Background
A two-hospital system in the Midwest had a 45-provider employed network that had grown tremendously over three years. Much of that growth was unplanned and primarily based on reactions to competitor actions and physician demands. The result:
- Practice losses were exorbitant.
- The management team was focused on day-to-day issues and putting out fires.
- Multiple executives were responsible for the group’s management, causing indecision and lack of accountability for the group’s success.
- Employed physicians still operated as if they were independent; there was no unifying group culture.
- There was no strategy in place to define the network’s ideal composition in terms of providers, specialties and locations in support of the system’s objectives.
Solution
HSG used a three-step approach to evaluating the physician network:
- An organizational-level evaluation based on HSG’s Physician Network Solutions Assessment, which identifies the eight key drivers of employed physician network sustainability and success.
- Individual practice assessments within the network to determine how efficiently the physician offices were operating.
- Assessment of the system’s strategic plan and vision to:
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- Determine the impact the plan should have on the employed physician network; and
- Define what gaps in the strategic plan were impacting the physician network.
Result
HSG developed a two-year, 27-step operational action plan. The plan focused on making sure the network was efficiently managed, positioned for growth, and financially sustainable. Among the 27 recommendations were:
- Development of a robust physician strategy for the hospital system to define the growth plan for the employed group for the next two years;
- A revised governance structure to expedite decision making and promote accountability;
- Development of a Physician Advisory Board to bring physicians into the group’s administration and promote buy-in and culture development;
- Performance improvement recommendations for the network’s revenue cycle and practice management functions; and
- Changes to the hospital system’s physician compensation model with a plan to deploy the new model throughout the network.
To discuss strategy development for your employed physician network, contact Travis Ansel, Director, at TAnsel@HSGadvisors.com or (502) 814-1182.