Revolutionary population health AI platform identifies major opportunities to improve Irish health system
10 September 2024
** PRESS RELEASE**
Health System Intelligence Limited (HSi), a specialist healthcare consultancy using the ‘Insight™’ AI Business Intelligence platform, has identified the scale of excessive healthcare spending in the Republic of Ireland. Insight™ modelling identifies maximum budgets required to be at €8.5B (employing c.72,000 employees), compared to a current total Government budget of €22.5B (c.160,000 employees). Adjusted to include the fact that Private Health Insurance premiums are paid by 47% of the population equalling €3.2B, (or €1,322 per person), the true budget requirement reduces to €4,726B. The full report includes detailed integrated and operationalised research datapoints and highlights and details major opportunities for the Irish Government to significantly improve the health system, reduce costs to the taxpayer and remove waiting lists. Additional Government agencies and Quangos are not included in the analysis.
Professor Lindsay Sales of the HSi Advisory Board commented: “The AI platform Insight™ tells us what an integrated health system needs by population health demand rather than conventional historical precedent. In this research we have been really surprised by the scale of excess spending coupled with low productivity highlighted. When we also looked at the quantum of patients on outpatient and inpatient waiting lists over 6 months, this confirms the need for major reform, particularly considering future demographic risk to exacerbate the current obvious structural imbalance.”
Mr. Gary Burden, CFO of HSi adds: “Ireland is the least value for money health system we have researched. Nearly half the population are paying twice for healthcare, be that by tax and private health insurance, or direct self-pay. Countries such as Bahrain, Saudi Arabia are all in the process of conducting major health system transformation – including the development of universal health insurance – and they have nowhere near the levels of excess spending per capita, supernumerary workforce levels, or 30% of the beneficiary population waiting more than 6 months for an Outpatient appointment! Interestingly, the ‘Insight™’ platform shows higher capitation rates than currently paid to private health insurers by several hundred Euros, so we know further research by our refinement process will further reduce the total health spend needed if the systems were more efficient. We can see the Irish Government can make immediate savings in hospital and primary spending of at least €2.5B per annum over the next 2 years if accompanied by a coherent strategic implementation plan.”
The HSi AI system ‘Insight™’ was used to conduct intensively detailed research modelling to identify the exact needs of the Irish population, and the demand capacity requirement to meet those needs currently and long-term. Crucially, the analysis compares the Current capacity and financial budgets to meet the population’s health needs against the optimised modelling presented.
Initial results from the HSi Insight™ analysis of Government and Private Healthcare spending in the Republic of Ireland highlights major excess. Government spending is €22.5B, with 47% of the population separately paying for private health insurance at an average cost of €1,322 per person. The Government spend based true HSE beneficiaries is calculated €8,244 per person. HSi Insight™ indicates the maximum the Government should be spending on healthcare is no more than €8.5B, and potentially as low as €4.7B if all private health insured patients were restricted.
The full report titled ‘Using Insight™ AI platform to calculate Population Health Demand and Associated Costs in Ireland’ is available by contacting HSi via www.healthcare-insight.com and covers the current situation, in-depth analysis of HSi findings and detailed recommendations.
HSi will be releasing a series of research reports for specific areas in the UK (NHS England, NHS Scotland, HSC Northern Ireland, Private Health Operators), US, India, Africa, GCC, including KSA (and all specific Clusters as part of Vision 2030), Abu Dhabi, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain: which have all been modelled against Insight™; a number of which are demonstrating capability in exploding the myths of healthcare spending.
About Health System Intelligence Limited
Health System Intelligence Limited is a company registered in Scotland (company number 671200) and provides innovative digital AI and leadership healthcare consultancy services for international clients.
HSi accelerates delivery of specific outputs due to the use of HSi Insight™ to provide knowledge leadership with advanced knowledge and capability.
HSi Insight™ demonstrates integrated demand and capacity at every potential population stratification, summarising capacity impact of specific population health disease prevalence and incidence at sub-specialty levels. It highlights demand for primary care, acute clinical specialties, mental health, long term care and rehabilitation, and full details of assets and infrastructure, workforce, and financial capacity requirement.
For further information, please visit www.healthcare-insight.com