October | 2008 | The Leading Business Education Network for Doctors, Financial Advisors and Health Industry Consultants

ADA “Transparency” in Health IT [Part II]

Posted on October 31, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

It all Depends on the Meaning of the Word

[See Part I]: https://healthcarefinancials.wordpress.com/2008/10/30/ada-%e2%80%9ctransparency%e2%80%9d-in-health-it-part-i/

By Darrell K. Pruitt; DDS

http://community.pennwelldentalgroup.com/forum/topic/show?id=2013420%3ATopic%3A14837

“If you want to be respected by others the great thing is to respect yourself. Only by that, only by self-respect will you compel others to respect you.”

Fyodor Dostoevsky

“The Insulted and Humiliated” – 1861

A few days ago, San Antonio Express-News reporter Don Finley interviewed outgoing American Dental Association president Dr. Mark Feldman about the future of dentistry. Dr. Feldman lamented that the US presidential candidates have yet to mention dentists in their plans for healthcare. In fact, the title of the article is “Group wants dental health to be part of candidates’ talk.”

http://www.mysanantonio.com/health/31239029.html

ADA Plea’s “Not Reassuring”

As a dentist with an intense interest in maintaining complete control of the way I choose to practice dentistry, I have to say that Dr. Feldman’s groveling plea for attention was not reassuring. Others, including opportunists who would take advantage of my dental patients, are also watching. Those who are paying attention easily catch on to hints of weakness as well.

For example, Dr. Feldman must not have impressed San Antonio very much because immediately following the Express-News article, someone allowed two anonymous and very bitter people who hate dentists to post their comments, while rejecting at least three Texas dentists’ comments defending the profession. Anyone can see that the San Antonio Express-News openly scorns Dr. Mark Feldman and the ADA.

Not Defending the Dental Brand

It is no secret that the ADA never defends itself on the Internet. Time and again I proved that such negligence in protecting one’s brand creates a huge vulnerability. The pitiful part about low self-esteem is that those who work for the candidates also pick up on the weakness of our organization and see no political traction in concerning themselves with our patients’ interests.

Sadly, the once reliable respect does not look forthcoming for Dr. John Findley either. Nobody in the media noticed his arrival as president, so the ADA had to spend money to purchase a press release.

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/texas-dentist-assumes-presidency-american/story.aspx?guid=%7B1824CA4A-C3F6-4CF3-A34B-C7043DE38E45%7D&dist=hppr

Assessment

Effective public relations on the Internet cannot be purchased, and defense of the ADA is hobbled by its obsolete command-and-control business model – an early example of a fat, slow-moving dinosaur facing the challenges of evolution in a transparent marketplace.

Conclusion

To me, the press release seems pitiful. We can do better. We must do better. Our patients are depending on us. We are the only ones who care for them. Your thoughts are appreciated; please opine and comment.

Publisher’s Comment:

Now, after reading this two part series, is there no one here to rid of us of this meddlesome dentist; or is he correct?

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Filed under: Information Technology, Op-Editorials | 5 Comments »

Anonymous Doctor Rating Websites

Posted on October 30, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Worthwhile or Worthless?

By Staff Writers

All medical professionals are aware of the power of the internet and the rise of anonymous MD rating sites. These include RateMDs.com, WLPT-Zagat, Vimo, Careseek, Drscore and a host of others. But, however cool and empowering they may seem; their value is still questioned.

Assessment

And so, we would like to get your input (along with other readers, subscribers and experts) on the value of these social sites for patients and consumers, as well as the possible risks and benefits for MDs.

Conclusion

Your thoughts and comments are appreciated; real life stories and anecdotes are encouraged.

Speaker: If you need a moderator or speaker for an upcoming event, Dr. David E. Marcinko; MBA – Publisher-in-Chief of the Medical Executive-Post – is available for seminar or speaking engagements. Contact: MarcinkoAdvisors@msn.com or Bio: www.stpub.com/pubs/authors/MARCINKO.htm

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Filed under: Career Development, Practice Management, Surveys and Voting | Tagged: doctor rating sites | 6 Comments »

ADA “Transparency” in Health IT [Part I]

Posted on October 30, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

It all Depends on the Meaning of the Word

By Darrell K. Pruitt; DDS

http://community.pennwelldentalgroup.com/forum/topic/show?id=2013420%3ATopic%3A14837

It is my hope that the walls are beginning to close in on the American Dental Association’s healthcare IT hobbyists and other ambitious stakeholders who stoically tolerate harm to dental patients for the common good and personal power. Supporting HIPAA is the most egregious blunder ADA leaders have ever made. As the effort collapses because of natural reasons, those who hang onto absurdity the longest will lose the most. Fair is fair. Those who recklessly promoted HIPAA have done long term damage to my professional organization. I cannot let this continue.

“Seal of Approval”

I will show you irrefutable evidence that the once strong ADA, whose legendary “ADA Seal of Approval” was highly respected in the marketplace before it went on sale, is now a vulnerable empty shell. In an age when transparency trumps talking points, the ADA is hemorrhaging credibility every time President Dr. John Findley opens his mouth. In his address to the House of Delegates a couple of days ago, Dr. Findley said that he “values and promotes ‘transparency,’ which he defined as an openness and honesty that helps build and maintain trust”.

http://www.ada.org/prof/resources/pubs/adanews/adanewsarticle.asp?articleid=3272

Evidence-Based Dentistry

After two and a half years of asking questions to virtually every officer in the ADA, including Dr. Findley, I can tell you with certainty that ADA leadership still just does not get it. It is impossible for one to use the word “transparency” as a buzzword successfully. The term is not vague like “Evidence-Based Dentistry,” which of course can mean whatever stakeholders need it to.

“Intelligent Dental Marketing?”

We must face this fact, friends: Between the ADA’s chronic paralyzing fear of trouble from the FTC and the progressive loss of respect in the marketplace, the ADA can no longer offer adequate and uncontaminated representation for dentists and their patients. In my opinion, a large part of the problem is that the ADA has gone commercial. I might tolerate ads on our website, but they better be expensive and few. However, did you know that the ADA is in commercial partnership with an outside PR firm to sell practice marketing to ADA members? It is called “Intelligent Dental Marketing.” I think it is an atrocious idea.

Assessment

Here is a question about intelligent marketing which nobody will answer: If two ADA members, the only two dentists in a small town, both use IDM, which one will get the better deal?

Conclusion

I say that if the ADA has to sell stuff to dentists to keep dues low, that is an unethical business arrangement which favors third parties and does nothing to improve patient care. I think downsizing is a far better idea.

What do you think? All comments are appreciated.

[Part II will be posted soon]

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Filed under: Information Technology, Op-Editorials | Tagged: ADA, American Dental Association | 4 Comments »

Developing a Sound Investment Portfolio

Posted on October 29, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Asset Class Investing for Today, and Beyond

Staff Reporters

In 1997, The Prudent Investor’s Guide to Beating the Market was released by John Bowen Jr., and published by Irwin Professional Publishing. Since then, it has become somewhat of a classic. And so, the time may be right to review the basic concepts it exposes during the current climate of marketplace turmoil, volatility and the impending recessionary financial ecosystem.

Basic Concepts

In the book, Bowen describes the concepts necessary to develop a sound portfolio of asset class investing. These include:

• Utilize diversification effectively to reduce risk—While diversification is generally good; realize that bad diversification also exists. If your investments move together (or in tandem), this is ineffective diversification.

• Dissimilar price-movement diversification enhances returns—The most important component of investing is understanding correlation coefficients (dissimilar price movements). By combining assets with low correlations, the physician investor can lower the overall portfolio risk while enhancing risk-adjusted rates of return. If two portfolios have the same average return, the one with the lower volatility will have the greater compound rate of return over time.

• Utilize institutional asset class mutual funds—This belief stems from markets being efficient. Therefore, the best way to add value to mutual funds is to diversify into asset class mutual funds so you can achieve dissimilar price movements that will allow you to diversify effectively.

• Diversify globally—If you have all your money in a single country, you will not achieve diversification because those investments, on average, tend to move together.

• Design portfolios that are efficient—Your portfolio should be designed to provide you with the highest rate of return for the level of risk with which you are comfortable.

Stay the Course

Bowen believes the secret to asset class investing is having the discipline to stay-on-track. He further states that the investor must stay the course and avoid market timing, because it simply does not work. He tells his readers that only through a patient, long-term perspective will they realize their financial goals. He states that more than 90% of the market gain recorded each year has been concentrated in a single 30-day period.

Risk Management

To determine how much risk any physician-investor is willing to take, Bowen suggests looking at the 1973–1974 domestic stock market performance. These two years experienced the worst financial recession since World War II. In selecting the risk tolerance that’s appropriate, physicians and other investors should consider their optimal portfolio at its average risk level. Bowen believes that just because Wall Street doesn’t acknowledge the existence of those years, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t.

Assessment

He also states that you should only be in the equity market if your time horizon exceeds five years. This way, you’ll be able to weather the business cycles with peace of mind.

For any portfolio less than five years, Bowen states that it should be predominantly made up of fixed income securities. He also states that most portfolios should consist of a money market account, a one-year corporate bond, a five-year government fund, a US large company fund, a U.S. small company fund, an international large company fund, and an international small company asset class mutual fund.

Conclusion

The original book is written in a clear and concise format. It gives a history of the market and shows the reader what works, what doesn’t, and explains why. The book should again be a prerequisite reading for physician-investors and financial advisors; especially today.

Any thoughts, opinions and comments are appreciated.

Related Information Sources:

Practice Management: http://www.springerpub.com/prod.aspx?prod_id=23759

Physician Financial Planning: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/0763745790

Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Healthcare Organizations: www.HealthcareFinancials.com

Health Administration Terms: www.HealthDictionarySeries.com

Physician Advisors: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com

Speaker: If you need a moderator or speaker for an upcoming event, Dr. David E. Marcinko; MBA – Publisher-in-Chief of the Executive-Post – is available for seminar or speaking engagements. Contact: MarcinkoAdvisors@msn.com or Bio: www.stpub.com/pubs/authors/MARCINKO.htm

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Filed under: Book Reviews, Investing, Portfolio Management | Tagged: asset classes | 1 Comment »

For-Profit versus Not-For-Profit Healthcare

Posted on October 27, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

An Often Contentious Problem

[By Staff Writers]

In general industry, as well as in healthcare, there has been a longstanding discussion on the relative efficiencies of for-profit businesses versus not-for-profits, which concerns the very merits of competition itself.

The Studies

According to Robert James Cimasi MHA, ASA, AVA, CMP™ of Health Capital Consultants in St Louis, a number of recent studies, some more controversial than others, have investigated the effect of tax status on the relative costs and quality of services at these different types of hospitals.

For example, Bob Cimasi of www.HealthCapital.com reported that one study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), compared Medicare spending (adjusted for local costs, patient demographics, and the types and numbers of local healthcare providers and facilities) in markets with only non-profit hospitals, only for-profit hospitals, and those with both types.

The results for the years studied, 1989, 1992, and 1995, showed that the government spends more for every type of service studied (hospital, physician, home health, and other facility services) in those areas with only for-profit hospitals. Costs for areas with only not-for-profit hospitals were the lowest, with spending in markets with both for-profit and not-for-profit hospitals falling in the middle of the range.

This study also tracked adjusted mean per capita spending for hospitals that had a change in their tax status.

For the period of the study, 1989-1995, they found that areas where all hospitals were non-profit, and remained so, had cost increases of $866, compared with $1,295 for areas where non-profits converted to for-profit status. Areas with only for-profit hospitals had cost increases of $1,166 from 1989-1995, whereas those which changed to non-profit hospital areas had the smallest cost increases of $837.

These results may indicate that the tax status of hospitals affects the costs of health services provided by physician providers and other healthcare facilities. Further, this reported effect, if real, may be considered by many to be detrimental to the public good. In the six years examined by this study, the difference in costs between these market types was indicated to have grown from 12.7% to 16.5%. In 1995, annual Medicare spending was $732 higher per enrollee in markets with only for-profit hospitals than in non-profit markets. This difference may be extrapolated to $5.2 billion dollars in total extra annual costs to Medicare.

