Best in KLAS 2024 shows vendors being more proactive for their clients

2024-02-08

The 2024 Best in KLAS report was published this week, ranking vendor performance across multiple categories based on evaluations from their own provider and payer clients. Epic – for the 14th year in a row – took the top placement for Overall Software Suite, finishing ahead of MEDITECH and Oracle Health. The industry-dominating electronic health record vendor also won fifteen other Best in KLAS awards this year, according to the 2024 Best in KLAS Software and Services report. However, in a change from past years, the award for Overall Physician Practice Vendor did not go to Epic in 2024 – instead going to athenahealth, which also earned Best in KLAS awards in the following segments: Ambulatory EHR: Independent (11–75 Physicians), Practice Management: Independent (11–75 physicians), and Small Practice Ambulatory EHR/PM: Independent (two-10 physicians). NextGen Healthcare, eClinicalWorks and Greenway Health followed athenahealth for top performance in the physician practice category. KLAS has set out to serve healthcare providers experiencing pressures, including financial strains, staffing shortages and clinician burnout, said Adam Gale, CEO and founder of KLAS Research. "We want to use our passion for improving healthcare to sustain those who may feel the challenges are too great to continue, and we want to provide actionable insights that will ultimately alleviate burdens and enhance clinician success," said Gale in a statement. KLAS researchers recognized Impact Advisors as the Overall IT Services Firm winner and as Best in KLAS for ERP Implementation Leadership and Financial Improvement Consulting categories. Optimum Healthcare IT, Pivot Point Consulting, Nordic and Tegria followed. All scored above 90 percentage points in overall IT firm satisfaction. Evergreen Healthcare Partners snagged the top Overall Implementation Services Firm and took Best in KLAS in the HIT Advisory Services and HIT Core Clinical Implementation Leadership segments. The company was followed by Huron, Impact Advisors, ROI Healthcare Solutions, CSI Healthcare IT and others. Back again at the top of the Overall Healthcare Management Consulting Firm for the fourth year in a row is Chartis, which KLAS also awarded top rankings in the Clinical Optimization and Digital Transformation Consulting categories. (Chartis announced this week that it has acquired payer consulting firm HealthScape Advisors.) Guidehouse, ECG Management Consultants and Deloitte followed in the consultant rankings. KLAS noted that what stands out most in this year's report is that many software companies have greatly improved their healthcare technology product performance. For Most Improved Software Product, customers of Lightbeam Health Solutions reported "an 18% improvement in satisfaction since last year’s Best in KLAS report," the researchers said, AGS Health’s Extended Business Office Services increased by 14% since last year's Best in KLAS report , which KLAS said earned the company Most Improved Services Solution. Finally, small, independent practices (2–10 physicians) reported a noteworthy increase of 29% satisfaction with eClinicalWorks’ EHR/PM and named the Massachusetts-based vendor the Most Improved Physician Practice Product. Each year, KLAS retires and adds segments. For this year's rankings, KLAS added capacity optimization management, interoperability; other validated software, member-engagement tools, patient-referral management and analytics, patient self-scheduling, post-acute patient analytics; point of care, revenue cycle analytics, revenue cycle; charge capture, and virtual sitting and nursing. For payers, KLAS added payment accuracy and integrity solutions and data analytics platforms. Inpatient Clinical Care 340B Management Systems Verity Solutions Acute Care EHR: Large (>400 Beds) Epic Acute Care EHR: Midsize (151–400 Beds) Epic Acute Care EHR: Small (1–150 Beds) MEDITECH Automated Dispensing Cabinets BD Clinical Communications: Acute Care Epic Clinical Decision Support: Care Plans & Order Sets Zynx Health Clinical Decision Support: Point-of-Care Clinical Reference EBSCO Information Services Data Archiving Triyam Drug Diversion Monitoring Protenus Infection Control & Monitoring VigiLanz Integration Engines Rhapsody IV Workflow Management Epic Medication Inventory Management Epic Pharmacy Surveillance VigiLanz Smart Pumps: EHR-Integrated ICU Medical Smart Pumps: Traditional Baxter Ambulatory & Post–Acute Care Ambulatory EHR: Health System Owned Epic Ambulatory EHR: Independent (>75 Physicians) Epic Ambulatory EHR: Independent (11–75 Physicians) athenahealth Ambulatory Ophthalmology EHR EyeMD EMR Healthcare Systems Ambulatory Pediatric Solutions PCC Ambulatory RCM Services (EHR-Agnostic) R1 Ambulatory RCM Services (EHR-Associated) CompuGroup Medical US Ambulatory Specialty EHR Nextech Ambulatory Surgery