The article I chose to review was Michael Porter’s and Thomas Lee’s article, “The Strategy that
will fix healthcare”. The authors did a strong job at displaying their ideas for describing their strategies
to maximize the value of our healthcare system. In their article, the authors detailed how despite the
diligent efforts of well-trained healthcare professionals around the globe, healthcare systems are still
struggling with increasing prices and unequal quality of healthcare delivery. Attempts have been made
by policymakers to implement processes whose focus was to correct several aspects of our healthcare
systems. Common issues that have been addressed include eliminating the presence of fraud, enforcing
guidelines of healthcare practices, and improving the customer service experience for patients.
However, the impact has been considered minimal at best.
The authors begin to state their case for revolutionizing healthcare systems around the world
and laying out how these issues should be addressed. Lee and Porter believe that it should be the
healthcare system’s top priority to maximize the value of care that patients receive or to ensure that
patients are getting the best results at the most affordable price. I really appreciate the vision the
authors are describing because at its core, that is what healthcare should be. Despite an individual’s
financial circumstances, I have always believed healthcare is a human right. Obtaining and keeping
proper medical coverage should not take a huge financial toll of an individual. Individuals should also not
have to worry about obtaining adequate treatment for the money they are paying for service, if they are
paying anything at all.
Lee and Porter argue the healthcare industry should shift from a supply-driven, physician-
centered system to one that is centered around patients and their needs. In its current state, the
financial success of healthcare systems is measured by the services that are offered (hospital visits,
physician visits, diagnostics exams, surgical operations), when success should be measured by patient
outcomes and results. The authors argue for a system where services for specific medical diseases are
focused on health delivery organizations should replace the current system, which entails a provider
delivering a broad range of services. Altering the system so the focus is centered on the patient and
their outcomes would serve as the cornerstone to transitioning to a value-based system.
In the article, the authors introduce the six components that are essential to creating a high-
value healthcare delivery system. The components discussed in the article consist of: organizing around
the needs of the patients rather than the providers’ specialties, measuring the costs compared to the
outcomes for patients, establishing bundled prices for the full-care cycle for patients, integrating care
across a number of different facilities, extending the geographic reach and implementing an IT platform.
As mentioned before, I am in support of the strategies introduced by the authors. It is ironic that
they’re introducing the idea of patient-centered healthcare when healthcare should always be centered
on the patient, to begin with. Based on what I learned in the article, I believe we are measuring the
wrong outcomes to assess whether a healthcare system is successful or not. I believe there is way too
much emphasis on the monetary aspect or the volume of exams or visits per patient. The plan that Lee
and Porter are introducing makes a great deal of sense, but I also think some healthcare systems are too
entrenched in their current process for this to ever become a reality. For example, the complexity of
overhauling the United States healthcare system would make the task significantly difficult, to the point
where it may take generations to see the impact.