Cover Story
The Value of IT Due Diligence During Hospital M&A
Health systems looking to enter a merger or acquisition should do a full study on the IT department of the acquired organization.
By Peyman S. Zand
Web Exclusives
6 Tactics of Successful ACOs
To gain the assurance of success under value-based care, all accountable care organizations (ACOs) should adopt the best practices of the most high-performing ACOs.
By Rosemarie Day, MPP and Sarah Matousek, PhD, MPH
Managing the Cost of Technology in a Disruptive Era
Healthcare organizations that adopt a managed equipment services model will be better equipped to face the challenges of the industry.
By Jim Ambrose
On Point
For Hospitals Facing Hurricane Season, Preparation and Practice Are Critical
Stewart Simonson, former HHS Assistant Secretary for Public Health Emergency Preparedness, points to four areas where potentially affected hospitals should consider revising their disaster preparedness plans in preparation for hurricane season.
By Lia Winfield, PhD
Business Intelligence
Delivering on Potential: The RTLS Effect on Productivity
A North Dakota health system has seen positive results in patient wait times and staff productivity by using real-time location system technology.
By Jill Wilson, Paul Schulz, and Anne M. Bugge
Features
Integrating Care to Improve Surgical Outcomes and Reduce Costs
As a hospital’s major source of income, surgical procedures present the biggest opportunities for cost savings and process improvement.
By Sonya Pease
Health System-Owned Physician Practices: Are Any Losses Acceptable?
Health systems that own physician practices should fully address losses those practices incur and take steps to remediate the issues underlying those losses.
By Timothy Smith
Home Is Where the Hospital Is
The hospital-at-home model provides a potential means of reducing total costs of care and improving outcomes, but it would present traditional acute care hospitals with a strategic challenge.
By Chad Mulvany, FHFMA
Focus Area
Technology
Creating an Integrated Healthcare Ecosystem Through Mobile Communication Technology
Mobile communication technology can allow a healthcare organization to operate more efficiently, resulting in cost savings and increased patient and staff satisfaction.
By Brad Broo
Columns
From the Chair
Identifying Opportunities for Innovation in Healthcare Finance
Healthcare finance leaders should be attuned to the presence of opportunities for innovative improvements that may exist all around them.
By Kevin Brennan, FHFMA, CPA
Eye On Washington
Atul Gawande: A World of Promise
The appointment of Atul Gawande to lead the Amazon-Berkshire Hathaway-JPM Morgan Chase healthcare venture could be an important step toward finding effective solutions to the deficiencies of the nation’s healthcare system.
By Ceci Connolly
Integration
Six Ways to Look at Your Next Consolidation
To avoid making changes simply for the sake of change, healthcare leaders should attend to any unfinished business from prior changes and ensure any new move toward consolidation accounts for future uncertainty as well as potential new opportunities.
By Keith D. Moore and Dean C. Coddington
Healthcare Innovation
Medicare Advantage for More: A Pragmatic Alternative to Medicare for All
An expansion of Medicare Advantage presents an opportunity for the U.S. to test the waters of a single-payer system.
By Ken Perez
Capital Finance
Effective Merger Integration Requires Focus on All Four Pieces of The Treasury Platform
To achieve a truly effective merger integration, careful attention should be paid to treasury operations and invested assets, along with capital management and external financing.
By Eric A. Jordahl and Matt Robbins, CFA
From the President
The Experience Economy is Coming to Health Care
HFMA President and CEO Joe Fifer discusses the implications of the experience economy for healthcare finance leaders.
By Joseph J. Fifer, FHFMA, CPA
Departments
News Watch Data Analysis
Number of MSSP ACOs and Shared-Savings Characteristics
The number of ACOs participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program increased at a faster rate from 2013 to 2018 than did the number of participants that achieved shared savings in the first four years of the program.
Data Trends
Trends in Building and Fixture Costs, 2007-16
An analysis looked at Medicare cost reports to compared trends in capital costs for buildings and fixtures among different types of acute care hospitals.
By William Shoemaker
Supplements
Educational Report
Transforming Accounts Payable: Opportunities, Challenges, and Next Steps
Education report that delves into the importance of revamping accounts payable and considering automation.
Sponsored by GHX
Executive Roundtable
Optimizing Capital Structure Decisions Under the New Tax Law
A roundtable discussion about 2017 tax law changes and strategies for optimizing capital structure.
Sponsored by TD Bank
Advertising
Business Profile
Grant Thornton: Optimizing the Ambulatory Workforce
One of Grant Thornton’s senior healthcare consultants addresses the topic of workforce management and the importance of a data-driven approach.
