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Tillie Hidalgo Lima

Healthcare financial managers play a vital role in the discussion of a concierge program's cost implications and its effect on employee retention, productivity, and satisfaction. Once the need for concierge services is identified, financial managers analyze what ROI their organization can expect.

Having a concierge program in place can help healthcare organizations reduce costs for employee recruitment and retention. In addition, a concierge program can assist with wellness programs, recognition programs, patient satisfaction, and even alleviate confusion and stress during construction. In terms of reporting structure, a concierge program can fall under a variety of departments, including patient recovery, total rewards, volunteer services, guest services, strategic projects, and even hospital administration.

Financial managers are involved in identifying cost savings of concierge services and in finding ways to fund the program and/or make it budget neutral. The investment for concierge services varies depending on the size of the facility, utilization goals, number of concierges, and other factors, including-if outsourcing-level of turnkey operation and management from the concierge service provider.

If the decision is made to outsource, a legitimate concierge service provider, specifically with experience in the healthcare field, can be found by contacting human resource organizations such as the American Society for Healthcare Human Resources Administration (www.ashhra.org), the Society for Human Resource Management (www.shrm.org), and WorldatWork (www.worldatwork.org) are generally knowledgeable about options.

Publication Date: Friday, August 01, 2008