You Decide-Process Improvement Plan

Further Data Collection to Conduct Before Writing the Plan

Further data collection will assist in obtaining a comprehensive understanding of the current accounts receivable (AR) situation and the factors that could have contributed to the situation. As a result, additional data will be collected on various aspects. First, additional data on the AR ageing report will be sought to help spot the accounts contributing to extended AR days. Second, data regarding the billing and collection process will be sought. Notably, this will entail obtaining end-to-end billing and collection data to help identify areas characterized by inefficiencies (Nowicki, 2015). Third, data will be obtained on patient collection data to understand the average patient collection time and identify any trend relating to outstanding balances or payment delays. Fourth, data relating to patient satisfaction and complaints will be collected to understand the patients’ perspectives towards the payment process and what action they consider necessary. Lastly, industry data regarding AR will be collected to benchmark the organization with other hospitals to establish whether a common trend affects them.

Elements of the Plan

Elements of the plan will include five aspects. First, the plan will include a situation analysis to highlight where the hospital is. Second, the plan will include the stakeholders that should be involved in addressing the situation. Third, the processes through which improvements to the situation will be made to the situation will be evaluated. Fourth, specific targets will be achieved by implementing the process improvements. Lastly, the plan will entail a review and refinement aspect through which developments occurring while implementing the plan will be addressed.

Key Players and Their Role in Each Element

For the first element, I will be the first player as the CFO of the hospital. I will have the revenue cycle team help me in assessing the situation. Specifically, I will supervise and coordinate the activities of the revenue cycle team. The revenue cycle team will collect and analyze data, offer expertise in AR management, and coordinate with other departments for comprehensive information. The medical staff and clinical department heads will be involved alongside me for the second element. The head of departments will offer insight into potential challenges faced in the billing processes. At the same time, I will facilitate the meetings, open dialogue with them, and take note of their insights. The third element will involve the health information management department, revenue cycle team, and business office team. Their role will include analyzing the billing process and implementing actions to improve it. For the fourth element, I will be involved as the CFO with the revenue recycle team, and together, we will set specific targets for reducing AR days and monitor the key performance indicators for progress. The top management, including myself, will be involved in the last element. The team will lead continuous process improvement and implement strategic directions that guide the improvement process.

Resources to Engage Outside Senior Management

The human resource from various departments is the most important resource to engage outside senior management. They include the revenue cycle team, the health information management department, the human resource department, patient advocacy teams, and clinical staff. Notably, these teams have the ability and information to ensure the improvement plan process is achieved.

Presentation of the Plan to the Board Meeting

A concise and structured approach will be adopted when presenting the plan. The approach will start by outlining the current situation regarding AR days, emphasizing the urgent need to address the situation, the presentation of the major elements of the plan, the involvement of stakeholders in the plan implementation together with the role of each stakeholder, and the importance of cooperation among departments. Further, the presentation will highlight the set targets and the process of monitoring their achievement. The presentation will conclude with a request for the board to support the plan.

How to Evaluate the Plan’s Effectiveness

The simplest way to evaluate the plan’s success is through reduced receivable days. Currently, the receivable days have reached a tune of 100 days. A continuous reduction in these days will indicate positive progress toward achieving the plan (Chaudhuri et al., 2022). The plan will be fully successful when the days reach Marysville General Hospital’s magical AR receivable days of 55.

References

Chaudhuri, R., Parsa, S. P. K., & Nagpal, D. (2022). Time to response prediction for following up on account receivables in healthcare revenue cycle management. In International Conference on Advances in Computing and Data Sciences (pp. 124-137). Cham: Springer International Publishing.

Nowicki, M. (2015). Introduction to the financial management of healthcare organizations. Health Administration Press.

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Question

Scenario Summary
It is the second Monday night in October and it is now 3 a.m. You cannot sleep.

You are the CFO of Marysville General Hospital, a 300-bed community hospital in the Midwest. Your hospital board meets at noon on the second Tuesday of each month. You have a truly awful report to give the board, and you are dreading it more than anything else you’ve done in your 15-year career as a hospital senior manager.

You Decide-Process Improvement Plan

The target for days in accounts receivable (which the board and CEO set some years ago) is 55 days. When AR days are at 55, cash flow to the hospital is strong and you can meet all monthly obligations while putting some money away into investments for the hospital’s future.

It has been several years now since the hospital has seen its AR at 55 days. There have been many factors, but AR has been in the 70–80 day range for some time now. Last month, it crept up over 90 days, and this month, you have the painful task of reporting to the board and CEO that the hospital is carrying 100 days in accounts receivable.

You must come up with a plan to bring AR days back in line, and you will not be able to accomplish that alone. It will take cooperation from the medical staff, the clinical departments, health information management, the business office, and many others. But it must happen and it must happen soon, or your community could actually lose its hospital.

Your Role/Assignment
Come up with a plan to bring AR days back in line. It will take cooperation from the medical staff, the clinical departments, health information management, the business office, and many others, so include how you will involve these departments in devising a solution.

As you prepare your process improvement plan, keep the following in mind.

What further data collection will you conduct before beginning to write your plan?
What will be the elements of your plan?
For each element, who will be the key players, and what will be their roles?
What resources outside of senior management will you engage?
How will you present your plan at the board meeting?
How will you know that your plan has been effective?

Scenario Summary
It is the second Monday night in October and it is now 3 a.m. You cannot sleep.

It has been several years now since the hospital has seen its AR at 55 days. There have been many factors, but AR has been in the 70–80 day range for some time now. Last month it crept up over 90 days, and this month you have the painful task of reporting to the board and CEO that the hospital is carrying 100 days in accounts receivable.

As you prepare your process improvement plan, keep the following in mind.