How Lima Memorial Unlocks the Operational Value of Embedded Analytics with Logi

Nearly half of all organizations say cloud-based business intelligence (BI) solutions are either critical or very important to their operations, according to a 2019 State of BI study. Features like advanced visualization, ad-hoc query support, personalized dashboards, and ETL tools are the primary requirements driving this sentiment.

And while there are plenty of BI solutions that promise those features out of the box, the reality is that they often fall short in terms of customizability and control. Instead, organizations like Lima Memorial Hospital rely on spreadsheet-based operations to collect data and run BI reports.

“When I first joined Lima Memorial, the hospital used basic spreadsheets for a lot of its reports,” said Stephanie June Dray, Sr. Business Intelligence Developer at Lima Memorial. “I have a love/hate relationship with spreadsheets for BI. When you’re trying to manipulate data and generate operational insights, there’s too much room for mistakes.”

At another company, Dray used Logi Symphony to implement a wide array of dashboards that helped leaders identify and capitalize on opportunities to streamline operations and cut costs. Dray said that she “loved using Logi Symphony. We used dashboards for every little thing. I recommended it for Lima when I joined and now we’re building out custom dashboards here.”

The Power of Custom Dashboards

It’s critical that BI leaders make data actionable as quickly as possible. “You need BI tools that will help you build the end results your organization needs,” said Dray. “You don’t have time to wade through pages and pages of spreadsheet data to figure out where there are opportunities and what needs to be done.”

One way that Lima Memorial has used Logi Symphony is to create a custom bed management system. Using embedded analytics, Dray built dashboards that integrated patient information with floor layouts at the hospital. As a result, medical leaders and hospital executives can get a quick overview of where actions are needed and prioritize them effectively. This system now helps Lima Memorial leaders answer a variety of operational questions, including:

• Is there a patient in the room?
• Has the room been cleaned?
• How long did it take to clean the room?
• Is the room ready for use?
• If a patient is in the room, has a medical recommendation been completed?
• How long did it take staff to discharge a patient?
• Are we keeping up with routine check-ins with a patient?

The custom bed management system enables Lima Memorial to improve operations by identifying inefficiencies faster and enabling a more proactive approach to staffing needs.

“When my colleagues came back from a HIMMS conference, they were excited about many of the new BI solutions,” said Dray. “Those costly solutions promise a lot of great features but wouldn’t necessarily fit into the hospital’s existing information architecture. The robust functionality in Logi Symphony is a gamechanger because it allows me to build custom systems that save us so much money.”

Data Analytics That Doesn’t Sacrifice Security

Small hospitals like Lima Memorial can’t afford to sink a significant amount of money into a third-party BI tool only to find that it doesn’t offer the flexibility to fit unique operational use cases. “Instead of buying a pre-built system for $500,000 and then having to figure out how to reconfigure everything, Logi Symphony gives us the flexibility to build dashboards and analyze data in the most efficient ways possible for our use cases.”

All of this analytical power can’t come at the cost of security, though—especially at a hospital that faces strict compliance requirements.

“Security in Logi Symphony is the best,” said Dray. “We can put security measure in place all the way down to the data level, which is essential for us as we ensure our dashboards and systems are PHI compliant.”

Summary

With the help of an internal BI leader, Lima Memorial has been able to make the most of Logi Symphony’s customization to build dashboards and systems that uncover valuable operational insights. Combined with the cost savings from not investing in a pre-built solution, Lima Memorial has seen short-term ROI that will compound as more use cases are built out.