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Whitepapers
The whitepapers on HealthLeadersMedia.com includes case studies and research briefs on business and technology issues affecting healthcare organizations. Information on submitting a whitepaper to HealthLeaders Media.
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2002
Hospitals and healthcare clinics throughout the world strive to reduce the possibility of error from medications delivered at the point of care by nursing personnel. The number of preventable deaths from adverse drug events (ADE) hovers in the thousands each year. This is further complicated by the current nursing shortage and the lack of adequate technology at the point of care, which adds to the risk of an unsuccessful patient outcome. Creating an error-free environment is mission critical to both safeguard patient health and protect the five rights of medication administration. Symbol Technologies
www.symbol.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
The Business Case for Work Force Stability shows the real impact of high turnover and vacancy rates on hospitals' financial health and quality of care. The paper also highlights the relationship between employee satisfaction and retention, and their impact on patient satisfaction. Using both primary and secondary research, the paper builds a case for investing in today's work force to strengthen competitive position in the market. To learn more about VHA Inc., log onto www.vha.com. (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
The 1999 Institute of Medicine study on medical errors jolted the healthcare industry. It focused attention on a serious problem and caused healthcare organizations to make patient safety a top priority. But financial chaos within healthcare organizations poses an equally serious problem - one that could ultimately undermine the gains made in care delivery. This paper, titled, "Healing the Revenue Cycle: The foundation for improved financial and operational health," will:
No organization can afford to pursue strategies that it cannot finance. Similarly, no organization can afford to ignore strategic opportunities that will ensure its future financial viability. This White Paper describes an integrated approach to strategic financial planning that effectively balances strategic direction/investment with the organization's financial capabilities. The approach is designed to concentrate organizational energy on a limited set of initiatives that will drive future performance. Truly integrated strategic financial planning applies the philosophy, rigor, and analytics of corporate finance to all components of the planning process. By: Jason H. Sussman, Partner and Mark E. Grube, Senior Vice President
Kaufman, Hall & Associates
www.kaufmanhall.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
When operating on a fixed budget and under ever-increasing financial pressure, a healthcare organization can ill afford the increased drug spending expected again this year. A multi-faceted cost reduction program that encompasses pricing, standardization, and utilization strategies can help facilities mitigate many factors that increase their drug spending and realize significant and sustainable drug cost reductions. This article will:
Hospitals are finding that a significant area of potential savings is in supply expense, and are considering initiatives to reduce supply costs for physician preference items. These approaches can stall when physicians refuse to embrace the initiative. This study outlines an approach for successfully engaging in supply cost reduction process. It highlights key process components and practices based on VHA's case interviews and research. To learn more about VHA Inc., log onto www.vha.com. (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
Physicians are a hospital's sales force. Today's environment, however, has changed the underlying foundation for direct ownership of the space those physicians occupy. New transaction structures that provide for third-party ownership of a hospital's medical office building(s) ("MOB") now allow hospitals to retain critical aspects of control. Changed attitudes on the part of owners, operators, and lenders, as well as new entrants to the MOB sector, mean there is more competition to acquire MOBs coming to market, translating into higher valuations. This Strategies in Capital Finance surveys the current hospital-MOB landscape and makes suggestions for how to handle MOBs and other similar real estate. www.cainbrothers.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
Annual incentive plans have become virtually universal as organizations seek to align pay with performance and enhance retention. While they have proven to be effective in motivating executives to achieve short-term financial and operational goals, they often place too much emphasis on short-term operational performance to the detriment of long-term strategic goals. A growing number of organizations are implementing long-term incentive (LTI) plans to refocus executive attention on strategic priorities, and to balance the annual and long-term planning horizons. Does your organization need a long-term incentive plan? www.clarkconsulting.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
All too often, operating budgets in healthcare organizations are developed out of context with the organization's short- and long-term strategic financial interests. This White Paper describes an approach to budgeting that integrates strategic and financial planning, capital planning, and a "connected" budget development process. This "best practice" budgeting process links day-to-day operations to the organization's strategic plans and financial targets. By: Jason H. Sussman, Partner
Kaufman, Hall & Associates
www.kaufmanhall.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
Virtually every day, it seems, another article appears in the press about two topics: rising healthcare costs and consumer-directed health plans. The two are inextricably linked; without recent double-digit healthcare cost inflation, the consumer-directed plan, which defines employer contributions and asks employees to be more responsible for healthcare decisions and cost-sharing, may never have been born. To move quickly up the learning curve and rapidly start consumer-directed programs, health plans may want to work with an outsourcing partner that has real experience with the systems, processing and administrative challenges of these new plans. Synertech Health System Solutions
www.synertech.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
IT Breakthrough! Access. Information. Security. Innovative access services platforms let hospitals streamline workflows, control costs, and quickly web-enable all applications. Clinicians collaborate more effectively, speeding diagnosis and improving outcomes without excessive cost. IT teams focus on adding value, readily integrating Internet- and Web-enabled services into clinical settings. Roger Davis
Executive Vice President
Healthcare Solutions
Xtria, LLC
www.xtria.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
Few events have the potential to rock the boat more significantly than a change at the helm. Many organizations have experienced the disruption caused by a change in leadership and recognize that organizational stability is an extremely valuable asset. A Change at the Helm, describes the best practices in Leadership Transition Planning by clearly identifying issues and questions, describing the transition process and providing valuable insights from CEO's whose organizations have benefited from the process of comprehensive Leadership Transition Planning. In addition, we have provided insights on the most common mistake - under estimating the planning time required. F. Kenneth Ackerman, Jr.
