mines and ports, and interactions between train and crewing requirements can create highly complex problems.

Recently Matt Herbert, an optimisation consultant at Biarri Commercial Mathematics was invited to present an approach to Coal Train Crew Scheduling at the Queensland University of Technology, hosted by ASOR.

Matt provided insights into the problems many mining and rail companies face when scheduling their crews. His formulation considered many aspects of the real world problem, including restricting the number of crew changes on each service, and variable start times for crews.

This approach is able to produce weekly crew assignments with high utilisation in run times of around an hour, down from existing manual methods requiring a day or more.

Have a look at Matt’s Presentation

Schweppes Vehicle Routing Optimisation

Helping students deliver Vehicle Routing Optimisation

When Griffith University’s Business School asked for support developing a network optimisation case for the Applied Business Modelling course, Biarri was happy to assist.

An opportunity to teach and demonstrate state-of-the-art thinking

Robert Ogulin Lecturer and Program Director of Griffith’s Master of Supply Network Management (MSNM) identified an opportunity to “teach and demonstrate state of the art thinking” to his logistics and supply chain students. The Masters program provides students with the opportunity to develop an understanding of effective and sustainable management of global sourcing and international business, and Ogulin recognised the importance of ensuring that students get practical experience with advanced supply chain and optimisation tools.

“It is becoming increasingly clear to me that logistics and supply chain students (and business students in general) require more exposure to related IT” Ogulin said.

The course required access to advanced logistics and supply chain software that had been proven in the rigours of a commercial setting. Biarri’s expertise in the development of easy to use, powerful optimisation solutions across a range of commercial applications and industry sectors proved a good fit with Griffith University’s high performance expectations. Biarri’s Vehicle Routing Optimisation (VRO) tool could accommodate a wide variety of constraints and scenarios, from basic functionality for a homogeneous fleet and fixed load/unload times, to more complex issues such as multi-day workload balancing or managing multiple depots and tours.

Biarri’s VRO helped Schweppes Australia achieve great results with the development of a comprehensive vehicle routing solution, customised to Schweppes’ unique requirements. This application was designed to optimise routes based on their customers’ limited delivery windows while still meeting rigorous customer service level agreements. The VRO tool helped Schweppes achieve a 10% reduction in total fleet kilometres, saving the business thousands of unnecessary kilometers and reduced overall environmental impact via reduced fuel and truck usage.

This made Biarri’s VRO a perfect choice for the program, allowing students to test challenging scenarios and deliver optimised results within real-world constraints. A total of 40 students from the Undergraduate BBUS (Logistics and Supply Network Management) and Master of Supply Network Management courses were offered free on-line access to the VRO software across a two week period and by all accounts the project proved to be a success.

“The tool provided an easy to use but powerful learning environment. The scenarios that (Biarri) provided were perfect to get the students to think through the implications of changing constraints or cost parameters”