Even More Studies

Other studies, according to Cimasi, have examined these cost differences and have found them to result from increased administrative and ancillary services costs. For-profits appear to spend less on personnel, charity care, hired help, and length of stay than not-for-profits. Moreover, spending differences are reflected in measurements of outcomes and quality. A study of death rates has presented them to be 6-7% lower in not-for-profit hospitals as compared to for-profits and 25% lower for teaching hospitals.[1]

The fact that costs in those markets with both for-profit and not-for-profit hospitals were in the middle of the range may be interpreted as resulting from the averaging of costs from these different classifications of organizations. However, the behavior of the not-for-profit class was apparently also affected by this “competition” with for-profits in mixed markets. For example, studies have shown that charitable care by non-profits in these markets is reduced to levels similar to those provided by for-profits.

The NEHJM Editorial

A NEJM editorial, several years ago, discussing several hospital costs studies attributes these higher costs to a lack of competition (or other motivation such as charity) that might act to prevent for-profit companies from seeking to maximize their profits at the cost of the public good.

“Market medicine’s dogma, that the profit motive optimizes care and minimizes costs, seem impervious to evidence that contradicts it.” Then further, “The competitive market described in textbooks does not and cannot exist in health care for several reasons.”[2]

Thus, even if competition could improve care and lower costs, this isn’t happening because expected results from competition are missing in the healthcare markets.

Competition

An examination of hospital competition is also of interest, as many hospital markets are too small to support more than one hospital (a monopoly) or more than a very few competing organizations. The authors of the NEJM editorial went on to cite hospital monopolies and “virtual monopolies” as one of the barriers to competition, stating that roughly half of Americans live in markets too small to support medical competition and that for-profit chains have focused acquisitions on these markets.

More Barriers

The next barrier discussed is constraints on consumer demand imposed by illness. The authors point to the difficulties consumers have in comparing costs, outcomes, and quality in order to choose among competing services.

Lastly, the fact that the government makes the purchasing decisions and pays the majority of healthcare costs, rather than the consumers or employers who are using the services, is presented as a significant barrier to competition.

Assessment

Many healthcare planners find these studies to be a stark illustration of the argument that the benefits of competition for profits are lost whenever competitive market controls are absent to prevent the abuses of profiteering. As one might expect, for-profit hospital companies might point out that this is the case for both not-for-profit and for-profit dominated markets.

References:

1. Wolfe, S. M., M.D., Editor, “Hidden Rip-off in U.S. Health Care Is Unmasked In New England Journal of Medicine Articles.” Health Letter 15: 9, Public Citizen Health Research Group, (Sept. 1999):

2. Woolhandler, S. and Himmelstein, D. U. “When Money Is the Mission — The High Costs of Investor-Owned Care.” NEJM 341: 6 (Aug. 5, 1999): 444

Conclusion

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Speaker: If you need a moderator or speaker for an upcoming event, Dr. David E. Marcinko; MBA – Publisher-in-Chief of the Medical Executive-Post – is available for seminar or speaking engagements. Contact: MarcinkoAdvisors@msn.com

OUR OTHER PRINT BOOKS AND RELATED INFORMATION SOURCES:

DICTIONARIES: http://www.springerpub.com/Search/marcinko
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HOSPITALS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781466558731
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Filed under: Health Economics, Health Law & Policy, Healthcare Finance, Practice Management, Research & Development | Tagged: for-profit hospitals, not-for-profit hospitals | 9 Comments »

The Great eHR Debate

Posted on October 26, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Another IT Challenge for Dentists

By Darrell K. Pruitt; DDS

I posted this on my surrogate blog (Baltimore Sun). I’m hoping to gather a crowd of town-folks to witness me send a collection of door-to-door scoundrels on down the road.

http://www.topix.net/forum/source/baltimore-sun/T0GLLJEPSJAJJDBCJ/p5#lastPost

“EHR Debate of the Century – Pruitt vs. All Comers”

Allow me to invite you to the “EHR Debate of the Century – Pruitt vs. All Comers”

Kevin Henry, editor for Dental Economics, has invited healthcare IT experts other than me to a debate concerning electronic health records in dentistry. I posted my acceptance of the challenge here.

http://community.pennwelldentalgroup.com/forum/topic/show?id=2013420%3ATopic%3A14917

Dental Economics

http://community.pennwelldentalgroup.com/forum/topic/show?id=2013420%3ATopic%3A14859

When I read that he was entertaining questions for a panel of experts, I hammered out twenty or so questions in less than five minutes and posted them below his comment. Every one of my questions is a subterranean stinker except for the last two. Those two are as sweet as honey.

This Could be Fun

I have to assume that the other unnamed and unarmed experts are healthcare IT stakeholders, not principals like me. Since I’m defending my patients’ turf instead of the price of a company’s stock, I cannot and will not lose. This could get exciting. Wake the kids. I’ll also do my best to spread the word about the train wreck in my own way.

I must take this opportunity to acknowledge the courage of PennWell and specifically Mr. Henry for stepping out in front of the vast silent, lost crowd to offer consumers transparency at last, and perhaps just in time. I will never forget your help in my efforts to salvage evidence-based miracles that my future grandchildren might still be able to enjoy, if we’re lucky.

“The events going on right now are the seeds of a unification of faith and honor of all thirteen colonies on our continent. The smallest fracture between us now will be like a tiny carving into a small oak sapling, which will grow large over time, and future generations will be able to read our failure in giant letters.”

Thomas Paine, Chapter III, “Common Sense.” 1776

OSEBD

If we are to reap miracles from Open Source Evidence-Based Dentistry [OSEBD], we cannot afford to disappoint our patients the first time out with a loser EHR that ADA President Dr. John Findley says dentists will have to accept – regardless of the Hippocratic Oath. The interoperability that Findley does not understand but nevertheless promises the nation will never be realized if leadership continues with this reckless, parasite-infested course in healthcare IT adoption.

Open-Source EBD using trustworthy data will only get one chance at trust. Contrary to what Findley says, EHRs are not inevitable. It is abysmally foolish for a bureaucrat to suggest that the nation’s dentists, 85% of whom are sole-proprietor small business owners, will abandon their own Constitutional Rights for the common good. That is being far too generous with others’ rights, Dr. Findley.

Bribing the Doctors

Until both dentists and patients trust EDRs, interoperability simply will not happen anywhere. Consider this: EMR adoption by physicians is going so badly that HHS Secretary Michael Leavitt had to bribe 1,200 physicians just to try EMRs. Do you know the difference between EMRs and EDRs? EMRs make tremendous sense.

Bribing the Dentists?

How many dentists will the next Secretary have to bribe? Taxpayers should be warned that investing in EHRs in dentistry is a waste of healthcare dollars until Personal Identification Information (PII) is removed from them. What, I ask you, could be simpler than that? “And, what about the interoperability with physicians’ records?” a deeply-rooted healthcare IT stakeholder might timidly ask. Forget the MDs. Forget Newt Gingrich. Forget ONCHIT. And especially, with extreme prejudice, forget the National Association of Dental Plans (NADP). Let’s set up our own system, with or without the ADA, collectively fine tune it to our own needs which only practicing dentists truly understand, and make the opportunists come to us for once, damn it. Just because physicians’ practices are so terribly infested with parasites that they cannot move into the future should not stop dentists from leading the way using precedent-setting innovation in a free market.

Assessment

Even before Secretary Leavitt addressed the ADA House of Delegates in 2006, which Kevin Henry mentioned in the invitation to the coming debate, I wrote that maintaining EDRs with personal information is like storing bombs with fuses. It is still earthly stupid. So are we, the nation’s dentists, going to sit back in our lawn chairs and watch for the muddy explosion? Not me. I’m going to defuse the sucker. You just sit back and watch.

Conclusion

Your thoughts and comments are appreciated.

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Filed under: Information Technology, Op-Editorials | Tagged: dentists | 5 Comments »

About HealthCare Financials.com

Posted on October 26, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

What it Is – How it Works

HealthcareFinancials.wordpress.com is the most comprehensive health administration, economics and personal financial planning open access platform on the internet, focusing on both authoritative and fraternal sources.

HealthcareFinancials.wordpress.com offers 50 main topical forum options, as well as an advisor directory, over 700 articles on various health economic and practice management issues, books, journals, and a search engine for hard to find information.

There is no cost, or obligation for using HealthcareFinancials.wordpress.com. Registration is required to post articles or comment. Physician executives, healthcare administrations, accountants, attorneys and financial advisors are encouraged to join and contribute.

Like minded advertisers are welcomed. Please vist our companion premium print journal: www.HealthcareFinancials.com

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Understanding and Investing in Collectibles

Posted on October 26, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Sans Cash Flow Entitlements

[By Staff Writers]

Many medical professionals have a broad range of investments that are typically not securities and rarely provide entitlement to specific cash flows. One example is collectibles, which are durable real property expected to store value for the owner.

Definition

According to Jeff Coons PhD, CFP™, the term collectible may represent such items as artwork, jewelry, sports memorabilia, stamps, and wine. While a detailed discussion of the wide variety of collectibles markets is outside the scope of this post, there are common characteristics of collectibles as an investment.

Common Collectible Characteristics

First, the value of a collectible generally rests entirely in the eye of the beholder. Since there is typically no cash flows associated with a collectible, unless the collector charges at the door for a look at their collection, the value of the collectible is only what another collector is willing to pay for that particular item.

Second, while there are some collectibles that may be considered standardized across individual pieces in terms of quality and other defining characteristics, collectible investments are generally unique. As a result, there is typically not an active market with prices established on a regular basis for most collectibles in a manner similar to the stock and bond markets.

Assessment

In total, the lack of ongoing cash payments from a collectible and the general non-comparability of items result in the collectibles market being more of a knowledge-based market than most of the investments discussed on the E-P. Since the value of a collectible is limited to the amount that another collector-investor is willing to pay for the item, a knowledgeable investor may be able to benefit from the lack of information of another investor.

By the same token, if a physician-investor does not have superior information regarding the value of a collectible, then the basic lack of economic fundamentals behind a return assumption for such investments makes collectibles generally less attractive as compared to investments providing ongoing cash payments.

Conclusion

OUR OTHER PRINT BOOKS AND RELATED INFORMATION SOURCES:

***

Filed under: Alternative Investments, Investing | Tagged: collectibles | 2 Comments »

New-Wave Thoughts on Investing

Posted on October 25, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

“Last-Gen” Financial Planning Concepts

[By Steve Schroeder]

[By Dr. David Edward Marcinko; MBA, CMP]

Welcome to this op-ed piece where we take pot shots at commonly accepted financial planning industry standards to sharpen your investing skills and stimulate your mind. With the recent sub-prime mortgage fiasco, and Wall Street’s problems and shenanigans with banks and investment houses like Bear-Stearns, Lehman Brothers, USB, Wachovia, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, WaMu, Merrill Lynch, SunTrust and AIG, etc, rethinking strategy and “conventional wisdom” seems a prudent idea. What about Wells Fargo, more recently.

And so, what is the physician-investor to do? Select help from fiduciary–liable and physician focused consultants; suggest some pundits http://www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org

***

We suggest you now take a minute to think “outside the box”?

In this post, and as a physician-investor, we want to take a crack at all of your favorite themes, including:

Buying low and selling high
Staying in for the long haul
Asset allocation
Automatic portfolio rebalancing
Fees vs. commissions
Institutional money managers
Market timing
Personal capital gains inside of mutual funds.
Reinvest those dividends.

Buying Low and Selling High

What a silly concept this is! First of all, what is “low” and what is “high”? If a stock is at an all-time high—like Apple was recently, for example—does that mean you should not buy it? Of course not! It probably means you should; there are good reasons when the stock is at an all-time high. So, the real statement should be changed to: “buy high and sell higher.” All you need do is sell it higher than the price you bought it. Don’t worry about all the weird definitions of low, high, and medium; that’s all conjecture. Next time you meet with your financial advisor, tell him to buy high and sell higher!

Staying in the Market for the Long Haul

What does this mean—to ignore problems like the perennial ostrich? What if you see events in the world that could lead to serious decline? Does that mean you just stand pat and ignore everything? This sounds absurd to me! I think this mindset should be changed to staying in for the “U-Haul.”