Daniel Fairley
Donald C. Wegmiller
www.clarkconsulting.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
The purpose of this white paper is to explain the role ZixCorp's secure e-messaging solutions can play in helping healthcare organizations comply with the privacy and security requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). The intent is to describe a specific problem and its solution while avoiding hype on the one hand, and fear, uncertainty and doubt (FUD) on the other. Zix Corporation
www.zixcorp.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
Most healthcare organizations today must borrow capital and incur debt on an ongoing basis to compete effectively in the market. Healthcare leaders must carefully select the best choice of debt vehicle and then implement that choice in a highly directed manner. This White Paper describes a best practice approach to healthcare financing that maximizes access to capital and financial flexibility while minimizing costs and risks in challenging markets. Therese L. Wareham, Partner
Andrew J. Majka, Partner
Kaufman, Hall & Associates
www.kaufmanhall.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
"Integrated Delivery System sheds its HMO to focus on being a provider organization." During the last few years, this headline has been repeated often around the United States. Boards of Trustees, CEOs, and CFOs of integrated delivery systems ("IDSs") that own managed care plans often have questions about the implications of continuing to hold and operate these lines of business. The purpose of this Strategies in Capital Finance is to give IDS CEOs, CFOs, and Boards of Trustees the kind of information they need to answer these questions.
Cain Brothers (www.cainbrothers.com) (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
Email has long been the most widely used Internet application. In the healthcare industry, there is a growing trend for healthcare professionals to not only collaborate on medical issues with colleagues and staff via email, but also to communicate with patients to diagnose medical problems over this medium. This increasing reliance on email is bringing information privacy and security into the spotlight as these issues are proving to be a roadblock to more widespread use of email by those in the healthcare field - especially when the email messages contain confidential patient information. By: Kevin Beaver, CISSP
NwTech, Inc.
www.nwtechusa.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
How can healthcare leaders manage the uncertainty and risk inherent in their strategic plans and daily operations? This White Paper offers an approach--simulation analysis-which helps executives to explicitly consider the uncertainty in their assumptions and understand how these uncertainties affect the organization's business risk. The end result is improved decision making in key areas, such as capital budgeting, planning, financing, staffing, and contracting. By: Mark L. Hall
Kaufman, Hall & Associates
www.kaufmanhall.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
The growth of niche specialty hospitals has been driven largely by physicians who have been watching their incomes fall and are dissatisfied with practicing in a hospital setting. These physicians, and particularly specialists such as orthopedic and cardiovascular surgeons, are finding that traditional and non-traditional sources of capital can help them successfully leverage the professional dollar. (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
Should a healthcare organization build its own care management technology tools, or should it buy the technology from a third party? This white paper provides the rationale CenVaNet used to decide that it needed to partner with Pfizer Health Solutions Inc to use its innovative Internet-enabled technology to help deliver higher quality care at lower operating costs. This paper also explores the minimum requirements for a care management software program, critical questions to ask about a healthcare organization's IT development expertise, and cost comparisons in the "build vs. buy" debate. To learn more about Pfizer Health Solutions and its suite of care management technologies and capabilities, log onto www.pfizerhealthsolutions.com. (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
Traditional "hospital administration" techniques will not adequately address the financial conditions of today's healthcare world. This White Paper describes eight practical techniques of corporate finance which require healthcare leader and trustee focus in the current trying market. These techniques include rigorous cost management, financial goals and objectives, accountability, measurement, calendar management, allocation of resources, strategy and capital, and balance sheet management. By: Kenneth Kaufman
Kaufman, Hall & Associates
www.kaufmanhall.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
Few healthcare organizations have sufficient financial capacity to meet their comprehensive strategic capital requirements. This White Paper provides healthcare executives with an in-depth description of how to implement a "best practice" capital allocation process. Based on proven techniques of corporate finance, the approach enables executives to consistently and comprehensively evaluate the "wish list" of capital requests they inevitably and regularly receive, and then make sound capital allocation decisions that position the organization for future growth within current capital constraints. By: Jason H. Sussman
