Have you heard this yet?

Bronx-Lebanon Hospital owes Alexis Rodriguez, and several hundred other patients, an apology.  It was just “a simple mistake,” of course.  But tell that to Alexis Rodriguez. 

Basically, the billing firm handling invoicing for Bronx-Lebanon Hospital made a data entry error that placed the invoice number in the “Amount Owed” field.  So several hundred patients received bills to the tune of eight digits!

Here’s a link to the full article: “You’re Better – and You Owe $44 Million.”

Now, don’t get me wrong.  I’m not faulting Bronx-Lebanon for outsourcing their billing.  We think outsourcing is one of the smartest things a hospital can do.

But here’s the thing:   The company they chose to trust with invoicing their patients fell short when it to came time to quality review.

And that, my friends, created a mess.

Outsourcing can be a risky business when you don’t hire the best.  Here are some tips to keep in mind if you’re considering outsourcing:

1. Details, details, details:  In this case, this little faux pas happened because the company Bronx-Lebanon chose to use didn’t pay attention to the details.  It’s vital for a company to pay attention to little details that can make the difference between a job well done and an embarrassing mess. So when you’re considering outsourcing a job to a company, pay attention to little details like what kind of presence they have on social media or how they handle communications such as responses to your e-mails.  These little clues can give you insight into how they may handle your job.
2. Pricing:  Outsourcing can’t be a matter of finding the lowest bid and running with it.  Who knows how much money Bronx-Lebanon has lost in cleaning up this snafu, but you can bet they’ve lost quite a bit in future earnings just based on a sullied reputation.  And errors like this aren’t the only possibility when you go with the lowest bidder.  Any time corners get cut or quality is sacrificed for price, you run the risk of looking bad, or possibly even running into legal trouble.
3. Reputation:  You’ve got to be able to trust the company you’re working with to have the same quality standards as you and your facility.  A solid firm you’re going to hire needs to have a strong reputation you can trust.  A history of success you can research and rely on.  I wasn’t able to find much about the company Bronx-Lebanon used for their invoicing.  Maybe that says something.

I know from my own experience, outsourcing has its pros and cons.  So if you’re going to enjoy the benefits and steer clear of the potential hazards, you need to be able to settle on a company with the history and reputation to stand behind their work and keep your name out of the headlines.

Tell me, what guidelines do you follow when hiring a vendor? Any best practices you look for when outsourcing?  What do you do to pay attention to details?  Let me know in the comments.

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I’m finding a trend going on in health care right now, and I’m trying hard to make sense of it.

Based on this article from Fierce Health Care, hospitals are employing 32% more physicians since just over a decade ago.  They’re basing the numbers on the 2012 version of AHA Hospital Statistics.  Take a look at this:

“Although 55.1 percent of physicians are not employed or under contract with hospitals, the report reveals that 20.3 percent are covered by a group contract, 17.3 percent are directly employed, and 7.2 percent have individual contracts, the article notes.

What’s more, the amount of hospitals employing hospitalists rose from 29.6 percent in 2003 to 59.8 percent in 2010, according to the report. Meanwhile, hospitals’ intensivist employment increased from 20.7 percent to 29.7 percent between 2007 and 2010, H&HN Daily notes.”

Now, generally, I’d say this is really good news.  But the confusion comes in when I see this kind of information reported on CNN.com: Doctors Going Broke.

This article pointed out some more interesting stats, but also some in-depth stories from the front line where private practices are suffering the worst.  Here’s a few snippets from the article:

“”A lot of independent practices are starting to see serious financial issues,” said Marc Lion, CEO of Lion & Company CPAs, LLC, which advises independent doctor practices about their finances.

Doctors list shrinking insurance reimbursements, changing regulations, rising business and drug costs among the factors preventing them from keeping their practices afloat. But some experts counter that doctors’ lack of business acumen is also to blame.”

And I thought this line really hit the nail on the head:

“Also on his mind, the impending 27.4% Medicare pay cut for doctors. “If that goes through, it will put us under,” he said.”

So there seems to be a disconnect here: doctors are going out of business left and right for a combination of reasons, yet hospitals are hiring on more doctors than they did 12 years ago when profits were far higher.

To succeed with that kind of strategy, the hospital had better be focusing strongly on collecting receivables and containing cost.  Unfortunately, not all of them are.

What do you think about this disconnect?  Are these figures likely to turn around any time soon?  Or is it going to continue?  Let us know in the comments and let’s discuss!

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In the last two days, Michele Bachmann, Minnesota Congresswoman bowed out of the Presidential race to focus specifically on a campaign to partner with Congressman Steve King and signed his  “Repeal ObamaCare” pledge.

After signing the health-care pledge  and her appearance on Tuesday with King, Bachmann launched into what was essentially her final closing argument of the six-month caucus campaign that will make or break her candidacy.  Bachmann ended her campaign to become the 2012 Republican presidential nominee on Wednesday.

See Jason Noble’s post here:  Michele Bachmann stands with Steve King; delivers final closing argument

As well, see this post by John Connor:  Obamacare’s Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Year

The questions that come to my mind are:

• Is Michelle Bachmann going to lead healthcare into more limbo?
• Is it worth scrapping Obamacare to be replaced with a lack of direction on healthcare and how to improve it?
• What is it going to take to get real direction on this issue?

What are your thoughts?

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We at MAS want to take this opportunity to thank all the clients we serve and those we partner with over the past year and wish you a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year!

As 2011 comes to an end, we reflect on the past year and on those who have helped to impact our business in a most significant way. We value our relationships with you all and look forward to working with you and helping you reach your goals in the year to come.