In other words, as soon as it looks like a good time to move, I pack my stock blanket and go elsewhere. Now, does this mean to leave stocks; altogether? Maybe; or maybe not! There are all kinds of investment options, ETFs, etc, other than mutual funds. With all the new technology and research available, we should be looking at strategies, sectors, styles, methods, shorts, puts, options—all kinds of different things; rather than a mindset to sit and ignore news as it happens. Yes, we are in for the long haul, but we are going to change our long-haul strategy many, many times throughout the trip. This sounds obvious, but many doctors and financial planners sit with the exact same strategy for 30 years when the game has obviously changed. Staying in for the long haul does not have to mean staying with the same strategy.

Asset Allocation

This is like betting on every horse in a race to win. Are you guaranteed to have a winner? Yes, you have to have one because you are holding a winning ticket on the entire field. The key is targeting risk and reducing asset allocation. Go with the sectors that are hot, and get rid of the ones that are weak. We are telling you, a blind dog can find good sectors with all the information we have at our fingertips. Tell yourself to forget every horse to win, do good research, bet on the best ones, and target their risk. If you have too many “horses,” you avoid too much loss, but you also limit your gain by huge margins.

Automatic Portfolio Rebalancing

Wow, do we hate this one! Portfolio rebalancing is the Robin Hood of investments: it takes from the profitable to feed the losers. Doctor-investors may have some good sectors making large gains until an automatic rebalance program their profits to buy more losers! What’s up with that?

Counsel yourself not to be in certain sectors that have much greater risk with much less chance of return. Do you know how many investors were invested in Japan two decades ago or the financial sector today; and don’t even know it? And when you find out that your money was automatically pulled from large cap US funds to be the financial sector; you will not be happy.

Fees vs. Commissions

Do you realize how much more a fee-based Financial Advisor [FA] takes from the doctor-client than a commission-based planner?

Look at 1% of $100,000; this comes to $1,000 per year. If a client is in “for the long haul,” we can see why: you want his money for the long haul. Twenty years of this philosophy comes out to nearly $50,000 in fees!

If a FA was going to stick you in some investment and leave him alone, would it not have been better to take $5,000 from the company, not from the doctor’s account? This way you keep the $50,000.

Now, don’t try to argue that this puts FAs on the “same side of the fence as the client”, and allows FAs to take better care of them. It may foster excessive risk taking. Remember, the “advisor” gets less money for bonds or cash, so s/he will not encourage these asset classes under this payment system. And, don’t think for a moment that this service is customized for you. It is not! Why do you think it’s called a “turn-key” asset management program in the business? Automation! Or, can you say; mass-customization thru technology, for “masses-of-asses?”

Q: To financial advisors.

A: Why not give all your clients a choice? Why not explain two ways you could get paid and let them decide?

Institutional Money Managers

Here is a great idea—as long as doctors are institutions; and they are not! I work with people, not institutions. Institutional money managers, for the most part, have a pre-tax mindset because they are used to dealing with large amounts from 401(k)s, 403(b)s, annuities or pension plans. This means they manage in a preservation-of-capital mentality, rather than a growth mentality. Now, I’d guess that most doctors are not institutions and need a much better investment philosophy than holding thousands of stocks with numerous money managers. By selecting an institutional money manager, you have assured them of mediocrity.

Market Timing

Can you time the market? Of course you can. It opens at a certain time and it closes at a certain time. “Seriously”; what is market timing?

We often hear this term bantered about when somebody wants to change his or her investment strategy. Changing investment strategies is not timing the market. In 2008, maybe you ought to make it a goal to initiate a new strategy, rather than waiting for the declining manufacturing industry to kill you financially? Should you have done this a few years ago when the mortgage industry began to implode? How about September 2017.

Mutual Funds

Let’s wrap this up with one of our favorites. I hate mutual funds and so should you. Everyone gets to share in the gains and losses together. How sweet. How democratic; or is it socialistic? Can you imagine telling your patients to buy all kinds of drugs at a price that was paid three years ago even though he or she has never used them a day! Who would take that advice? Why leave yourself vulnerable to the whims of someone he or she does not even know? How about having control over what stocks are bought and sold? Can you imagine an investment option that does all of these things? The mutual fund was good when we did not have computers or discount brokerage houses. Today, you would be much better off buying a few bellwether stocks, or whatever, and just holding them forever.

As simple as this sounds, at least the client is buying something and paying tax on the price he or she paid, not what someone else paid three years ago. Times have changed. Understand how mutual funds work and select 15 or 20 of their diversified stocks and hold them. That is much better than any mutual fund.

Reinvest those dividends

Many folks believe that the markets advance two steps, for every step it retreats; sort of a truism. If you are of the same ilk, then reinvesting dividends automatically only assures that you will buy high, 66.67% of the time. It will also be tax inefficient and not allow you to have some dry powder [cash] available cash for extra-ordinary opportunities [i.e., buying low].

***

stock-exchange

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Assessment

Well, we hope you have enjoyed this op-ed piece. As always, we’re happy to debate the issues we address here.

Conclusion

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FINANCE: Financial Planning for Physicians and Advisors
INSURANCE: Risk Management and Insurance Strategies for Physicians and Advisors

***

Filed under: Financial Planning, Investing, Op-Editorials, Research & Development | 9 Comments »

The 2.0 Healthcare Marketing Culture

Posted on October 24, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Determining your Medical Practice-Niche Focus

By: Dr. David Edward Marcinko; MBA, CMP™

Courtesy: http://www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org

cropped-dem

[Publisher-in-Chief]

It is believed that small to medium sized independent medical practices will have limited appeal to patients and buyers of medical services in the nascent Healthcare 2.0 future. Here’s why?

Healthcare 2.0 Defined

According to Matthew Holt, and other sources, Healthcare 2.0 may be defined as:

“a rapidly developing and powerful new business approach in the health care industry that uses the Web to collect, refine and share information. It is transforming how patients, professionals, and organizations interact with each other and the larger health system. The foundation of healthcare 2.0 is information exchange plus technology. It employs user-generated content, social networks and decision support tools to address the problems of inaccessible, fragmentary or unusable health care information. Healthcare 2.0 connects users to new kinds of information, fundamentally changing the consumer experience (e.g., buying insurance or deciding on/managing treatment), clinical decision-making (e.g., risk identification or use of best practices) and business processes (e.g., supply-chain management or business analytics)”.

Marketing and Advertising

Thus, the marketing and advertising of medical services through traditional channels [patient word-of-mouth, physician referrals, newspapers and magazines, insurance handbooks, internet, etc] is diminishing and will be soon gone forever. In its place, as a surviving healthcare 2.0 medical-executive, you must philosophically decide to become either a discount, service or value provider, and then aggressively pursue this cultural strategy in your medical practice, clinic or healthcare organization. And, as we see it, there will be three types of cultures to investigate:

1. The Service Provider

A medical provider committed to a service philosophy must be willing to do whatever it takes to satisfy the patient. For example, this may mean providing weekend, weeknight, or holiday office hours, instead of a routine 9-5 schedule. House calls, hospital visits, prison calls and nursing home rounds would be included in this operational model. Children, elderly patients or those with mental, physical or chemically induced challenges are all fertile niches of a core service philosophy. Managed care contracts are eschewed, as concierge practices exemplify this culture.

2. The Discount Provider

A discount provider is one who has made a conscious effort to practice low cost, but high volume medicine. For example, discount providers must depend on economics of scale to purchase bulk supplies, since this model is ideal for multi-doctor practices. Otherwise, several practitioners must establish a network, or synergy, to create a virtual organization to do so. In this manner, malpractice insurance, major equipment and other recurring purchases can be negotiated for the best price. Another major commitment must be made to computerized office automation devices, eMRs, RHOs, etc. By necessity, such as offices are small, neatly but sparsely furnished, with functional and utilitarian assets. Most all managed care contracts just be aggressively sought since patient flow and volume is the key to success in this organizational type.

3. The Value-Added Provider

A value-added medical provider is committed to practicing at the highest and riskiest levels of medical and surgical care and has the credentials and personality to do so. Value differentiation is based on such factors as; healthcare 2.0 fluency, board certification, hospital privileges, subspecialty identification or other unique attributes such as fluency in a second language or acceptance into an ethnocentric locale. This brand identification must be enunciated in your marketing activities, and genre, as you answer the question: What can I offer that no one else can?

Assessment

One sound marketing approach for the future of Healthcare 2.0 is to rely on a leader in the hospital, medical clinic and healthcare administration publication industry.

For example, this complimentary Executive-Post forum and our subscription companion 2-volume 24 chapter premium quarterly guide, is relevant to the entire fluctuating healthcare space and can be a valuable navigation tool in these troubling economic times. It will help you survive in the era of Healthcare 2.0

Disclaimer: I am the Editor-in-Chief of: Healthcare Organizations: [Journal of Financial Management Strategies].

Link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/HealthcareFinancialsthePostForcxos

Channel Surfing the ME-P

Have you visited our other topic channels? Established to facilitate idea exchange and link our community together, the value of these topics is dependent upon your input. Please take a minute to visit. And, to prevent that annoying spam, we ask that you register. It is fast, free and secure.

Conclusion

***

Filed under: Career Development, Marketing & Advertising, Op-Editorials, Practice Worth | Tagged: healthcare 2.0 | 1 Comment »

The Great Depression of 2008

Posted on October 24, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Understanding EESA

[By Staff Reporters]

On October 3, 2008, President Bush signed into law the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act (EESA). It contained significant provisions that will not only impact the financial sector but is a truly “global” law aimed at establishing the stability and reliability of the American banking system and its posture to the world community.

While presenting a speech on the issue in Tampa, Florida, on Saturday, October 11, after a precipitous drop in the stock market the day before, President Bush at 8:00 a.m. (EST) held a press conference with the G-7 Finance Ministers behind him attempting to, once again, quell the fears of the global business community as to a concentrated global effort to “right the ship” of state.

Medical Professionals; et al

Physicians, healthcare administrators, financial advisors, iMBA firm clients, printer-journal subscribers to www.HealthcareFinancials.com and our Executive-Post readers seem to be all asking the same question: are we entering into another “great depression.” To answer this, one needs to review the events leading to this worldwide financial debacle.

Not the Same

First, this is nothing like the depression of the 1930’s. The institutions and causes are substantially different. To prove this your self, just read the seminal work by the economist, John Kenneth Galbraith, “The Great Crash“, and the dissimilarities to the present global situation will be striking.

Second, a little known fact, but two prime catalysts were the principal culprits in this crisis. One is a financial vehicle called credit default swaps (CDSs) and the other is a generally accepted financial accounting rule known as “mark-to-market”.

Investment Banking Meltdown

At the beginning of 2008, the United States had five major investment banking houses. By October it had only two remaining. What brought this major change was the so-called sub-prime debt problem. But this is the deceptive label given it by naive journalists. In reality, it was a worldwide market of 54 Trillion (this is not a typo – say again, 54 Trillion) dollar CDS market that collapsed.

Cause and Affect

How could this happen? Greed is the short answer but the business expediency of setting up a CDS is largely to blame. Here’s how it worked.

Example:

A party would by phone or email enter into a credit default swap contract with a bank. This could be for an actual debt, e.g. sub-prime obligation or hedging on a non-owned instrument (cross-party) obligation. Payment of premiums ensured the default. In the event of default of the obligation, the bank, e.g., Lehman Brothers, would satisfy the contract. It is a significant fact in these transactions that there was no federal or state regulatory body supervising them. Why? Because these contracts were not per se securities and, thus, no oversight was necessary. Of course, the facts belie this assertion — to the tune of 54 Trillion dollars!

Financial Accounting

Then there is the financial accounting rule that required businesses — including financial institutions — to mark their assets, i.e., sub-prime mortgages, to market value. In a declining market this would require the creation of an unrealized loss on the bank’s books causing investors and others to view the bank as less solvent.

Assessment

This accounting rule, endorsed by the International Accounting Board in London and enunciated in its International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), is also applied overseas. French President Sarkosy stated that the rule is rescinded in France and the recent EESA of 2008 in the United States requires the SEC to decide whether to suspend it as well.

Conclusion

The DOW fell to 8,519 yesterday, the NASDAQ to 1,615 and the S&P to 896; all medical professionals are anxious. And so, are we entering into another great depression? Please vote.

