Healthcare 'Gold Rush' Spurs Jobs, Fortune 50

Hospitals' Lean Journey Starts with Baby Steps

Venture capitalists change their healthcare investments

5 Ways to Incent Good Behavior With Staff Bonuses

Insurers positioned to curb medical spending growth

HFMA Launches Program to Recognize Industry's Most Reliable Revenue Cycle Products

CMS releases national health spending projections through 2021

Key Metrics in Revenue Cycle Management: Measurements that Ensure Peak ...

Report shows more costly healthcare in U.S. doesn't mean better quality

MA weighs goals for cutting healthcare costs

Articles in category: Employee Productivity

1. Hospital Chiefs: Cut Costs with Care Explore healthleadersmedia.com (Feb 8 2013) Business Process Improvement , Cost Reduction , Employee Productivity One in five hospital CEOs needs to pull 11% or more out of his or her operating budget. Deep cuts may be necessary, but they must be made carefully to avoid harm to quality care and staff morale, leaders say. (Read Full Article)

   Comment

2. Vision-Sciences Reports Revenues of $3.4 Million for First Quarter 2013 Explore au.finance.yahoo.com (Jul 26 2012) Business Process Improvement , Collections , Employee Productivity ORANGEBURG, N.Y. -- Vision-Sciences, Inc. , a leading provider of unique flexible endoscopic products utilizing its proprietary sterile disposable EndoSheath(R) technology, today announced financial results ... (Read Full Article)

   Comment Mentions:   Brigham and Women 's Hospital   Stryker

3. Panasonic Improves The Performance, Battery Life And Connectivity Of Its Rugged Healthcare & Field Worker Tablets Explore Free Services for PR (Jul 17 2012) Business Process Improvement , Employee Productivity The combination of portability and connectivity improves workflow and productivity in the field, at the point of service. Both upgraded CF-H2 models are now powered by the 3rd generation Intel® Core™ i5-3427U vPro™ processor (1.8GHz, up to 2.8GHz with ... (Read Full Article)

   Comment

4. Motion Introduces its Next Generation CL910 Tablet PC Explore Green Technology (Jul 10 2012) Business Process Improvement , Employee Productivity The company's enhanced line of rugged tablet PCs as well as mobile point of service solutions and accessories are designed to increase mobile productivity while providing portability, security, power and versatility. For more information ... (Read Full Article)

   Comment

5. Enrich customer experience with robust data analysis Explore Health Payer, Healthcare Payer, Payer (Jun 24 2012) Business Process Improvement , Cost Containment , Employee Productivity As the health insurance industry increasingly becomes more consumer-oriented, insurers must ensure they're providing the most enriched customer experience possible. The best way to accomplish that goal is through robust data analysis, Lindsay Resnick, chief marketing officer for KBM Group, said Thursday at the AHIP Institute in Salt Lake City. "Big data flows through every aspect of the customer lifecycle, from looking at basic awareness campaigns to moving them from lead generation to fulfillment," Resnick said. Harnessing that data helps insurers better understand the whole consumer, including their preferences, attitudes and purchasing patterns, to create targeted messages for different populations, Resnick said. For example, data helps insurers make savvy, effective decisions about products, marketing outreach, customer experience and sales. Because acquiring new customers is five times the cost of keeping one customer, it's well worth payers' time and resources to enhance their existing customers' experiences, Resnick explained. What's more, customers repeatedly rank their experience with the health insurance industry as one of the worst business segments. "We've just not done a good job of paying attention to customer experience," Resnick said. To start, insurers should use the "tremendous amount of information" within their organizations, as well as outside sources of "rich demographic data" on their market population. Such data can range from basic information, including income ... (Read Full Article)

   Comment Mentions:   AHIP Institute

6. CMS releases national health spending projections through 2021 Explore Healthcare Finance News (Jun 12 2012) Business Process Improvement , Cost Reduction , Employee Productivity Between 2011 and 2021, national health spending is projected to grow at an average rate of 5.7 percent annually, according to projections set forth in a study done by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ National Health Expenditure Accounts Team and published in the July issue of Health Affairs. The study, which was released Tuesday, projects that the average annual growth rate between 2011 and 2021 is 0.9 percent faster than the expected annual increase in the gross domestic product during this period. Election Feature Content:  No Feature read more (Read Full Article)