Kaufman, Hall & Associates
www.kaufmanhall.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
Safer Patient Care: Automated Medication Verification Solutions for Hospitals and Clinics
December 29, 2003Hospitals and healthcare clinics throughout the world strive to reduce the possibility of error from medications delivered at the point of care by nursing personnel. The number of preventable deaths from adverse drug events (ADE) hovers in the thousands each year. This is further complicated by the current nursing shortage and the lack of adequate technology at the point of care, which adds to the risk of an unsuccessful patient outcome. Creating an error-free environment is mission critical to both safeguard patient health and protect the five rights of medication administration. Symbol Technologies
www.symbol.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
The Business Case for Work Force Stability
November 30, 2003The Business Case for Work Force Stability shows the real impact of high turnover and vacancy rates on hospitals' financial health and quality of care. The paper also highlights the relationship between employee satisfaction and retention, and their impact on patient satisfaction. Using both primary and secondary research, the paper builds a case for investing in today's work force to strengthen competitive position in the market. To learn more about VHA Inc., log onto www.vha.com. (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
Stop the Fiscal Trauma in Your Revenue Cycle
November 16, 2003The 1999 Institute of Medicine study on medical errors jolted the healthcare industry. It focused attention on a serious problem and caused healthcare organizations to make patient safety a top priority. But financial chaos within healthcare organizations poses an equally serious problem - one that could ultimately undermine the gains made in care delivery. This paper, titled, "Healing the Revenue Cycle: The foundation for improved financial and operational health," will:
- Demonstrate why staunching the financial losses in the revenue cycle is the biggest challenge healthcare organizations face through the next decade
- Show how inadequate processes and technology at each step of the revenue cycle cripple an organization's ability to collect proper reimbursement
- Offer a viable alternative for transforming revenue cycle management.
TRUE INTEGRATION OF STRATEGIC AND FINANCIAL PLANNING
November 9, 2003No organization can afford to pursue strategies that it cannot finance. Similarly, no organization can afford to ignore strategic opportunities that will ensure its future financial viability. This White Paper describes an integrated approach to strategic financial planning that effectively balances strategic direction/investment with the organization's financial capabilities. The approach is designed to concentrate organizational energy on a limited set of initiatives that will drive future performance. Truly integrated strategic financial planning applies the philosophy, rigor, and analytics of corporate finance to all components of the planning process. By: Jason H. Sussman, Partner and Mark E. Grube, Senior Vice President
Kaufman, Hall & Associates
www.kaufmanhall.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
STRATEGIC COST MANAGEMENT OF PHARMACEUTICALS
September 7, 2003When operating on a fixed budget and under ever-increasing financial pressure, a healthcare organization can ill afford the increased drug spending expected again this year. A multi-faceted cost reduction program that encompasses pricing, standardization, and utilization strategies can help facilities mitigate many factors that increase their drug spending and realize significant and sustainable drug cost reductions. This article will:
- Review an approach that combines pricing, standardization, and utilization strategies to optimize the cost effective selection and use of pharmaceuticals
- Provide examples from the field of implemented pricing, standardization, and utilization strategies and their results
- Discuss the critical success factors that elevate efforts from typical "quick fixes" to sustainable cost management
ENGAGING PHYSICIANS IN SUPPLY COST REDUCTION
August 15, 2003Hospitals are finding that a significant area of potential savings is in supply expense, and are considering initiatives to reduce supply costs for physician preference items. These approaches can stall when physicians refuse to embrace the initiative. This study outlines an approach for successfully engaging in supply cost reduction process. It highlights key process components and practices based on VHA's case interviews and research. To learn more about VHA Inc., log onto www.vha.com. (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
FROM STRATEGIC ASSETS TO TACTICAL INVESTMENTS - CHANGING ATTITUDES TOWARD MEDICAL OFFICE BUILDING OWNERSHIP