And, subscribe and contribute your own thoughts, experiences, questions, knowledge and comments on this topic for the benefit of all our Medical Executive-Post readers.

Conclusion

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Filed under: Investing, Op-Editorials, Portfolio Management, Voting Polls | Tagged: great depression, Investing, Portfolio Management, wealth management | 2 Comments »

HHS, OIG and DOJ Fight Health Fraud

Posted on October 23, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

New Five Point Strategy Revealed

[By Staff Reporters]

According to the Report on Medicare Compliance, October 20, 2008, the Health and Human Services [HHS] Office of Inspector General [OIG] recently unveiled a five-point strategy for fighting fraud and abuse in anticipation of a new presidential administration.

Five Pillars

The five “pillars” are:

scrutinize who is allowed to bill before enrollment.
establish reasonable and responsive payment methodologies.
help industry adopt practices that promote compliance.
vigilantly monitor claims for payment, and;
respond quickly to detected fraud.

OIG and DOJ

Among other activities, the OIG and Department of Justice [DOJ is using data mining to identify claims problems before they get out of hand.

Assessment

For example, the Office of Evaluation and Inspections [OEIs] issued a 2006 report on aberrant physical therapy billing – physicians were billing for services performed by unlicensed people in the patients’ homes – while an OIG attorney deputized by the Department of Justice [DOJ] is now prosecuting cases based on this violation in the Southern District of Mississippi.

Channel Surfing the ME-P

Conclusion

OUR OTHER PRINT BOOKS AND RELATED INFORMATION SOURCES:

PRACTICES: www.BusinessofMedicalPractice.com
HOSPITALS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781466558731
CLINICS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781439879900
ADVISORS: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org
FINANCE: Financial Planning for Physicians and Advisors
INSURANCE: Risk Management and Insurance Strategies for Physicians and Advisors
Dictionary of Health Economics and Finance
Dictionary of Health Information Technology and Security
Dictionary of Health Insurance and Managed Care

Filed under: Health Law & Policy, Healthcare Finance, Risk Management | Tagged: DOJ, HHS | 7 Comments »

Nobel Prize Winners for 2008 thru 2018

Posted on October 22, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

The ME-P Congratulates New Nobel Laureates

[By Staff Reporters]

Since 1901, the Nobel Prize has been honoring men and women from all corners of the globe for outstanding achievements in physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, economics and for working in peace. The foundations for the prize were laid in 1895 when Alfred Nobel wrote his last will, leaving much of his wealth to the establishment of the Nobel Prize

See: www.NobelPrize.org

The 2008 Winners:

Physiology and Medicine: Harald zur Hausen, Françoise Barré-Sinoussi and Luc Montagnier for discoveries of viruses linked to disease.
Chemistry: Osamu Shimomura, Martin Chalfie and Roger Y. Tsien for developing tools for revealing the workings of the cell.
Peace: Martti Ahtisaari for striving for peace, reconciliation and a resolution to international conflicts.
Physics: Yoichiro Nambu, Makoto Kobayashi and Toshihide Maskawa for discoveries concerning nature’s broken symmetry.
Literature: Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clézio, cross-cultural citizen and writer.
Economics: Paul Krugm for his analyses of international trade and economic geography

Annals of Improbable Research Magazine

A paradoy of the Nobel Prize, the Ig Nobel Prizes are also given each year in early October — around the time the recipients of the genuine Nobel Prizes are announced — for ten achievements that “first make people laugh, and then make them think.”

Here is a list of the 18th Ig Nobel winners, awarded on Thursday October 2, 2008, at Harvard University, by the Annals of Improbable Research [AIR] magazine.

2008 Ig Nobel Winners:

Nutrition: Massimiliano Zampini and Charles Spence for demonstrating that food tastes better when it sounds better.
Cognitive Science: Toshiyuki Nakagaki, Hiroyasu Yamada, Ryo Kobayashi, Atsushi Tero, Akio Ishiguro and Agota Toth for discovering that slime molds can solve puzzles.
Economics: Geoffrey Miller, Joshua Tyber and Brent Jordan for discovering that exotic dancers earn more when at peak fertility.
Physics: Dorian Raymer and Douglas Smith for proving that heaps of string or hair will inevitably tangle.
Chemistry: Sheree Umpierre, Joseph Hill and Deborah Anderson for discovering that Coca-Cola is an effective spermicide, and C.Y. Hong, C.C. Shieh, P. Wu and B.N. Chiang for proving it is not.
Literature: David Sims for his study “You Bastard: A Narrative Exploration of the Experience of Indignation within Organizations.”
Peace: The Swiss Federal Ethics Committee on Non-Human Biotechnology and the citizens of Switzerland for adopting the legal principle that plants’ have dignity.
Archaeology: Astolfo Gomes de Mello Araujo and Jose Carlos Marcelino for showing armadillos can scramble the contents of an archaeological dig.
Biology: Marie-Christine Cadiergues, Christel Joubert and Michel Franc for discovering that fleas that live on a dog can jump higher than fleas that live on a cat.
Medicine: Dan Ariely for demonstrating that expensive fake medicine is more effective than cheap fake medicine.

Assessment

Do we really need Nobel, and Ig Nobel, prize winners each year?

Conclusion

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Medical Practice Opportunity

Posted on October 22, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Established Solo Orthopedic Surgical Practice

Beautiful … Atlanta Georgia!

Partnership / Ownership Opportunity

Dr. John Kelley (404.309.3559)

[The Way Practice & Life Should Be]

Note: Please mention that you found this listing on the Executive Post job board in your cover letter.

Link: practice-opportunity-beautiful-atlanta-georgia2

Filed under: Career Development | Tagged: Classified Advertising | Leave a comment »

Patient Focused Health Care 2.0

Posted on October 21, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

An Emerging Competitive Trend

Dr. David Edward Marcinko; MBA, CMP™

Publisher-in-Chief

One emerging competitive trend in medicine today is patient-focused healthcare. This concept focuses on patient needs and attempts to humanize patient care.

A Multi-Dimensional Approach

According to Professor Gregory O. Ginn; PhD, MBA, CPA of the UNLV department of healthcare administration, patient focused health care [PFHC] 2.0 is protean and multidimensional, and therefore incorporates the following:

patient education;
active participation of the patient;
involvement of the family;
nutrition; art; and music, etc.

Benefits

These issues are thought to improve patient outcomes. Furthermore, some think that patients will benefit from learning how to cope with healthcare processes before they enter into those processes and that this knowledge will result in better outcomes.

Example:

A case model example by Professor Ginn, as seen in www.HealthcareFinancials.com, would be classes to prepare couples for childbirth.

“These classes teach prospective parents the different stages of labor and strategies for dealing with the challenges associated with each stage. They cover options for pain management such as breathing and relaxation techniques and/or analgesics. The classes also provide education about clinical options such as induced labor and caesarian sections, and they cover practical issues such as what to wear and what kind of car seat to buy to transport the newborn home.”

Other Trends

According to the October 2008 issue of Managed Healthcare Executive, other emerging competitive healthcare trends include:

Consumer engage care choices,
Payment reform,
Industry quality and economic benchmarks,
Medical home models,
Evidence-based medicine,
Disease Management, and
Comparative effectiveness studies.

Assessment

PFHC 2.0, medical and health education is enormously beneficial in reducing stress and improving the decision-making ability of patients who are involved in healthcare processes. Related disease management [DM] examples include: asthma, diabetes, hypertension, CHF, COPD, CAD, obesity, arthritis and a host of others.

Conclusion

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Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Healthcare Organizations: www.HealthcareFinancials.com

Health Administration Terms: www.HealthDictionarySeries.com

Physician Advisors: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com

Filed under: Career Development, Managed Care, Op-Editorials, Practice Management, Research & Development | Tagged: healthcare 2.0 | 1 Comment »

Charity Care versus Managed Care

Posted on October 19, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Physician Participation in Managed Care Levels

By Staff Writers

According to Robert James Cimasi of Health Capital Consultants LLC, in St. Louis, Researchers at the Center for Analyzing Health System Change [CAHSC] completed a study several years ago on the effect of competition and managed care on charity medical care, provided by physicians, that further illustrates the effects of dysfunctional competition in healthcare.

The Study

The study was based on data on the amount of charity care provided by over 10,000 physicians between 1996 and 1997.

Definition of Charity Care

According to www.HealthDictionarySeries.com and others, charity medical care was defined as healthcare provided without cost or at a reduced cost because of the inability of the patient to pay for the cost of the service.

Inverse Relationship Findings

An inverse relationship was found between the amount of physician revenue derived from managed care and the amount of time spent providing charity care. Specifically, physicians who received 85% or more of their income from managed care provided only half of the hours of charity care provided by physicians who received less than 85% of their revenue from managed care contracts.

Also, physicians practicing in areas with high managed care penetration provided less charity care. Further, a relationship was observed between increased practice size and diminished time spent on charity care.

Assessment

The reporter of the study, a contributor to www.HealthcareFinancials.com and others, attributed these practice differences to increasing financial pressures faced by physicians because of increased competition and their reduced ability to use “cost shifting” to shift excess charges from paying patients to cover costs for those unable to pay. Under the scenario they describe, increasing numbers of the uninsured and the prevalence of managed care plans will continue to shift costs back to the government and the public for indigent care unless systemic changes are made to incorporate provisions for charity care into an increasingly for-profit healthcare system.

References: Cunningham, P. J., et al. “Managed care and physicians’ provision of charity care.” JAMA 281 (1999): 1087.

Conclusion

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FINANCE: Financial Planning for Physicians and Advisors
INSURANCE: Risk Management and Insurance Strategies for Physicians and Advisors
Dictionary of Health Economics and Finance
Dictionary of Health Information Technology and Security
Dictionary of Health Insurance and Managed Care

Filed under: Career Development, Managed Care, Practice Management, Surveys and Voting | Tagged: charity care, pro bono care | 1 Comment »

About OmniMedicalSearch.com

Posted on October 18, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

New Search Engine for Medical Images

By Jason Morrow

(918) 286-6463
jason@OmniMedicalSearch.com

PRESS RELEASE:

OmniMedicalSearch.com today announced it has released a medical image search engine designed for patients, students, caregivers, and medical professionals.

“Nothing else brings clarity to a subject like images that illustrate the information people research,” OmniMedicalSearch.com founder Jason Morrow said. “Users from around the world will find this search tool incredibly useful.”

Alloyfish Ally

Developed by their long-time support ally, Alloyfish, the image search engine delivers relevant results with an index of 150,000 medical images from 125 different sources that were hand selected. A wide range of images from authoritative medical websites were sought out for the index. “We are going to grow that index and webmasters are invited to submit their medical website for consideration via our Suggest Images link,” Morrow added.

New Search Tool

This new search tool offered by OmniMedicalSearch joins a small handful of search engines focused on medical images. “Besides stock medical images being marketed, there hasn’t been a lot of development in this area,” Morrow said. “However, I think the need and demand has always been there and OMS is committed to providing our users valuable search tools they will come back to use again and again.”

Registration

There are no fees, registration or requirements of any kind to use OmniMedicalSearch.com

Assessment

OmniMedicalSearch.com was founded in 2004 and centered on the premise of providing authoritative search results from reliable health and medical resources. It has since grown from a medical metasearch engine into a full search engine made possible through partnerships with Healthline.com, Google Custom Search, and their own proprietary search technology. OmniMedicalSearch offers six major search options which include: Medical Web, Health News, Forums, MedPro (medical professional level resources), health and medical Shopping Search, and now, a search engine for medical images. OmniMedicalSearch also offers a local directory for clinics and doctors, a reference desk of hard to find resource links, and a growing medical encyclopedia.

Conclusion

User comments, sent to the Executive-Post, are appreciated.

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Filed under: Breaking News, Information Technology, Sponsors | Tagged: omnimedicalsearch.com | Leave a comment »

Vote Presidential Debates [An E-P Poll]

Posted on October 16, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Healthcare Politics 2008

[Executive-Post readers decide]

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Filed under: Health Law & Policy, Op-Editorials, Voting Polls | Tagged: debate, presidential debates | 1 Comment »

Capital Formation Considerations for Hospitals

Posted on October 16, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Understanding Risks and Rewards

By Calvin W. Weise CPA; and Staff Writers

All hospital and healthcare-entity capital investments create risk.

