1. Earlier identification of at-risk and early-stage patients
When payers and providers unite against this pervasive disease, they generate a greater wealth of potentially life-saving data. A provider’s cache of electronic health records (EHRs) holds the key to identifying early signs of kidney disease and those patients at risk of developing it. And a payer’s capacity for data analysis can turn that key.
By combing through EHRs to find clusters of kidney-related symptoms — members who’ve complained of nausea, fatigue and decreased urination, for example5 — payers can trigger providers to look more deeply into the possibility of kidney disease, noting the additional presence of any comorbid conditions and SDOH that may contribute. This increased focus can be used to alert the patient, as well, urging them to keep a closer eye on their symptoms. The upshot? More CKD patients will be identified sooner — and more may be spared from ever reaching the end stages of the disease.