August 10, 2003Physicians are a hospital's sales force. Today's environment, however, has changed the underlying foundation for direct ownership of the space those physicians occupy. New transaction structures that provide for third-party ownership of a hospital's medical office building(s) ("MOB") now allow hospitals to retain critical aspects of control. Changed attitudes on the part of owners, operators, and lenders, as well as new entrants to the MOB sector, mean there is more competition to acquire MOBs coming to market, translating into higher valuations. This Strategies in Capital Finance surveys the current hospital-MOB landscape and makes suggestions for how to handle MOBs and other similar real estate. www.cainbrothers.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
LONG-TERM INCENTIVE PLANS:
August 4, 2003Annual incentive plans have become virtually universal as organizations seek to align pay with performance and enhance retention. While they have proven to be effective in motivating executives to achieve short-term financial and operational goals, they often place too much emphasis on short-term operational performance to the detriment of long-term strategic goals. A growing number of organizations are implementing long-term incentive (LTI) plans to refocus executive attention on strategic priorities, and to balance the annual and long-term planning horizons. Does your organization need a long-term incentive plan? www.clarkconsulting.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
STRATEGIC BUDGETING: A HEALTHCARE IMPERATIVE
June 20, 2003All too often, operating budgets in healthcare organizations are developed out of context with the organization's short- and long-term strategic financial interests. This White Paper describes an approach to budgeting that integrates strategic and financial planning, capital planning, and a "connected" budget development process. This "best practice" budgeting process links day-to-day operations to the organization's strategic plans and financial targets. By: Jason H. Sussman, Partner
Kaufman, Hall & Associates
www.kaufmanhall.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
CONSUMER-DIRECTED HEALTH CARE: WITH CHANGE, COMES OPPORTUNITY
June 13, 2003Virtually every day, it seems, another article appears in the press about two topics: rising healthcare costs and consumer-directed health plans. The two are inextricably linked; without recent double-digit healthcare cost inflation, the consumer-directed plan, which defines employer contributions and asks employees to be more responsible for healthcare decisions and cost-sharing, may never have been born. To move quickly up the learning curve and rapidly start consumer-directed programs, health plans may want to work with an outsourcing partner that has real experience with the systems, processing and administrative challenges of these new plans. Synertech Health System Solutions
www.synertech.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
COMPREHENSIVE ACCESS SERVICES: AN EMERGING SOLUTION IMPROVES ACCESS, SECURITY AND EFFICIENCY ACROSS THE HEALTHCARE ENTERPRISE
June 8, 2003IT Breakthrough! Access. Information. Security. Innovative access services platforms let hospitals streamline workflows, control costs, and quickly web-enable all applications. Clinicians collaborate more effectively, speeding diagnosis and improving outcomes without excessive cost. IT teams focus on adding value, readily integrating Internet- and Web-enabled services into clinical settings. Roger Davis
Executive Vice President
Healthcare Solutions
Xtria, LLC
www.xtria.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
A CHANGE AT THE HELM: Best Practices In Leadership Transition Planning
June 2, 2003Few events have the potential to rock the boat more significantly than a change at the helm. Many organizations have experienced the disruption caused by a change in leadership and recognize that organizational stability is an extremely valuable asset. A Change at the Helm, describes the best practices in Leadership Transition Planning by clearly identifying issues and questions, describing the transition process and providing valuable insights from CEO's whose organizations have benefited from the process of comprehensive Leadership Transition Planning. In addition, we have provided insights on the most common mistake - under estimating the planning time required. F. Kenneth Ackerman, Jr.
Daniel Fairley
Donald C. Wegmiller
www.clarkconsulting.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
SECURE ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS UNDER HIPAA
May 18, 2003The purpose of this white paper is to explain the role ZixCorp's secure e-messaging solutions can play in helping healthcare organizations comply with the privacy and security requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). The intent is to describe a specific problem and its solution while avoiding hype on the one hand, and fear, uncertainty and doubt (FUD) on the other. Zix Corporation
www.zixcorp.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
BEST PRACTICE FINANCING
May 12, 2003Most healthcare organizations today must borrow capital and incur debt on an ongoing basis to compete effectively in the market. Healthcare leaders must carefully select the best choice of debt vehicle and then implement that choice in a highly directed manner. This White Paper describes a best practice approach to healthcare financing that maximizes access to capital and financial flexibility while minimizing costs and risks in challenging markets. Therese L. Wareham, Partner
Andrew J. Majka, Partner
Kaufman, Hall & Associates
www.kaufmanhall.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
SHOULD YOU TAKE MANAGED CARE OUT OF INTEGRATED DELIVERY SYSTEMS?