Definition of Risk

According to www.HealthDictionarySeries.com, risk is the uncertainty of future events. When hospitals make capital investments, they commit to costs that affect future periods. Those costs are known and relatively fixed. What are unknown are the benefits to be realized by those capital investments.

Capital Investment Risks

For capital investments, risk is the certainty of future costs coupled with the uncertainty of future benefits. In some cases, while the future benefits are uncertain, there is a high degree of certainty that the benefits will exceed the costs. In these cases; risk can be very low. Risk may be better defined as the degree to which the uncertainty of unknown benefits will exceed the known and committed costs.

Burdens and Benefits of Ownership

When capital assets are purchased, both the burdens and the benefits of ownership are transferred to the owner. The burdens are primarily the costs associated with acquisition and installation.

The benefits are primarily the revenues generated by operating the capital assets. Risk of ownership is created to the degree that the benefits are uncertain.

Balancing Act

Hospital managers need to be skilled at balancing and putting hospital assets at risk. Without clear knowledge and understanding of the benefits and the burdens, hospitals can quickly find themselves at unacceptably high levels of risk. Risk must be continually assessed and evaluated in order to successfully put hospital assets at risk. Hospitals and related entities require many varied capital investments; their capital investments represent a risk portfolio. An effective combination of risky assets can often create risk that is less than the sum of the risk of each asset.

Modern Portfolio Theory

Of course, financial managers have know this for years as a basic principle of Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT), first introduced by Harry Markowitz, PhD, with the paper ”Portfolio Selection,” which appeared in the 1952 Journal of Finance. Thirty-eight years later, he shared a Nobel Prize with Merton Miller, PhD, and William Sharpe, PhD, for what has become a broad theory for securities asset selection; and hospital assets may be viewed as little different.

Historical Review

Back in the day, prior to Markowitz’s work, investors focused on assessing the rewards and risks of individual securities in constructing a portfolio. Standard advice was to identify those that offered the best opportunities for gain, with the least risk, and then construct a portfolio from them.

Example:

Following this advice, a hospital administrator might conclude that a positron emission tomography (PET) scanning machine offered good risk-reward characteristics, and pursue a strategy to compile a network of them in a given geographic area.

Intuitively, this would be foolish. Markowitz formalized this intuition. Detailing the mathematics of diversity, he proposed that investors focus on selecting portfolios based on their overall risk-reward characteristics instead of merely compiling portfolios of securities, or capital assets that each individually has attractive risk-reward characteristics.

In a nutshell, just as physician-investors should select portfolios not individual securities, so hospital administrators should select a wide spectrum of radiology services, not merely machines.

Other Strategies

According to Dr. David Edward Marcinko, MBA, CMP™, the Publisher-in-Chief of this portal, some other risk and cost control strategies that will affect hospital ROI include:

CDHC and medical HSAs,
Universal health insurance,
eMRs and HIT investments,
P4P, and various
Medical quality improvement initiatives.

Assessment

Savvy hospital managers, financial advisors, physician and nurse executives, accountants and healthcare administrators should mitigate ownership risk by constructing their portfolio of risky assets in a manner that lowers overall risk www.HealthcareFinancials.com

Conclusion

Please subscribe and contribute your own thoughts, experiences, questions, knowledge and comments on this topic for the benefit of all our Executive-Post readers.

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Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Healthcare Organizations: www.HealthcareFinancials.com

Health Administration Terms: www.HealthDictionarySeries.com

Physician Advisors: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com

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Filed under: Financial Planning, Investing, Practice Management | Tagged: capital formation | 1 Comment »

Medicare and/or Medigap Acceptance by Doctors

Posted on October 15, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

More on the Balance-Billing Conundrum

By Dr. David Edward Marcinko; MBA, CMP™

[Publisher-in-Chief]

In light of the large number of elderly people, hospitals and doctors often accept Medicare and Medigap coverage without charging above the fees specified by these health insurance programs [ie., do not “balance-bill”].

Other doctors however, do not accept the specified Medicare fees and charge above those fees on a “balance billing” basis (i.e., charging more for their services than the Medicare or Medigap reimbursement schedules provided).

Balance Billing Limitations

Providers are not permitted to “balance bill” more than 15 percent above the schedule amounts. In many circumstances, “balance billing” is limited even further or forbidden outright on a contractual basis with private plans, insurance companies, HMOs, MCOs, etc.

Physician Refusal

Originally, it was projected that “balance billing,” or the refusal of leading medical specialist physicians to accept Medicare for payment, would increase as Medicare fees were further reduced. This apparently did not happen during the last several years.

However, as many managed care plans and HMOs are now reimbursing physicians and other providers at fee schedules considerably below Medicare rates in 2008, this refusal may finally be emerging in some cases. But, we trust it will not be dishonestly sought through inappropriate balance billing.

Assessment

A number of organizations, including the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), assist seniors with submitting medical bills. After a major health setback, however, seniors may want to rely on health insurance claim specialists to have all their medical expenses properly and speedily processed for reimbursement.

Conclusion

In many cases, traditional Medicare (but not Medicare+ programs) is now the payer of choice for many physicians. And so dear colleagues; either sign-on or refuse, but play by the rules. User opinions and comments, sent to the Medical Executive-Post, are appreciated.

Link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/HealthcareFinancialsthePostForcxos

Related Information Sources:

Practice Management: http://www.springerpub.com/prod.aspx?prod_id=23759

Physician Financial Planning: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/0763745790

Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Healthcare Organizations: www.HealthcareFinancials.com

Health Administration Terms: www.HealthDictionarySeries.com

Physician Advisors: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com

Filed under: Health Law & Policy, Healthcare Finance, Practice Management | Tagged: medigap | 1 Comment »

Deeper Financial Management Insight

Posted on October 13, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Our Executive-Post Growth

Ann Miller; RN, MHA

Wow! That’s the best word to describe our recent growth!

Outcomes

The September issue of the Executive-Post was the most successful to-date. Unfortunately, this was – no doubt – in-part to the recent stock market collapse and lack of confidence in the domestic credit and industrial-complex.

Economic Commentary

Read the opinion of Schwab’s Liz Ann Sonders, on the US economy, here:

Link: liz-ann-sonders

And, going forward, we trust our deeper-insight into health economics and financial management will carry the day even more.

Data

Almost 10,000 readers and subscribers visited or signed-in to our complimentary blogs and communications forum. We now reach folks nationally; working in healthcare finance, accounting pharma/biotech, consulting, government, academia, medical management, business and physician recruiting.

Assessment

Of course, our 2 volume, 1,200 pages, professional quarterly and peer-reviewed premium-print subscription journal-guide is also growing in the hospital and institutional markets. www.HealthcareFinancials.com Many thanks to all supporters; both online and in-print.

Conclusion

And so, if you want to reach your target audience of healthcare executives, physicians, administrators and medical leaders; with information on your company, product, service, or job opening, just contact Ann: MarcinkoAdvisors@msn.com

Plus, don’t forget to book mark us: www.HealthcareFinancials.wordpress.com

Related Information Sources:

Practice Management: http://www.springerpub.com/prod.aspx?prod_id=23759

Physician Financial Planning: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/0763745790

Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Healthcare Organizations: www.HealthcareFinancials.com

Health Administration Terms: www.HealthDictionarySeries.com

Physician Advisors: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com

Link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/HealthcareFinancialsthePostForcxos

Filed under: Experts Invited, Marketing & Advertising, Media Mentions and PR, Op-Editorials | 1 Comment »

Financial Industry Links

Posted on October 13, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

An Executive-Post List

Staff Writers

Related Information Sources:

Practice Management: http://www.springerpub.com/prod.aspx?prod_id=23759

Physician Financial Planning: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/0763745790

Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Healthcare Organizations: www.HealthcareFinancials.com

Health Administration Terms: www.HealthDictionarySeries.com

Physician Advisors: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com

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Filed under: Financial Planning, Insurance Matters, Investing | Leave a comment »

Risk Management and Insurance Strategies for Physicians and Advisors

Posted on October 12, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Foreword and Book Review

By Lloyd M. Krieger; MD, MBA

Insurance is an important part of all our lives.

This is especially true for physicians. I currently have no fewer than 10 separate insurance policies associated with my plastic surgery practice. I understand very little about the policies other than that somebody at some point told me I needed each and every one of them, and each made sense when I bought it.

For example, am I over-insured and thus wasting money? Am I under-insured and thus at risk for a liability disaster? I never really had the means of answering these questions, until now www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

The Book

Risk Management and Insurance Strategies for Physicians and Advisors is an essential textbook because it explains to physicians and insurance professionals the background, theory, and practicalities of medical risk management and insurance planning. The insurance haze is lifted by-dual degreed editor, and Certified Medical Planner™ Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA, and his team of contributing authors www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Goaded Physicians

Doctors, like most people, tend to experience losses more intensely than gains, and evaluate risks in isolation. So it’s no surprise that goaded physicians might prefer vehicles like the guaranteed minimum death benefit of variable annuities, or the assurance that comes with disability or long term care insurance, or traditional cash value life insurance policies, despite their decidedly higher costs and commissions.

Denial Mode

Similarly, physicians may enter denial mode and eschew the potential business impact of HIPAA and Balanced Budget Act risks; self referral risks; OSHA, DEA, EPA, OCR, P&C or managed care risks; managed care contract capitulation risks; employee, expert witness, peer review and on-call risks; and even educational debt load risks, among so many others.

Insurance Professionals

For real insurance professionals on the other hand, this is an exciting time to be practicing medical risk management, because there is much research and creative enlightenment occurring in academic and practitioner communities.

But, one must be willing to abandon ancient thoughts and remain open to new ideas that identify and provide solutions to the contemporaneous problems of physicians.

As an example of this epiphany, the economist Christian Gollier revisits the raison detra’ of insurance, by asking: should one even buy insurance since the industry itself is so skilled at exploiting human foibles?

Although this emerging work is descriptive, it is not yet time tested since some of it aspires to be normative, as developing modern models of savings and consumption hint that insurance may deserve a smaller role in personal risk management than previously believed.

Assessment

Risk Management and Insurance Strategies for Physicians and Advisors fulfill its promise as a peerless tool for physicians wanting to make good decisions about the risks they face. It is also ideal for financial planners, insurance agents and healthcare business advisors wishing to re-educate and help doctors by adding lasting value to their client relationships. With time at a premium for all, and so much information packed into one well-organized resource, this book should be on the desk of every physician, or financial advisor serving the healthcare space. Simply stated, if you read this compelling text with a mind focused on the future, the time you spend will be amply rewarded www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Conclusion

Your thoughts and comments on this best seller are appreciated.

Lloyd M. Krieger; MD, MBA

Rodeo Drive Plastic Surgery

The Rodeo Collection

421 North Rodeo Drive

Beverly Hills, CA 90210

Related Information Sources:

Practice Management: http://www.springerpub.com/prod.aspx?prod_id=23759

Physician Financial Planning: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/0763745790

Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Physician Advisors: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org

Speaker:If you need a moderator or speaker for an upcoming event, Dr. David E. Marcinko; MBA – Publisher-in-Chief of the Medical Executive-Post – is available for seminar or speaking engagements. Contact: MarcinkoAdvisors@msn.com

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Filed under: Book Reviews, Insurance Matters, Risk Management | Tagged: Risk Management | 2 Comments »

About Waterfront Media

Posted on October 11, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Revolution Health plus Everyday Health

Staff Writers

According to the New York Times on October 3^rd, Revolution Health Network just merged with Everyday Health Network; a publisher that owns several health Web sites.

A Threat to WebMD

In a deal that threatens WebMD’s dominance in the online health care space, the new $300 million valuation would give the combined companies enough US traffic to compete with WebMD; now considered the market leader in the online health category

Waterfront Media

The new company will operate under the name Waterfront Media, which runs several sites called the Everyday Health Network, while the Revolution Health Web sites will be absorbed into that network

Assessment

WebMD has also been expanding, as it recently announced that it would acquire the site QualityHealth.com for $50 million and an additional $25 million based on performance.

