Recently, The University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC)—a 722 bed healthcare system located in Jackson, Mississippi–began an initiative, as part of a larger margin improvement program, to enhance the patient care process by focusing on patient access and flow throughout the organization.

• Ask our Experts a question on Physician Alignment 
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This slide show from Amy MacNulty, Noblis Center for Health Innovation, and Joel Reich, MD, Eastern Connecticut Health Network identifies proven working strategies for physician collaboration that yield productive results.

• Ask our Experts a question on Physician Alignment 
• Join our Physician Alignment Forum 
  

A significant issue that healthcare financial managers face is how to reduce the length of stay (LOS) for hospital services without sacrificing the quality of care. This analysis, including Medicare reimbursement, outlines ways to examine each service line for efficiency.

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Philanthropy has always been a strategy for nonprofit community hospitals to address their capital needs. But in today’s economic climate, many finance executives are finding ways to make fund-raising more integral to their financial planning efforts. They realize that having an operating budget funded in part by philanthropy can help strengthen their financial resolve.

• A Charitable Stabilization Strategy 
• Ask our Experts a question on philanthropy 
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In an environment in which hospitals are struggling with dipping volumes, more uninsured patients, investment volatility, and decreased revenue, health systems are turning to their CFOs for guidance and leadership.

• What You Can Do Today to Make Yourself a Better Leader 
• Ask our Experts a question on leadership 
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“What does a recession mean for our system?” For some, it seems like do or die. But the question is, do what?

• Key Questions for CFOs in a Financial Crisis 
• State shortfalls mean Medicaid payment cuts are likely
• Ask our Experts a question on the crisis 
• Talk about the current financial situation on the message board 
  

Hospitals today are tracking more data than ever before. For finance leaders, the challenge is deciding how to prioritize what gets tracked. In other words, what are the key performance indicators for the organization?

• Benchmarking Your Hospital-Owned Medical Practice Networks  
• A Benchmarking Success Story from Baton Rouge
• A Benchmarking Question for our CFO Expert 
• Talk about benchmarking on the message board 
  

Hospitals have entered an age when quality measures and pay-for-performance initiatives rely upon codified data. Incomplete documentation can skew the data, which affects its quality ratings. In other words, getting the data right can make—or break—a hospital’s reputation with patients, physicians, and third-party payers..

• A Focus on POA 
• Ways to Work Better with Your Clinical Documentation Staff  
• Don’t Overlook Outpatient Documentation Issues
• Discuss clinical documentation on the message board 
  

"Going green" is probably not a top priority, but there are real savings to be made in the area of IT. Learn some methods to turn your IT department green and positively affect your bottom line at the same time.

• Reasons to Embrace Green Thinking   
• A Hospital’s Recycling Checklist
• Greening Your New Construction Project 
• Talk about green initiatives on the message board 
  

The art of financial forecasting is key to running a hospital system. Find out how to best formulate and use forecasts.

• Challenges of Financial Forecasting 
• Quick Tips for Effective Forecasting

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Burning Platform: What’s on Fire Now?

Nov.5, 2009, 9:00 - 4:15 CST

Where: Center for Connected Medicine
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Pittsburgh, PA 15219

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