May 2, 2003"Integrated Delivery System sheds its HMO to focus on being a provider organization." During the last few years, this headline has been repeated often around the United States. Boards of Trustees, CEOs, and CFOs of integrated delivery systems ("IDSs") that own managed care plans often have questions about the implications of continuing to hold and operate these lines of business. The purpose of this Strategies in Capital Finance is to give IDS CEOs, CFOs, and Boards of Trustees the kind of information they need to answer these questions.
Cain Brothers (www.cainbrothers.com) (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
IRONMAIL EMAIL SECURITY AND ADDRESSING HIPAA
April 27, 2003Email has long been the most widely used Internet application. In the healthcare industry, there is a growing trend for healthcare professionals to not only collaborate on medical issues with colleagues and staff via email, but also to communicate with patients to diagnose medical problems over this medium. This increasing reliance on email is bringing information privacy and security into the spotlight as these issues are proving to be a roadblock to more widespread use of email by those in the healthcare field - especially when the email messages contain confidential patient information. By: Kevin Beaver, CISSP
NwTech, Inc.
www.nwtechusa.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
USING SIMULATION ANALYSIS TO IMPROVE FINANCIAL DECISION MAKING
April 4, 2003How can healthcare leaders manage the uncertainty and risk inherent in their strategic plans and daily operations? This White Paper offers an approach--simulation analysis-which helps executives to explicitly consider the uncertainty in their assumptions and understand how these uncertainties affect the organization's business risk. The end result is improved decision making in key areas, such as capital budgeting, planning, financing, staffing, and contracting. By: Mark L. Hall
Kaufman, Hall & Associates
www.kaufmanhall.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
IF YOU'RE NICHED, IT MIGHT BE YOUR FAULT - PHYSICIAN DRIVEN SPECIALTY HOSPITALS AND AMBULATORY SURGERY CENTERS
March 21, 2003The growth of niche specialty hospitals has been driven largely by physicians who have been watching their incomes fall and are dissatisfied with practicing in a hospital setting. These physicians, and particularly specialists such as orthopedic and cardiovascular surgeons, are finding that traditional and non-traditional sources of capital can help them successfully leverage the professional dollar. (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
ADVANTAGES OF BUYING PROFESSIONALLY DESIGNED SOFTWARE TO SUPPORT A CARE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM
March 14, 2003Should a healthcare organization build its own care management technology tools, or should it buy the technology from a third party? This white paper provides the rationale CenVaNet used to decide that it needed to partner with Pfizer Health Solutions Inc to use its innovative Internet-enabled technology to help deliver higher quality care at lower operating costs. This paper also explores the minimum requirements for a care management software program, critical questions to ask about a healthcare organization's IT development expertise, and cost comparisons in the "build vs. buy" debate. To learn more about Pfizer Health Solutions and its suite of care management technologies and capabilities, log onto www.pfizerhealthsolutions.com. (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
CORPORATE FINANCE: A NEW MANAGEMENT PARADIGM FOR HOSPITALS
March 7, 2003Traditional "hospital administration" techniques will not adequately address the financial conditions of today's healthcare world. This White Paper describes eight practical techniques of corporate finance which require healthcare leader and trustee focus in the current trying market. These techniques include rigorous cost management, financial goals and objectives, accountability, measurement, calendar management, allocation of resources, strategy and capital, and balance sheet management. By: Kenneth Kaufman
Kaufman, Hall & Associates
www.kaufmanhall.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)
CAPITAL ALLOCATION THE RIGHT WAY: CONSISTENT, CONCURRENT, CONNECTED AND COMMUNICATED
February 7, 2003Few healthcare organizations have sufficient financial capacity to meet their comprehensive strategic capital requirements. This White Paper provides healthcare executives with an in-depth description of how to implement a "best practice" capital allocation process. Based on proven techniques of corporate finance, the approach enables executives to consistently and comprehensively evaluate the "wish list" of capital requests they inevitably and regularly receive, and then make sound capital allocation decisions that position the organization for future growth within current capital constraints. By: Jason H. Sussman
Kaufman, Hall & Associates
www.kaufmanhall.com (PDF format - click here to download the latest version of acrobat reader)