Conclusion

Please subscribe and contribute your own thoughts and comments on this topic for the benefit of all our Executive-Post readers.

orders@stpub.com

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Copyright 2008 iMBA Inc: All rights reserved, USA, unless otherwise noted. Use is restricted to Executive-Post subscribers only. No redistribution is allowed. To avoid violation of iMBA Inc copyright restrictions and redistribution policy, please register for your own free Executive-Post membership. Detailed information and registration links are available at:

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Filed under: Breaking News, Information Technology, Uncategorized | Tagged: Waterfront Media | Leave a comment »

Understanding Sector Funds

Posted on October 10, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Non-Diversified Risk Funds

[Staff Writers]

Although less than 10% of the total number of mutual funds are considered true sector funds, year after year, 40% or more of the top-performing funds have been sector funds. For physician-investors sold on a buy-and-hold strategy, sector funds may not be their cup of tea. Yet, sector funds offer an opportunity to outperform the market indices, possibly even substantially.

Definition

According to the financial and economic Dictionaries of DE Marcinko, HR Hetico and elsewhere, a sector fund may be defined as:

An open-ended mutual fund that seeks to limit its investments to a specific industry or economic sector, for example; technology, real estate or health care. These funds may involve a greater degree of risk than an investment in other mutual funds with greater diversification.

Typically sector funds are more volatile than the majority of growth funds. This volatility springs from: (1) the fact that the majority of stocks in a particular sector fund move together, thereby magnifying the fund’s movement; (2) the focus of the sector fund manager only on stocks in that sector, enabling him or her to target high potential stocks; and (3) the rotation of “in” and “out” sectors at particular times.

What’s a Doctor to Do?

A physician-investor in sector funds needs a strategy that will target sectors on the upswing and signal when to move out of declining funds.

When selecting sector funds, some like Editor-in-Chief Dr. David Edward Marcinko; MBA CMP™ recommend building a list of funds that are manageable, full of choices in all types of markets, diversified (three to four funds for an aggressive portfolio or 10–12 for a less aggressive approach); and liquid. Newer ETF sectors may also be used.

Balancing Act

Also, develop a healthy balance—not a “hit-or-miss” approach. Marcinko and others suggest using the “relative or weighted strength” approach for sector selection by computing the percent change in the price of funds over a certain number of days and then ranking them for short-term, intermediate, and long-term periods.

With respect to determining the proper timing for buying or selling, some suggest the use of an individual fund timing system, such as comparing the current Net Asset Value [NAV] of the sector against a moving average for 60 or 90 days or combining both short- and long-term moving averages.

Signaling

In creating buy-and-sell signals:

Keep it simple and manageable.
Do not look for perfection.
Practice patience.
Cut losses and let profits run.
Stick with your relative strength.
Buy/sell signals consistently.

Assessment

Most of all, be prepared to invest the time necessary to learn sector funds, especially after the 679 point market collapse today; courage!

Conclusion

OUR OTHER PRINT BOOKS AND RELATED INFORMATION SOURCES:

PRACTICES: www.BusinessofMedicalPractice.com
HOSPITALS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781466558731
CLINICS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781439879900
ADVISORS: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org
FINANCE: Financial Planning for Physicians and Advisors
INSURANCE: Risk Management and Insurance Strategies for Physicians and Advisors
Dictionary of Health Economics and Finance
Dictionary of Health Information Technology and Security
Dictionary of Health Insurance and Managed Care

***

Filed under: Financial Planning, Investing | Tagged: Sector funds | 1 Comment »

Hospital Revenue Cycle Management

Posted on October 10, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Augmentation thru Technology Adoption

[By Karen White PhD, and Staff ]

Several major hospitals, or healthcare systems, have filed bankruptcy this fiscal quarter. These include a two-hospital system in Honolulu; one in Pontiac, MI; Trinity Hospital in Erin, Tennessee; Century City Doctors Hospital in Beverly Hills, and four hospital system Hospital Partners of America, in Charlotte.

And so, since cash flow is the life blood of any healthcare revenue cycle management initiative, it is important for physician executives and healthcare administrators to appreciate the impact of modern health information technology systems on this vital function.

Functional Area Targets

Technology plays a key role across all health entity revenue cycle operations. By functional area, the following are key targets:

Patient Access

This is the front-end of a hospital’s revenue cycle. It is made up of all the pre-registration, registration, scheduling, pre-admitting, and admitting functions. Enhancing revenue cycles in this area requires the following:

a call center environment with auto dialing, faxing, and Internet connectivity to quickly ensure and verify all pertinent information that is key to correct and timely payment for services rendered;
Master Person Index software to eliminate duplicate medical record numbers and assist with achieving of a unique identifier for all patients;
registration and admission software that scripts the admission process to assist employees in obtaining required elements and check that insurer-required referrals are documented;
denial management definition, including focus on how to obtain all the correct patient information up front while the patient is in-house; and
imaging of data up front.

Health Information Management

This is the middle process of a hospital revenue cycle and is often still referred to as “Medical Records.” This area is made up of chart processing, coding, transcription, correspondence, and chart completion. Better control of revenue cycles requires the following recommended technology:

chart-tracking software to eliminate manual outguides and decrease the number of lost charts;
encoding and grouping software to improve coding accuracy and speed and improve reimbursement;
auto printing and faxing capabilities;
Internet connectivity for release of information and related document management tasks; and,
electronic management of documents.

Patient Financial Services

This is the back-end process of a hospital revenue cycle. The operations include all business office functions of billing, collecting, and follow-up post-patient care. Recommended technology to optimize these functions includes the following:

automated biller queues to improve and track the productivity of each biller;
claims scrubbing software to ensure that necessary data is included on the claim prior to submission; and
electronic claims and reimbursement processing to expedite the payment cycle.

Automation

Automation can lead to decreased paperwork, process standardization, increased productivity, and cleaner claims. In 2004, Hospital & Health Network’s “Most Wired Survey” found that the 100 most wired hospitals — including three out of the four AA+ hospitals in the country — had better control of expenses, higher productivity, and efficient utilization management. Today, these top hospitals tend to be larger and have better access to capital in these times of credit tightening.

Assessment

The positive return on investment in technology increases allocation of funding to technology. This correlation is important because it begins to link the investment in information technology with positive financial returns in all areas of a hospital’s business, including the revenue cycle.

MORE: Rev Cycle Mgmnt

Channel Surfing the ME-P

Conclusion

OUR OTHER PRINT BOOKS AND RELATED INFORMATION SOURCES:

PRACTICES: www.BusinessofMedicalPractice.com
HOSPITALS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781466558731
CLINICS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781439879900
ADVISORS: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org
FINANCE: Financial Planning for Physicians and Advisors
INSURANCE: Risk Management and Insurance Strategies for Physicians and Advisors
Dictionary of Health Economics and Finance
Dictionary of Health Information Technology and Security
Dictionary of Health Insurance and Managed Care

Filed under: Accounting, Healthcare Finance, iMBA, Inc., Information Technology, Managed Care | Tagged: cash flow, david marcinko, Healthcare Finance, hope hetico, Hospital Revenue Cycle Management, hospitals, karen white, profit augmentation, revenue cycle management | 3 Comments »

Q & A Interview on Medical Practice Valuations

Posted on October 9, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

An Interview with Dr. David Edward Marcinko; MBA, CMP™
[By Karen Caffarini: Reporter: American Medical News]

Hot Topic

Medical Practice Appraisals and Valuations

[Unedited Question-Answer Interview]

Excerpt

“The allocated purchase price must be reported to the IRS. Goodwill is considered a capital asset. Therefore, the seller will want to allocate as much of the selling price to goodwill as possible. The buyer will want to allocate more of the selling price to non-goodwill assets because goodwill amortization is not tax deductible while depreciation and amortization of other assets is tax deductible. This “negotiated” goodwill will stand as the IRS value.“

Assessment

Thus, the IRS has effectively forced the controversial goodwill determination on practice buyers and sellers. This makes it even more imperative for buyers to specifically identify any hidden practice assets they are acquiring at the time of purchase; or for purchasers to discover them.

Humor

Q: What asset might have less value than a toxic credit-debt-obligation [CDO]?

A: A private medical practice

Conclusion

Your comments are appreciated; especially if you have bought, sold or merged a medical practice recently.

Read it here: ama-news-reply

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Filed under: Career Development, Interviews, Op-Editorials, Practice Management, Research & Development | Tagged: appraisals, valuations | 3 Comments »

Ayn Rand on Domestic Health Care

Posted on October 9, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Right or Privilege? [The Beat Goes On!]

By Staff Writers

After watching the presidential debate last night, we were struck with two divergent opinions, on the status of domestic healthcare, from the candidates.

Barack H. Obama

Obama says healthcare is an American “right”.

John S. McCain

McCain opines that healthcare is a personal “responsibility”

Ayn Rand

The objectivist philosopher Ayn Rand opines thusly.

Link: ayn-rand-healthcare

Assessment

And so, what do you think about this contentious topic?

Conclusion:

Please subscribe and contribute your own thoughts, experiences, questions, knowledge and comments on this topic for the benefit of all our Executive-Post readers.

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Filed under: Ethics, Health Economics, Health Law & Policy, Op-Editorials | Tagged: Ayn Rand | 5 Comments »

Long Term Care Insurance [LTCI] Meltdown

Posted on October 8, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Only the Beginning

By Dr. David Edward Marcinko; MBA, CMP™

[Publisher-in-Chief]

As a Certified Financial Planner™ and licensed insurance agent for more than a decade, I am aware of how much the industry is promoting long term care insurance [LTCI] as one solution to the aging baby boomer crisis. And, there is no doubt that a legion of agents and “advisors”, along with readers of the Medical Executive-Post, are aware of the fat commissions these products produce. Of course, I have been criticized for opinions against this product for some time now, along with a philosophy of personal accountability.

Only the Beginning

And so, it is no surprise that Penn Treaty American Corporation [PTAC], a long-term-care insurance company, recently said it would stop issuing new LTCI policies. PTAC said its primary insurance subsidiary will be considered insolvent unless it can raise at least $100 million by January 1st, and that it will accept letters of interest from prospective investors and purchasers through mid-October, while deciding on a course by the end of the year.

Assessment

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer on October 4, the company needs about $100 million to $120 million to cover reinsurance agreements it intentionally dropped because the cost to keep them was more than the value of the agreements.

Conclusion

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Filed under: Health Insurance, Insurance Matters, Retirement and Benefits | Tagged: LTCI | 15 Comments »

Politics of Healthcare

Posted on October 8, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Biden versus Palin

[By Staff Reporters]

Enter the PFCD

The “Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease” recently entered the political arena when it expressed disappointment at last week’s vice-presidential debate; saying Senator Joe Biden and Governor Sarah Palin did not address one of the nation’s most pressing economic issues; the rising cost of healthcare.

The Next Financial Casualty?

Earlier this week, former US Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson held a conference call to discuss why healthcare could be what they called “the next financial casualty” in the current economic crisis.

Assessment

The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease is a national coalition of patients, providers, and community organizations dedicated to raising awareness of the impact of chronic disease in the US. So, is the PFCD correct on this point; did the VP candidates abrogate this issue? Your comments and thoughts are appreciated.

Conclusion

OUR OTHER PRINT BOOKS AND RELATED INFORMATION SOURCES:

PRACTICES: www.BusinessofMedicalPractice.com
HOSPITALS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781466558731
CLINICS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781439879900
ADVISORS: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org
FINANCE: Financial Planning for Physicians and Advisors
INSURANCE: Risk Management and Insurance Strategies for Physicians and Advisors
Dictionary of Health Economics and Finance
Dictionary of Health Information Technology and Security
Dictionary of Health Insurance and Managed Care

***

Filed under: Op-Editorials, Uncategorized, Voting Polls | 3 Comments »

“Mea-Culpa” from Doctors

Posted on October 8, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Grievous Physician Mistakes

Staff Reporters

Welcome to this op-ed piece where you send us your most grievous investing, medical practice management and/or financial planning mistakes.

As Wall Street unwinds, the problems with Bear-Stearns, Lehman Brothers, USB, Wachovia, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, WaMu, Merrill Lynch, SunTrust and AIG, etc, demand that we consider our past transgressions; along with a significant mea-culpa; not to repeat same.

And so, please send us your heart-felt errors so that others may learn from them. Feel free to remain anonymous, if you like. There is no limit to the number of times you can post.

Assessment

Remember, there are two types of mistakes:

Medical practice management, and
Investing and financial planning mistakes.

