Northwell Health Laboratories The 10-Year Outcomes After Deciding to Keep the Lab
Kendal J. Jensen, MD, PhD; Robert Stallone, BA; Michael Eller, MBA; Joseph Castagnaro, MBA; Hannah Poczter, MS, MBA; Richard Tesoriero, MBA; Jeanne Balzano-Kane, MS; Cari Gusman, BS; Tawfiqul Bhuiya, MD; Dwayne Breining, MD; James M. Crawford, MD, PhD
Northwell Health Laboratories were established in 1997, serving the Northwell Health system. In 2008, the health system considered minority entry into a joint venture with a commercial laboratory. Based on arguments made by Northwell laboratory leadership, the decision was made to retain full ownership of the laboratory.
Objective: To evaluate the 10-year outcomes of the 2008 decision and assess the value of a fully integrated laboratory service line for a regional health network.
Design: Ten-year outcomes were analyzed including financial, volume, and value-based activities.
Results: First, a fully integrated laboratory service line was created, with unified medical and managerial leadership. Second, Core Laboratory volumes and revenues grew at annualized rates of 4.5% and 16.0%, respectively. Third, hospital-based laboratory costs were held either constant, or grew in accordance with strategic clinical programs. Fourth, laboratory services were able to provide leadership in innovative system clinical programming and value-based payment programs. Fifth, the laboratories became a regional asset, forming a joint venture affiliation with New York City Health + Hospitals, and supporting distressed hospitals in Brooklyn, New York. Lastly, Northwell Health Laboratories have become a reputational asset through leadership in two consortia: The Compass Group and Project Santa Fe.
Conclusions: The 10-year outcomes have exceeded projections made in 2008, validating the decision to retain the laboratories as a wholly owned system asset. The laboratories are now well positioned for leading innovation in patient care and for helping to drive a favorable posture for the health system under new payment models for healthcare.
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Copyright College of American Pathologists 2019. Cited with permission.