by Rudd Kierstead, Principal
Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, healthcare CEOs ranked financial challenges (e.g., reducing the operating costs for staff and supplies, declining reimbursement) and increasing competition from other providers, among the top issues facing hospitals. But with coronavirus expenses straining hospital budgets, in 2020, a new element, service line optimization has become critical to hospitals’ ability to […]
The pandemic has placed significant constraints on capacity, making volume growth, or simply maintaining normally budgeted volume levels, a formidable challenge. Organizations must implement novel clinical and administrative workflows that allow for the most efficient use of provider and patient time, ensure patient and staff safety, and drive bottom line performance. Many have opened services […]
Among the many unexpected effects of COVID-19 is the loss of the “normal” patient population coming through physician offices to address their health concerns and seeking procedures. This lost volume has heightened the urgency to effectively address “leakage.” Research indicates that acquiring a new customer is anywhere from 5 to 25 times more expensive than […]
The pandemic provided an initial introduction to virtual care for many, and most patients and providers have responded positively, embracing its convenience. Health systems, hospitals, and other providers now need to take the time to develop a business plan that identifies opportunities to optimize virtual care platforms, drive revenue and adapt practices to effectively meet […]
COVID-19 has shocked the U.S healthcare system – forcing physician and administrative leaders to think critically about how their current service line models can be improved to better serve and treat their patient populations. Many service lines were designed to maximize patient throughput by offering multiple access points without much consideration for efficiency. As a […]
Prior to the pandemic, we learned something quite surprising. In a Veralon survey, only 42% of respondents viewed the financial losses on employed physician enterprises as “unacceptable” or a “major priority.” Perhaps “surprising” is too tame a description. We were “shocked.” At the time of our survey, the level of losses typically varied between $150,000-$200,000 […]
It is the opportune time to build relationships with independent physicians. As always, one answer does not fit all so leadership needs to assess each individual physician and the appropriate models with care and attention. After more than two months into the COVID-19 pandemic, the situation for many independent practices remains shaky. Practices are struggling […]
Every organization has sacred cows. The financial challenge from COVID-19 calls for large scale improvements. This has emboldened our clients to address sacred cows, making tough changes that were unthinkable a few months ago. The time to act is now! Sacred cows to consider include: Underperforming Assets: Every organization has some assets that perform significantly […]