Client Case Studies
MediServe Client Impact Case Study - Rehabilitative Medicine
Baylor Health Care System - Baylor Institute for Rehabilitation
Baylor Institute for Rehabilitation (BIR), a freestanding rehabilitation hospital in Dallas, Texas, opened in 1981 with 74 beds, and has since grown to 116 beds. BIR is part of the Baylor Health Care System and offers a comprehensive continuum of inpatient, outpatient and community-based rehabilitation services and programs. BIR has been recognized as one of the top 15 best rehabilitation hospitals in the nation, by U.S. News and World Report's America's Best Hospitals Survey in 2007.
In November 2004 MediLinks was implemented on a 24-bed unit of the hospital. In November 2005 the program was rolled out for use throughout the inpatient hospital.
Since implementation of the system, Baylor Institute for Rehabilitation has experienced measurable financial impact to the organization, streamlined manual processes, and improved capture of appropriate coding, clinical and functional information to support rehabilitation and medical necessity for admission to the inpatient rehabilitation setting.
Prior to the MediLinks implementation, documentation was performed on paper and a magnetic board was used for therapy scheduling. Paper charting included assessments, daily activity record (DAR), focus notes, and discharge summaries. In addition, the rehabilitation team used paper for team conference reporting.
Now, the software, through branching logic, supports clinical staff to assess patients' functional status using an algorithm to answer questions related to functional measures. The Functional Independence Measure (FIM) score is assigned based upon clinician input.
Baylor examined patient data including the case mix index and FIM scores from 2004 through the second quarter of 2007. Case mix index increased from 1.2251 in Q1 2004 to a high of 1.4227 in Q1 2006.
Case Mix Index
Between 2004 and 2007 the average admission FIM scores for all rehabilitation impairment categories (RIC) decreased by 4.81 points and the discharge FIM scores increased by 1.36 points.
Admission FIM
In the same time period total FIM change per admission for all RIC’s increased by 5.93 points as illustrated in the following graph.
Total FIM Change
All of these changes have created a measurable financial impact for the organization. The average expected Medicare reimbursement per case for all rehabilitation impairment categories (RIC’s) has increased from $15,045 per case in 2004 to $18,377 per case in 2007.
Average Reimbursement Per Case
MediLinks has delivered solid results for Baylor Institute for Rehabilitation through streamlined documentation processes that support accurate patient assessment. MRM scheduling has been rolled out to 26 outpatient sites throughout the Baylor Health Care System.
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