   Comment

7. Insurers positioned to curb medical spending growth Explore Health Payer, Healthcare Payer, Payer (May 31 2012) Business Process Improvement , Cost Reduction , Employee Productivity , Patient Friendly Billing Health spending rates are only expected to increase a historical low 7.5 percent by 2013, and that growth is even lower--only 5.5 percent--when changes in insurance benefits, including higher deductibles and copays, are considered, according to an annual report released Thursday from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). The 7.5 percent that PwC forecasted in its report contrasts with projections of a 2.4 percent growth in gross domestic product and a 2 percent increase in consumer prices in 2013, according to Reuters. This is also the fourth straight year in which the annual medical cost increase is less than 8 percent. "Four years of historically low growth is noteworthy, and we may be at the start of a new normal," Ceci Connolly, managing director of PwC's Health Research Institute, told Bloomberg. That's good news for insurers because it helps them reel in high medical costs. And because offering health plans with higher deductibles and copays and successful wellness programs tend to dissuade or prevent unnecessary purchases, insurers could help temper rising costs by incorporating these options into more of their plans. To capitalize on this lower medical cost trend, PwC said insurers should take a few key steps, including better aligning incentives and empowering consumers. "Health plans will have to educate consumers, build plan awareness, and distinguish themselves ... (Read Full Article)

   Comment Mentions:   PwC 's Health Research Institute   Ceci Connolly

8. Customer service sets insurers apart in health exchanges Explore Health Payer, Healthcare Payer, Payer (May 30 2012) Business Process Improvement , Employee Productivity Although customer service has never been the health insurance industry's forte, some major insurance companies are taking steps to improve their customer relationships. The recent push toward enhanced customer service comes as insurers prepare to sell their plans through health insurance exchanges in 2014. When insurers begin offering their products on exchanges, which require certain minimum benefit packages for all insurers, customer service becomes a key differentiator among competitors, Forbes reported. Consequently, UnitedHealth Group, Cigna and Health Care Service Corp. (HCSC), which owns several Blue Cross Blue Shield plans, are working toward improving their customer service ratings. "The ability to know your members is going to be more important than ever," Austin Waldron, senior vice president and chief customer service officer for HCSC subsidiary Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois, told Forbes. Although insurers definitely are behind the eight ball based on a Temkin Group survey rating companies across industries--which found that U.S. consumers gave the health insurance industry the lowest scores of "poor" or "very poor"--a separate Forrester Research survey showed that some insurers are improving their customer service. Illinois Blues, for example, has made a "significant change" in Forrester's Customer Service Experience Index, jumping from 14 points in 2011 to 68 points in 2012. The insurer said that instead of increasing spending on ... (Read Full Article)

   Comment Mentions:   Hcsc

9. How Should We Define Productivity In Healthcare? Explore forbes.com (May 30 2012) Accountable Care Organizations , Business Process Improvement , Employee Productivity Doctors (Photo credit: Wikipedia?? ?? In a recent Op-Ed, [New York Times, May 27, 2012, Let?s Be Less Productive?? http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/27/opinion/sunday/lets-be-less-productive.html?_r=1 Tim Foundation. ? However, in his new world order, when demand stagnates, and economies need to produce jobs, he recommends that we focus on sectors traditionally defined by "low productivity"?such ... (Read Full Article)

   Comment

10. Insurers to lose $1 trillion if health law struck down Explore healthleadersmedia.com (May 17 2012) Business Process Improvement , Cost Reduction , Employee Productivity Nearly one-tenth of the insurance industry's total revenue through 2020 is at stake in the Supreme Court's decision on healthcare reform, a new study by Bloomberg Government says. That figure equals about $1 trillion, or about one-half percent of the projected U.S. gross domestic product over eight years, the report said. The $1 trillion in new revenue would come from the law's expansion of Medicaid and from subsidies to individuals purchasing insurance. Though most of the money would eventually flow to healthcare providers, insurers would keep an average of $22 billion per year for profit and administrative costs, the study said. (Read Full Article)

    Comment

11. Report shows more costly healthcare in U.S. doesn't mean better quality Explore Healthcare Finance News (May 8 2012) Business Process Improvement , Cost Reduction , Employee Productivity According to a new study released from The Commonwealth Fund, patients in the U.S. do not receive notably exceptional care compared with 13 other industrialized countries, despite health costs averaging one-third to two-thirds more than the other advanced countries. The average cost was $8,000 per person in 2009. Election Feature Content:  No Feature read more (Read Full Article)

    Comment

12. The Six Enemies of Greatness (and Happiness) - Forbes Explore forbes.com (May 8 2012) Employee Productivity The Six Enemies of Greatness (and Happiness) These six factors can erode the grandest of plans and the noblest of intentions. They can turn visionaries into paper-pushers and wide-eyed dreamers into shivering, weeping balls of regret. Beware!    1) Availability We often settle for what’s available, and what’s available isn’t always great. “Because it [...] (Read Full Article)

    Comment

13. Automation and the Healthcare Cost Curve Explore healthleadersmedia.com (Apr 30 2012) Business Process Improvement , Cost Reduction , Employee Productivity Why is healthcare historically a slow adopter of potentially labor-saving, and thus cost-saving, techniques and technology? Lack of urgency is one reason, but with margins under increasing threat, that thinking may be changing. (Read Full Article)

