A Comprehensive Guide on Provider Lifecycle Management (PLM)

07 Feb, 2025, 4 min read

Collaboration between payers and providers is important to improve care quality in the healthcare industry. However, they face challenges like inefficiencies, miscommunication, and data silos. Provider lifecycle management (PLM) solutions streamline collaboration between payors and providers throughout their entire lifecycle.

HealthTech estimates that 137 terabytes of data are created daily, and this is increasing by 47% every year. Electronic Health Records (EHRs) and Patient-Generated Health Data (PGHD) support product decisions and demonstrate patient value in real-life settings. Unlike outdated, disconnected systems, PLM solutions break down silos and create a unified space for healthcare teams to collaborate and share data effortlessly.

This article discusses the implications of provider lifecycle management for life sciences companies and how it helps healthcare providers collaborate and increase efficiency.

Siloed Systems in Life Sciences

Life sciences companies rely on separate, disconnected systems for key functions like credentialing, contracting, and compliance. They create information silos where data is stored separately without any integration. Lengthy and manual data management processes delay the onboarding of healthcare providers, leading to service disruptions.

Challenges with Silos

Providers and payers functioning in silos and using disconnected IT systems or clunky manual processes create challenges like:

Inefficiencies and Errors: Healthcare teams have to manually enter data multiple times in different systems, leading to errors, delays, and increased costs. They spend too much time reconciling data sources and handling administrative tasks.
Regulatory Risks: A lack of end-to-end traceability and audit trails risks non-compliance during inspections. Silos make tracking and documenting data changes difficult, complicating regulation compliance.
Lack of Transparency: Providers focus on high-quality patient care while payers prioritize controlling costs during treatments. If they work in silos, it creates mistrust and fragmented care, leaving patients stuck in the middle.
Misaligned Information: Provider contracts, streamlined provider lifecycle workflows, and patient interaction data are dynamic, but legacy systems fail to update them in real time. Outdated data disrupts provider accountability mechanisms, like performance-based incentives, and can lead to treatment disputes.

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The Role of PLM in Breaking Down Silos

PLM solutions create a single source of truth by centralizing provider data from all departments. With everything in one place, payors and providers can collaborate easily without managing multiple systems or reconciling data.

Purpose-built PLM platforms reduce data duplication and errors, enabling better regulatory compliance. Real-time access to unified data provides insights into performance metrics and contract statuses for better decision-making. Core capabilities of modern PLM systems include:
Circular diagram showing provider life cycle management roles in healthcare service improvement.

1. Centralized Data Repository

A secure and centralized data repository for provider information improves accessibility across departments.

2. Automated Credentialing and Onboarding

PLM automates verification of the provider's background, licenses, and certifications to speed up provider onboarding and deliver uninterrupted healthcare services.

3. Integrated Compliance Tools

PLM tools reduce manual work and the risk of penalties through real-time regulatory updates and automated compliance monitoring,

4. Seamless Integration

PLM platforms connect with enterprise resource planning (ERP), medical electronic systems (MES), practice management systems (PMS), quality management systems (QMS), and other enterprise systems to enable real-time data sharing.

5. Performance Monitoring

PLM solutions track provider productivity, patient outcomes, and areas for improvement. Real-time analysis helps providers improve efficiency and care quality.

Benefits of provider lifecycle management adoption

A PLM framework for provider and payer management offers a wide range of benefits across departments, including:
Puzzle piece diagram showing five provider life cycle management benefits including efficiency and cost savings.

Operational Efficiency: Centralized data and automated workflows reduce the administrative burdens of everyday processes like credentialing, compliance tracking, and contract management. Healthcare providers, administrative teams, and patients benefit from smoother operations and quicker service delivery.
Improved Provider Experience: Streamlined processes, such as faster onboarding and real-time access to support, make interactions between providers and payors more efficient and less frustrating. A supportive operational experience increases provider satisfaction and retention.
Better Patient Outcomes: Improved care coordination between providers and payers reduces treatment delays, errors, and redundancies, leading to better health outcomes. Providers and payers build a strong reputation by consistently delivering quality services and adhering to regulatory standards.
Regulatory Confidence: Automated compliance tracking minimizes risks and ensures adherence to evolving regulations. Healthcare providers can improve patient care without worrying about facing regulatory repercussions or compliance challenges.
Cost Savings: PLM solutions minimize inefficiencies and errors to reduce operational costs and enhance ROI. Reduced overheads allow for better investment in patient care infrastructure or other growth initiatives.

Empowering Payers and Providers with Atlas Prime

Provider lifecycle management solutions unify collaboration and data sharing by dismantling silos. Healthcare companies can automate workflows to speed up onboarding, increase transparency, and reduce regulatory risks. Providers can focus on quality care while payers gain better cost control.

Using PLM solutions from leading providers like Atlas Systems keeps you ahead. Our Provider lifecycle management solutions use AI-powered verification to enhance provider data accuracy and speed up onboarding.

PRIME® centralizes provider information to minimize delays and errors for efficient network management. Advanced tools help deliver innovative therapies and high-quality patient care while reducing costs.