inVentiv Health, a global provider of best-in-class clinical, commercial and consulting services, has announced a cutting-edge inVentiv program for managing the care of chronic kidney disease has been included in a compilation of breakthrough innovations helping transform the American healthcare system.

The Healthcare Leadership Council (HLC), a Washington, D.C.-based coalition of the nation's premier healthcare companies and organizations, compiled a directory of some of the most important healthcare innovations of the past year in The Future is Here: Transforming American Healthcare Through Private Sector Innovation. The book included a profile of an innovative Comprehensive Kidney Care Management (CKC) program developed by inVentiv Medical Management. Chronic kidney disease is a major driver of costs to the U.S. healthcare system.

inVentiv's CKC program was designed to meet three goals established under the Accountable Care Act for the delivery of the most appropriate care at the most appropriate price producing positive outcomes for the consumer. The CKC program focuses on early detection, lifestyle interventions, transplantation and dialysis as a last resort. Other care management programs tend to focus on late-stage disease strategies and negotiating lower prices for dialysis alone.

Led by an in-house nephrologist, and supported by specialty certified case management nurses, and certified claims analysts, the CKC team uses an integrated approach to address health risks, manage health issues and hold down treatment costs associated with chronic kidney disease. The program is structured to allow clinical experts to respond to identified risks before they escalate and such early intervention has a positive impact on both quality of care and cost.

The program produced a 6:1 return on investment for patients with stages 3-5 chronic kidney disease, including 60% saved through delaying progression to dialysis, 18% through cost containment strategies, 15% through indirect employee costs such as absenteeism and 5% by avoiding associated cardiovascular events.

The innovations highlighted in the publication illustrate that significant, tangible progress is being made in addressing challenges facing U.S. healthcare.

HLC president Mary R. Grealy said, “It's so easy to focus on the problems that the improvements taking place in every health sector tend to be overlooked. Leading private sector innovators are finding ways every day to improve access to care, keep people healthy, reduce costs and elevate quality."

Among the 40 organizations with innovative programs profiled in the compendium are Aetna, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Cleveland Clinic, Johnson and Johnson, Mayo Clinic, Merck, New York Presbyterian Hospital and Novo Nordisk.