Conclusion

Your comments are appreciated. We will begin with a few examples, cited below to get started.

Practice Management: http://www.springerpub.com/prod.aspx?prod_id=23759

Physician Financial Planning: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/0763745790

Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Healthcare Organizations: www.HealthcareFinancials.com

Health Administration Terms: www.HealthDictionarySeries.com

Physician Advisors: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com

Link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/HealthcareFinancialsthePostForcxos

Referrals: Thank you in advance for your electronic referrals to the Executive-Post

Filed under: Financial Planning, Investing, Op-Editorials, Practice Management, Risk Management | 4 Comments »

“Reasonably-Preventable” Conditions

Posted on October 6, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

More Payment Reductions from Medicare

[Staff Reporters]

Medicare has implemented its new policy of halting payment to hospitals for the added cost of treating patients who are injured in their care.

Reasonably Preventable

According to the New York Times on October 1, Medicare has put 10 “reasonably preventable” conditions on its initial list, including:

patients receiving incompatible blood transfusions.
developing infections after certain surgeries.
undergoing a second operation to retrieve a sponge left behind from the first.
developing serious bed sores.
developing urinary tract infections caused by catheters, and;
suffering injuries from falls.

Congressional Mandates

The Congressionally mandated Medicare measure is not projected to yield large savings – $21 million a year, compared with $110 billion spent on inpatient care in 2007. But, officials believe that the regulations could apply to several hundred thousand hospital stays of the 12.5 million covered annually by Medicare, while the policy will also prevent hospitals from billing patients directly for costs generated by medical errors.

Assessment

Over the last year, four states Medicaid programs have announced that they will not pay for as many as 28 “never events,” joining some of the country’s largest commercial insurers, including WellPoint, Aetna, Cigna and Blue Cross Blue Shield plans in seven states.

Channel Surfing the ME-P

Conclusion

OUR OTHER PRINT BOOKS AND RELATED INFORMATION SOURCES:

PRACTICES: www.BusinessofMedicalPractice.com
HOSPITALS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781466558731
CLINICS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781439879900
ADVISORS: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org
FINANCE: Financial Planning for Physicians and Advisors
INSURANCE: Risk Management and Insurance Strategies for Physicians and Advisors
Dictionary of Health Economics and Finance
Dictionary of Health Information Technology and Security
Dictionary of Health Insurance and Managed Care

Filed under: Breaking News, Health Economics, Healthcare Finance, Quality Initiatives | 10 Comments »

Financial Planning for Physicians and Advisors Textbook

Posted on October 6, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Foreword and Book Review

[By Frank A. Cappiello; MBA]

Financial Planning for Physicians and Advisors is essentially a “how-to book” on finance, financial planning and related topics for healthcare providers.

Fortunately for patients, medicine requires a high degree of professional training, both in terms of science and technology. Unfortunately for providers, it affords little time for acquiring medical practice management skills, or learning about the financial aspects of business or investment planning.

An Unusual Book

More to the point, this is an unusual textbook on financial planning for two reasons.

First, it is a detailed guide for physician’s seeking the complex road to success and profit in the confusing healthcare industrial complex. Rarely does one see such clarity of presentation, without the usual jargon that often discourages those trying to learn such a foreign and forbidding subject, as finance.

Second, the subject matter is focused for medical providers who work in one of the fastest growing industries in the United States. The contributors hope that by integrating both disciplines of finance and medical management, they will help foster affordable and profitable healthcare for our nation, which is so entrepreneurial, yet aging.

A Wall Street Career

In my thirty-five years on Wall Street, I have observed that physicians are particularly disadvantaged when it comes to anything regarding finance. Most medical professionals have enough on their mind practicing their specialty and keeping up with healthcare technology and practice trends, that planning for their financial future is often forgotten.

Financial planning and good investment practices require a solid background of how companies work in the “real world”, and an awareness of how they function within the economy. These economic essentials are vital to understanding business, as principles like budgeting, risk management, cash flow analysis, fiscal benchmarking and rudimentary accounting are presented in this book.

Furthermore, the necessity of keeping up with state and federal insurance legislation, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act and other complex managed care contracting issues, places a continual burden on the individual practitioner, group or medical network seeking to stay abreast of current developments.

A Personal Knowledge Endeavor

But, the text focuses on financial planning and how the healthcare professional can increase personal knowledge and skills in this area.

The coverage is both broad and yet detailed, ranging from basic macroeconomic factors that affect our national economy, such as the Gross Domestic Product (a single figure that summarize the business activity of the US), to the more mundane activities of maintaining cash flow, tax reduction strategies, home mortgages and even correcting credit card reporting errors.

Sophisticated Topics

More sophisticated topics include: debt and equity investment vehicles, derivatives, mutual fund and hedge fund investing, portfolio management and risk analysis, and the new laws on tax, retirement and estate planning. The book rightly concludes with practice succession planning for doctors, and begins with a chapter on the psychological meaning of money itself.

Assessment

It seems to me that all those in healthcare are well-served by reading this book with its format and step-by-step setup process for financial success, in terms of starting and ultimately surviving in a complicated business full of pitfalls and misinformation. Most useful will be the extremely detailed table of contents that allows the user to quickly pinpoint an area of interest, and get started answering a problem.

Simply put, my recommendation is to read: Financial Planning for Physicians and Advisors, and “reap”.

Note:

Frank A. Cappiello; MBA
President, McCullough, Andrews & Cappiello, Inc
10751 Falls Road Suite 250
Lutherville, MD 21093
Distinguished Visiting Professor of Finance
Loyola College, Maryland

Former Guest Panelist; Wall $treet Week with Louis Rukeyser TV

Conclusion

OUR OTHER PRINT BOOKS AND RELATED INFORMATION SOURCES:

PRACTICES: www.BusinessofMedicalPractice.com
HOSPITALS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781466558731
CLINICS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781439879900
ADVISORS: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org
FINANCE: Financial Planning for Physicians and Advisors
INSURANCE: Risk Management and Insurance Strategies for Physicians and Advisors
Dictionary of Health Economics and Finance
Dictionary of Health Information Technology and Security
Dictionary of Health Insurance and Managed Care

Filed under: Book Reviews, Financial Planning | Tagged: Financial Planning | 1 Comment »

MD Seeking an Advisor

Posted on October 6, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Desperate Doctor Seeking Advice and/or Financial Advisor

Hi Ann Miller,

I have contacted you thru the Executive-Post before regarding financial advisement for myself and you have been helpful.

Currently, like many people, I am having tremendous financial problems. I am experiencing a negative personal cash flow and have had to increase my credit card debt to keep ahead of my obligations. I have also maximized my home equity line of credit.

I was wondering if you know of any way that I can obtain capital to help me get over this rough financial time that I am having. I have not had much success with my local bank or credit union.

All comments are appreciated, and I am willing to work with a professional financial advisor, as needed.

Thanks again for your help; and voice.

Anonymous, MD
Los Angeles, CA

Filed under: "Ask-an-Advisor", Financial Planning | 1 Comment »

Hospital Acquired Conditions

Posted on October 5, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Survey from Aon Insurance Corporation

Staff Reporters

According to a new analysis by insurance giant Aon Corporation, hospital-acquired conditions accounted for 12.2 percent of total legal-liability costs incurred by health care facilities in 2007.

Top Four Injury Claims

In addition, according to a brief about the Aon study in Modern Physician, one out of six claims against health care facilities was associated with hospital-acquired conditions, in 2007. Claims for these injuries were the most frequent of the four hospital-acquired condition categories:

Infections
injuries,
pressure ulcers, and
foreign objects left in the body after surgery.

Assessment

Costs of claims associated with pressure ulcers were the most expensive for health care facilities, which paid about $145,000 on average in claims for that condition. Aon analyzed nearly 78,000 claims with a total $9.3 billion of incurred losses for its professional liability report, which included information from more than 1,200 facilities that provided loss and exposure data.

Conclusion

Your thoughts and comments are appreciated; especially by our physician, medical quality improvement, risk management and insurance agent readers and subscribers.

Related Information Sources:

Practice Management: http://www.springerpub.com/prod.aspx?prod_id=23759

Physician Financial Planning: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/0763745790

Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Healthcare Organizations: www.HealthcareFinancials.com

Health Administration Terms: www.HealthDictionarySeries.com

Physician Advisors: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com

Link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/HealthcareFinancialsthePostForcxos

Filed under: Health Economics, Health Law & Policy, Professional Liability, Quality Initiatives, Risk Management, Surveys and Voting | 1 Comment »

CMO Opportunity in SD

Posted on October 5, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Avera Health Plans

By Judy Kliethermes

Avera Health Plans is a subsidiary of Avera Health, a regional health system providing healthcare services at more than 231 locations in eastern South Dakota and surrounding states.

Plan Description

Avera Health Plans (AHP) has more than 60 hospitals and 3,100 physicians and licensed practitioners in its regional network. Care can be accessed in more than 200 counties in the Avera Health Plans service area, with more than 600 physicians providing primary care services.

Position and Duties

The Chief Medical Officer will be responsible for leading and supervising AHP’s performance measurement, quality improvement and utilization management programs. The Chief Medical Officer (CMO) will work with his/her team to analyze and improve the quality of care and the patterns of care utilization within the AHP network and will work to improve the health status of AHP’s member population. The CMO will supervise the Director of Health Services; oversee Medical Vendor Management and Physician Relations.

Reporting

Reporting to the President of Avera Health Plans, the CMO will be an active member of the Senior Management Team of AHP. Additionally, the CMO chairs the health plans’ Regional Care Councils, Utilization Management Committee, P&T Committee, Best Practices Workgroup and Credentialing Committee.

Candidates

Ideal physician candidates will have experience in a leadership role at a health plan and fully understand health care economics and the medical economics of prepaid plans. Candidates must demonstrate superior communication skills and be able to work well within a team.

Assessment

Qualifications include board certification, a current and unrestricted medical license plus the ability to obtain a license in the State of South Dakota, a minimum of five years of clinical practice experience and a minimum of three years of experience as a health plan physician executive.

Conclusion

If you are interested in learning more, please reply to this message and attach a copy of your current CV / resume, or contact me below:

Judy Kliethermes
1-800-678-7858 ext. 63451
314-863-3631 Fax
judyk@cejkasearch.com E-mail

CEJKA SEARCH
4 City Place, Ste 300
Saint Louis, Missouri 63141
http://www.cejkasearch.com

Link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/HealthcareFinancialsthePostForcxos

Filed under: Breaking News, Career Development | Tagged: CMO | Leave a comment »

Advanced Medical Recruitment, Inc

Posted on October 4, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Employment Opportunities and Job Postings

By Otis J. Archie [President]

advancedmr@cox.net

Software Engineer

Researches, designs, and develops computer software for microprocessor systems for ventilators and related equipment. Research, design, and develop computer software from inception of project to end of project. Write the qualifications and other test protocols. Perform engineering and qualification testing. Write specifications, provide appropriate materials for validation testing. Must be familiar with engineering equipment (i.e. scope, emulator, data acquisition). Manage a project from conceptual design to production release. Occasional travel needed. Bachelor’s degree or higher degree in software design, engineering, physical science, or mathematics

Quality Assurance Technician

Support manufacturing and quality assurance groups to ensure quality product and compliance with quality system policies and procedures, FDA and international requirements, and ISO Standards for Class III Medical Devices. Examine and use prints, schematics, work instructions and procedures .Responsible for the maintenance of the NCMR program. Responsible for ensuring SPC data is accurate and collected in a timely manner. Assist in the analysis and reporting of SPC data. Assist in more complex inspection and verification of materials and product and associated documentation. Assist and perform quality systems training to company employees. Assist in the establishment of accept/reject limits for product. Assist and perform disposition, analysis, and reporting of deviations and NCMRs. Assist and perform trending and reporting of NCMRs, internal and external yields, and supplier corrective action.

Qualifications:

Bachelors degree, or Associates degree with 2 years related experience (medical device experience preferred), or equivalent. ASQ Certified Quality Technician (preferred). Knowledge of quality control and quality standards, handbooks, and specification. Sound working knowledge of computer software [Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel] (required) along with various statistical programs [Minitab, SPSS, WinSPC] (preferred).