We offer you a little poem to start the New Year…

Recipe For A Happy New Year

To leave the old with a burst of song                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   To recall the right and forgive the wrong;                                                                                                                                                                                                                        To forget the thing that binds you fast                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 To the vain regrets of the year that’s past;                                                                                                                                                                                                                        To have the strength to let go your hold Of the not worthwhile of the days grown old,                                                                                                                                              To dare to go forth with a purpose true,                                                                                                                                                                                                                            To the unknown task of the year that’s new;                                                                                                                                                                                                                     To help your brother along the road To do his work and lift his load;                                                                                                                                                                        To add your gift to the world’s good cheer,                                                                                                                                                                                                                          Is to have and to give a Happy New Year.

 Many Happy Days to you All in 2012!!!

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We, at MAS, want to take this opportunity to wish everyone our Best Wishes for a Happy and Safe Very Merry Christmas.  

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There doesn’t seem to be any business or industry out there that hasn’t felt the effects of the present economy.  It may be loss of business from sales and/or it might be the rising costs of running the business.

That is also true of the healthcare industry.

Most businesses are looking at cost savings ideas and maintaining their employee productivity.

I recently became aware of one company that has come to the conclusion that internal emails have had a significant impact on the productivity within their organization and have come up with a plan – they want to eliminate email in their business.  You can find the post here:

Whoa! This Company Wants To BAN Email In The Office!

We want your input on this idea…  What are your thoughts on the pro’s and con’s of this plan?  Will it work?  Are we ready, in the healthcare industry, to change some of our internal business processes?  Do you have any suggestions?

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Over the years our MAS blog has brought attention to many subjects in the healthcare and medical billing world… This week I would like to bring your focus to the closing of a special school, Sacred Heart of North Merrick.

On Tuesday December 5, 2012 we received notice the school is closing its doors in June.

The shame here is that this came without warning, and, even more disturbing, without a proper explanation by the Bishop’s Advisory Committee on Catholic Education, who made this decision.

Yes, we all know we are living in “these difficult economic times”, but in this case there are a few things that are not making sense for my family, Sacred Heart’s 234 students and their families:

1. SHS has 234 paying students
2. Enrollment is climbing, SHS had to add a 2nd kindergarten class for the 1st time
3. Subsidy from the diocese is at its lowest in years
4. SHS fundraising is strong (we just put in a new gym floor)
5. Received Middle States accreditation last year
6. In one graduating class, SHS produced 4 valedictorians at Catholic high schools!
7. And so much more!!

I think you can start to see the confusion of our situation, and see that, behind the scenes, we have worked proactive to avoid this very situation.

Alright I know you are asking what I can do the help 234 great kids this Christmas?

Well, we all know there is power in numbers and we are looking for you to join a rallying cause.

Here are 3 easy things to do to join us…
1. Re-post this blog
2. Re-tweet it use hash tag #SaveSacredHeart
3. Join our Facebook Group called Save Sacred Heart

Want to do even more? Here is how…
1. Call the Bishop Murphy’s office demanding explanation to the schools families at
2. Write to his office (click here for the address)
3. Join us at an upcoming Rally (our first one is Saturday 12:30PM)

We are already seeing results… keep the momentum going… Thank you for joining us! See you at the rally… we will be wearing Red to show our support and love for our school!!

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There is no doubt LinkedIn is a powerful tool as part of a strong marketing strategy in connecting and building relationships, alliances and joint venture opportunities.

LinkedIn sets itself apart from other social media sites in the way you find and make connections.  Rather than just “following” or sending “requests to connect”, it allows you to personalize the way you can introduce yourself, and start building relationships.

A huge part of your success in LinkedIn may depend on how much effort you make to personalize your invitations, introductions and start conversations with people.  As in local networking when you are attending Chamber of Commerce meetings, for example, the way you present yourself is very important to the way others perceive who you are and what you do.  It is important to realize that everyone has “pet peeves” about networking and with social media sites, it is no different.

Recently, I joined a LinkedIn Group call “LinkChat”, we were talking about this very subject.  LinkChat is a great place to build your networking skills and learn about  “everything” LinkedIn.  We connect every Tuesday night 8:00 PM on Twitter @ #LinkedInChat. You are welcome to join in the conversation.

Using the Standard LinkedIn Intro is my biggest Pet Peeve.  I feel that making an introduction without  a proper hello is really… well… rude, and that’s why I have created a poll to find out what annoys and ultimately has a negative effect on the people we are connected to in LinkedIn.  I feel it is time to clarify the Linkedin etiquette!

I invite you to take a moment and give me your valuable input on this poll.  The deadline is December 16^th and I will be sharing the results in my next blog post shortly thereafter.  The more people who participate, the more accurate and insightful the results will be. So after you vote why not share with your own network and let’s see what we can learn together.

CLICK HERE FOR THE POLL:

http://ow.ly/7Qmku

The results may provide valuable feedback in how you can be much more effective and show better results in your LinkedIn activities. I look forward to hearing what bugs you.

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Deloitte Access Economics released a report that shows that hospital house calls in Australia  cut spending by a third. “Faced with rising healthcare costs and response to consumer preferences, most states and territories in Australia already provide acute, sub-acute, and post-acute care in the home, made possible by portable technology, according to the report.”

Dr. Edward Kulich a pediatrician featured in a Wall Street Journal profile, says that making house calls lets him spend more time with his patients and left his private practice to be a traveling doctor.

What do you think about this creative way to turnaround healthcare?

Do you think more hospitals and doctors should start making house calls?

Would you want to be a traveling Doctor?

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Some members of Congress have been spotted trekking through Washington on their way to join Linus in the patch, awaiting The Great Healthcare Pumpkin’s arrival.  Good grief!!  I’m wondering if the American people, just like Sally below, are growing tired of listening to the same old story of the The Great Healthcare Pumpkin without a glimmer of free guaranteed coverage in site…

Ugh!!

Happy October!! Enjoy!!

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