Center Solutions HST Pathways Behavioral Health NextGen Healthcare Clinical Communications: Ambulatory/ Post–Acute Care TigerConnect Homecare | Home Health: Health System Owned Epic Homecare | Home Health: Independent (>200 ADC) MatrixCare Homecare | Home Health: Independent (1–200 ADC) MatrixCare Homecare | Personal Care Services & Private Duty Nursing WellSky Hospice: Independent MatrixCare Long-Term Care PointClickCare Outpatient Therapy/Rehab WebPT Patient Intake Management Yosi Health Patient Referral Management & Analytics Forcura Practice Management: Health System Owned Epic Practice Management: Independent (>75 Physicians) Epic Practice Management: Independent (11–75 Physicians) athenahealth Small Practice Ambulatory EHR/PM: Independent (2-10 Physicians) athenahealth Financial/Revenue Cycle/HIM Business Decision Support Strata Decision Technology Claims Management & Clearinghouse Experian Health Clinical Documentation Integrity Nuance Complex Claims Services Revecore Computer-Assisted Coding Dolbey Credentialing ASM Data & Analytics Platforms Dimensional Insight Data Visualization & Reporting Tableau Debt Collection Services State Collection Services Enterprise Resource Planning Workday Financial Planning & Analysis Strata Decision Technology Healthcare Artificial Intelligence: Data Science Solutions ClosedLoop Healthcare Safety, Risk & Compliance Management Performance Health Partners Insurance Discovery FinThrive Patient Access Optum Patient Accounting & Patient Management: Large (>400 Beds) Epic Patient Accounting & Patient Management: Midsize (151–400 Beds) Epic Patient Accounting & Patient Management: Small (1–150 Beds) MEDITECH Patient Financial Engagement Waystar P Patient Financing Services ClearBalance HealthCare Patient Flow TeleTracking Real-Time Location Systems Sonitor Revenue Cycle: Chargemaster Management Health Catalyst Revenue Cycle: Contract Management Experian Health Scheduling: Nurse & Staff QGenda Scheduling: Physician PerfectServe Speech Recognition: Front-End EHR Nuance Time & Attendance symplr Value-Based Care Customer Relationship Management Innovaccer Digital Rounding Huron EHR-Centric Virtual Care Platforms Epic Interactive Patient Systems pCare by Uniguest Patient Communications RevSpring Patient-Driven Care Management Get Well Patient Education Healthwise Patient Experience Improvement Feedtrail Patient Portals Epic Patient Self-Scheduling Relatient Population Health Management Azara Healthcare Remote Patient Monitoring Lightbeam Social Determinants of Health Networks findhelp Video Conferencing Platforms Doximity Virtual Care Platforms (Non-EHR) eVisit Security & Privacy Access Management Duo Healthcare IoT Security Claroty Identity Management SailPoint Patient Privacy Monitoring Protenus Security & Privacy Consulting Services tw-Security Security & Privacy Managed Services Fortified Health Security Services & Consulting Application Hosting Tegria Clinical Optimization Chartis Denials Management Services Aspirion Digital Transformation Consulting Chartis Eligibility Enrollment Services Optum End-to-End Revenue Cycle Outsourcing Ensemble Health Partners ERP Business Transformation & Implementation Leadership Huron ERP Implementation Leadership Impact Advisors Extended Business Office PwC Financial Improvement Consulting Impact Advisors Go-Live Support Optimum Government Reimbursement Services R1 HIT Advisory Services Evergreen Healthcare Partners HIT Core Clinical Implementation Leadership Evergreen Healthcare Partners HIT Staffing Prominence Managed IT Services Pivot Point Consulting Outsourced Coding Guidehouse Physician Advisory Services Xsolis Release of Information MRO Revenue Cycle Optimization Guidehouse Strategy, Growth & Consolidation Consulting Guidehouse Technical Services Pivot Point Consulting Transcription Services AQuity Solutions Underpayment Recovery Services R1 Value-Based Care Consulting Premier Inc Value-Based Care Managed Services Arcadia (now Guidehealth) Virtual Scribing Services ScribeEMR Imaging Systems Cardiology Merative Cardiology Hemodynamics Merative Image Exchange Nuance Oncology: Medical Epic Oncology: Radiation Elekta PACS: Large (>300K Studies) Sectra PACS: Small (≤300K Studies) Sectra Speech Recognition: Front-End Imaging 3M Universal Viewer (Imaging) AGFA HealthCare Vendor Neutral Archive (VNA) Fujifilm Payer Solutions Care Management Solutions (Payer) MHK (formerly MedHOK) ZeOmega Claims & Administration Platforms (Payer) HealthEdge CMS Payer Interoperability Edifecs Data Analytics Platforms (Payers) Clarify Health Solutions Employer-Sponsored Healthcare Services Marathon Health IT Consulting Services (Payer) Huron Payment Accuracy & Integrity Solutions (Payer) Zelis Healthcare Quality Measurement & Reporting (Payer) Cotiviti Risk Adjustment Vatica Health Andrea Fox is senior editor of Healthcare IT News. Email: afox@himss.org Healthcare IT News is a HIMSS Media publication.