Analog Design Engineer

The Analog Design Engineer is responsible for assisting in the electrical design and development of an implantable defibrillator. Participate in design, development, and evaluation of low power, low level analog circuitry at the ASIC and board level including amplifiers and switch-mode power supplies. Comply with all design related standards as developed by external regulatory groups. Comply with department and corporate quality initiatives.

Qualifications:

BS in Electrical Engineering is required. An advanced degree is highly desired. Minimum of 1-2 years of experience in analog design; low-power design or high voltage circuit design desirable. Strong educational background in analog circuits is required. Medical device or related biomedical experience is highly desired . ASIC development experience is a plus. Familiarity with Orcad, PSPICE, and Mathcad a plus.

Senior Test Engineer

Assist in the design, development and evaluation of new circuits and systems. Design, layout, and build prototype circuits and test fixtures. Troubleshoot and repair circuits and fixtures. Perform tests on circuits and designs using OTS or internally developed test equipment. Program, on a limited basis, circuits and test fixtures. Document all activities from schematic capture to test results.

Qualifications:

BSEE is a must. 5 years, minimum, experience in prototyping and evaluation of digital and analog electronic circuits in an R & D or Engineering Lab environment. 1 year, minimum, experience in programming microprocessor or FPGA based new products or test fixtures, desirable. Prior use of electronic CAD and/or schematic capture tools are preferred Expertise in the use of electronic equipment such as oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, DVM’s, spectrum analyzers, etc. LabView experience is a must.

Sr. Biomedical Engineer

Designs, executes and interprets experiments that contribute to product strategies. Guides a cross-functional engineering team to complete biomedical engineering tasks like developing proof-of-concept and prototype stage medical devices. Plans and conducts applied research in the engineering lab and on large animal models of cardiac arrest and myocardial infarction with in collaboration with team members. Makes detailed observations, analyzes data and interprets results. Prepares technical reports, summaries, protocols and quantitative analyses. Provides regular status and research updates to multiple stakeholders. Investigates, creates and develops new technologies for product advancement.

Skills:

The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required: in-depth knowledge of physiology, biomedical engineering, sensors and general engineering is essential; strong background in medical devices or instrumentation; very strong communication and interpersonal skills; knowledge of cardiovascular physiology, blood-contacting biomaterials, and in vivo experimentation; exposure to product development; ability to work in a cross-functional, matrixed work environment with multiple stakeholders; ability to travel domestically and internationally; exposure to clinical studies is optional. Master’s degree or doctorate in biomedical or electrical engineering or equivalent, plus 1-5 years related experience or equivalent combination of education and experience. Experience with statistical analysis, Excel, and MATLAB or other numerical computation package.

Contact:

Otis J. Archie, President

advancedmr@cox.net

Advanced Medical Recruitment, Inc

31878 Del Obispo, Ste. 118 PMB 472

San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675

PH: 949-340-2136

Toll: 866-620-3927

Web: www.advancedmr.net

Link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/HealthcareFinancialsthePostForcxos

Filed under: Career Development | Leave a comment »

Hospital Accreditation

Posted on October 3, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Medicare Approves New Organization

Staff Writers

According to Richard Pizzi, of Healthcare Finance News; the US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services [CMS] announced its approval of the first new hospital accreditation organization in more than 40 years.

About DNV Healthcare, Inc.

The decision allows DNV Healthcare Inc., a division of the Norwegian company Det Norske Veritas [DNV], to immediately begin determining if hospitals are in compliance with the Medicare Conditions of Participation [COP]. DNV joins the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations [JCAHO] and the American Osteopathic Association [AOA] as the only national hospital accrediting agency approved by CMS. The company’s authority to accredit hospitals runs through September 26, 2012.

NIAHO

According to DNV, its product – NIAHO – is the first CMS-approved accreditation program to integrate hospital accreditation with ISO 9001. It’s touted as a choice that allows innovation and propels continual improvement. The process is said to unleash a commitment to clinical excellence thru NIAHO accreditation.

According to the website: www.DNV.com NIAHO is revolutionary and yet familiar to all healthcare organizations seeking to meet the Medicare Conditions of Participation, in this manner:

NIAHO is designed from the ground up to drive quality transformation into the core processes of running a hospital.
With NIAHO, healthcare organizations meet their national accreditation obligations and achieve ISO 9001 compliance in the same, seamless program.
Surveys are conducted annually.

National Integrated Accreditation for Healthcare Organizations

As part of the CMS approval process, DNV’s accreditation program, National Integrated Accreditation for Healthcare Organizations [NIAHO] was implemented in multiple hospitals across the country and demonstrated its effectiveness to domestic healthcare officials. To date, 22 US hospitals have been accredited by NIAHO, according to president, Yehuda Dror.

Assessment

Why a new accrediting body for hospitals? Rising costs and increasing medical errors, of course! Clearly, quality isn’t the result of spending more money. Many believe it’s a result of core system effectiveness. In that regard, innovation is needed now, more than ever.

Conclusion

Your comments are appreciated. Is this an example of greater healthcare competition and transparency; or just more bureaucracy?

Related Information Sources:

Practice Management: http://www.springerpub.com/prod.aspx?prod_id=23759

Physician Financial Planning: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/0763745790

Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Healthcare Organizations: www.HealthcareFinancials.com

Health Administration Terms: www.HealthDictionarySeries.com

Physician Advisors: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com

Link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/HealthcareFinancialsthePostForcxos

Filed under: Breaking News, Health Law & Policy, Quality Initiatives, Risk Management | Tagged: accreditation, DNV, NIAHO | 2 Comments »

Mental Health Parity

Posted on October 2, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Close to [Economic] Reality

Staff Reporters

According to Diana Manos, of Healthcare Finance News, Congress just moved one step closer to passing legislation that would require companies that offer mental health coverage to offer benefits, co-payments and medical treatment limits equal to those for traditional healthcare coverage.

History

This sort of coverage has been ten years in the making, as the Senate approved a larger tax extender bill [HR. 6049] that includes mental health parity measures. The measure matched a similar bill passed by the House in March and lawmakers are calling for the bills to be made law before year’s end.

Assessment

Senators Pete Domenici (R-NM), Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass), Mike Enzi (R-Wyo) and Chris Dodd (D-Conn) praised its broad bipartisan support.

Conclusion

Your thoughts and comments are appreciated. Can the country and/or private third party insurance companies afford this mental-health bill?

Related Information Sources:

Practice Management: http://www.springerpub.com/prod.aspx?prod_id=23759

Physician Financial Planning: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/0763745790

Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Healthcare Organizations: www.HealthcareFinancials.com

Health Administration Terms: www.HealthDictionarySeries.com

Physician Advisors: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com

Link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/HealthcareFinancialsthePostForcxos

Filed under: Op-Editorials | Tagged: mental health parity | 1 Comment »

What’s’ AIG, WM and LEH Got to Do with It?

Posted on October 2, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Medical Malpractice Liability … and More

[By Staff Reporters]

With sincere apologies to Tina Turner – and perhaps more than most doctors realize – AIG, LEH and WM may indeed have something to do with “it” – when it comes to medical malpractice insurance. That is, of course, if the “it” – is your liability carrier. Why?

According to David J. Reynolds of the Dow Jones Newswires on 9/25/08, the FPIC Insurance Group www.FPIC.com recently disclosed its investment holdings in some of the financial companies hit hardest by the financial meltdown on Wall Street and in our current economic turmoil.

The Company

FPIC Insurance Group, Inc., through its subsidiary companies, is a leading provider of medical professional liability [MPL] insurance for physicians, dentists and other healthcare providers. Its largest subsidiary, First Professionals Insurance Company [FPIC], Inc., is the largest writer of MPL insurance in Florida and has served the market for more than 30 years. Licensed in 28 states, their insurance subsidiaries currently write business in 14 states.

SEC Filings

The medical liability insurance company reported, in its filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission [SEC], that it holds securities with an amortized cost of $4.1 million in Lehman Brothers (LEH), $2.1 million in American International Group (AIG), $2.5 million in Morgan Stanley (MS), $2.1 million in Washington Mutual (WM) and $300,000 in Fannie Mae (FNM).

SEC Report

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=93296&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1202483&highlight=

Total Assets

As of June 30, the Jacksonville, Fla., company said it had a total of $755.7 million in cash and investments.

2007 Annual Report

http://library.corporate-ir.net/library/93/932/93296/items/287671/2007AR.pdf

Assessment

So, if you think FPIC or possibly your own medical liability carrier has not been affected by the recent stock market slump – think again. AIG, WM and LEH may just have “something to do with it”, after all!

For more analysis and story commentary, please visit:

Link: http://www.djnewsplus.com/al?rnd=AJZr27%2BhR5N7y%2BByhI1ECg%3D%3D

Conclusion

OUR OTHER PRINT BOOKS AND RELATED INFORMATION SOURCES:

PHYSICIANS: www.MedicalBusinessAdvisors.com
PRACTICES: www.BusinessofMedicalPractice.com
HOSPITALS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781466558731
CLINICS: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781439879900
ADVISORS: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.org
BLOG: www.MedicalExecutivePost.com
FINANCE: Financial Planning for Physicians and Advisors
INSURANCE: Risk Management and Insurance Strategies for Physicians and Advisors

Filed under: Breaking News, Insurance Matters, Professional Liability, Risk Management | Tagged: AIG, LEH, WM | 4 Comments »

Events-Planner: October 2008

Posted on October 1, 2008 by Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA MEd CMP™

Events-Planner: October 2008

OCTOBER 2008

Staff Writers

“Keeping track of important health economics and financial industry meetings, conferences and summits.”

Welcome to this issue of the Executive-Post and our Events-Planner. It contains the latest information on conferences, news, and relevant resources in healthcare finance, economics, research and development, business management, pharmaceutical pricing, and physician/entity reimbursement! Watch for a new Events-Planner each month.

First, a little about us; the Executive-Post is still a newcomer – we just turned 1 years old! Today, the website has almost 10,000 visitors per month from all over the country. We have been a successful collaborative effort, thanks to your contributions. As a result, we are adding new resources daily. And, we hope the website continues to provide the best place to go for journals, books, conferences, educational resources, tools, and other things you need to establish the value your healthcare consulting and advisory intervention.
So, enjoy the Executive-Post and our monthly Events-Planner with our compliments.

A Look Ahead this Month

October 1: Print Edition Healthcare Journalism: If you would like to “step-up-your-game” and be considered as a peer-reviewed contributor to the third print edition of: The Business of Medical Practice [Advanced Profit Maximizing Techniques for Savvy Doctors]; just contact Ann at MarcinkoAdvisors@msn.com There are several chapter topics still available. More important dates:

Oct 4-7: Financial Planning Association Convention, Boston Exhibition Center, MA.
Oct 6-7: Effective Oncology Benefit Management: A Forum for Payers; DC.
Oct 11-16: 2008 AHIMA Convention and Exhibit ; Seattle, WA
Oct 13-16: Financial Advisor Symposium; Chicago, Ill.
Oct 15, 2008: Value-based Benefit Design for Employers; Philadelphia PA.
Oct 16-17: American College Sports Medicine, Central States Chapter Meeting; Springfield, MO.
Oct 16-17: ACSM Meeting; Duluth, MN.
Oct 17-18: Urban Health Journalism Workshop; New York City
Oct 19-22: MGMA 2008 Annual Conference (San Diego)
Oct 23-24: 5th Annual Patient Adherence & Persistence Summit; Boston, MA.
Oct 27-31: IMCA Advanced Wealth Management Conference; Costa Mesa, CA.
Oct 28-29: European Pharmaceutical Pricing and Reimbursement; Munich, Germany.
Oct 31: Missouri Health Policy Summit; Columbia, MO.

Please send in your meetings and dates for listing in the next issue of our Events-Planner.

MarcinkoAdvisors@msn.com

Related Information Sources:

Practice Management: http://www.springerpub.com/prod.aspx?prod_id=23759

Physician Financial Planning: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/0763745790

Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421

Healthcare Organizations: www.HealthcareFinancials.com

Health Administration Terms: www.HealthDictionarySeries.com

Physician Advisors: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com

Link: http://feeds.feedburner.com/HealthcareFinancialsthePostForcxos

Filed under: Uncategorized | Leave a comment »

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