    Comment Mentions:   John Dragovits   HealthLeaders magazine

14. Health spending is flattening out Explore healthleadersmedia.com (Apr 30 2012) Business Process Improvement , Collections , Cost Reduction , Employee Productivity In 2009 and 2010, total nationwide health care spending grew less than 4 percent per year, the slowest annual pace in more than five decades, according to the latest numbers from the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services. After years of taking up a growing share of economic activity, health spending held steady in 2010, at 17.9 percent of the gross domestic product. The growth rate mostly slowed as millions of Americans lost insurance coverage along with their jobs. Worried about job security, others may have feared taking time off work for doctor's visits or surgical procedures, or skipped nonurgent care when money was tight. (Read Full Article)

    Comment

15. Lean helps drive hospital quality and efficiency Explore Healthcare Finance News (Apr 26 2012) Employee Productivity , Quality Improvement How can hospitals promote efficiency and high-quality results? Look at a Lean approach when designing a new hospital or redesigning an existing one. Used as a way of managing data gathering and analysis to help develop a smooth workflow environment, Lean methods help direct optimal operational layout of health facilities. Election Feature Content:  No Feature No sticky read more (Read Full Article)

    Comment

16. HFMA Launches Program to Recognize Industry's Most Reliable Revenue Cycle Products Explore Executive Insight (Apr 2 2012) Business Process Improvement , Employee Productivity , Revenue Cycle Posted on: April 3, 2012 View Comments (0)Print ArticleEmail Article Share Facebook reddit Newsvine Del.icio.us Digg Yahoo! Buzz LinkedIn StumbleUpon Google Bookmarks Mixx Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA) announces launch of the MAP Keys Compliant Program, an effort to evaluate and designate the industry's most reliable revenue cycle products. The program helps providers identify information tec (Read Full Article)

    Comment Mentions:   Siemens Healthcare   HFMA

17. Key Metrics in Revenue Cycle Management: Measurements that Ensure Peak ... Explore Healthcare Technology News (Mar 27 2012) Business Process Improvement , Employee Productivity , Meaningful Use , Revenue Cycle Revenue Cycle Management Hospitals Payers Highlights CMS Picks Pioneer ACO Participants Operating Rules for EFT/ERA on the Horizon Online Educator Adds to ICD-10 Products ANSI, HL7 Ask to Lead Development of Attachments Operating Rule Analyzing the Sharp End of Health Care Blogs Down the Rabbit Hole EHR Beyond Meaningful Use: Productivity -- Part 3 Slide Shows Health I.T. (Read Full Article)

    Comment

18. MA weighs goals for cutting healthcare costs Explore healthleadersmedia.com (Mar 16 2012) Business Process Improvement , Cost Reduction , Employee Productivity Now, as state lawmakers prepare a bill that will limit healthcare cost increases, they have to decide by how much. Two major groups in Massachusetts are urging the legislature to set an aggressive goal. Associated Industries of Massachusetts and the Greater Boston Interfaith Organization say the state's healthcare spending goal should be gross state product (GSP). Groups of hospitals and insurers want a less aggressive goal. (Read Full Article)

    Comment

19. Venture capitalists change their healthcare investments Explore healthleadersmedia.com (Mar 9 2012) Business Process Improvement , Collections , Employee Productivity "The changes in the health system are rocket fuel for entrepreneurs," says venture capitalist Bob Kocher. Kocher is eyeing businesses that do things like help hospitals prevent readmissions. The opportunities within complex health care ecosystems are in things as mundane as billing. Investors in Silicon Valley understand that hospitals don't want space-age solutions for tomorrow as much as they want cheap, pragmatic products that can solve basic problems. (Read Full Article)

    Comment Mentions:   Robert Kocher

20. GPOs evolving in a complex landscape Explore Healthcare Finance News (Mar 5 2012) Accountable Care Organizations , Business Process Improvement , Employee Productivity Proper management of supply chain can reap rewards Healthcare provider systems are enduring more financial challenges than ever with lower Medicare reimbursement on the horizon, accountable care organization and pay-for-performance initiatives. In essence, provider revenues are shrinking while costs are growing, so it makes sense that they are relying on group purchasing organizations more than ever. Election Feature Content:  No Feature read more (Read Full Article)

    Comment Mentions:   Carolinas Healthcare System

21. Healthcare law may mean other buying mandates, Clement says Explore healthleadersmedia.com (Feb 17 2012) Business Process Improvement , Employee Productivity A Supreme Court decision upholding President Barack Obama's health-care law, which compels people to buy medical insurance, would give Congress the power to make Americans purchase any other product, said lawyers challenging the measure. "The next time, it'll be cars," said Paul Clement, a Washington lawyer who represents 26 states that have appealed to the high court. "Some people don't buy cars. They walk." At a debate in Washington today, sponsored by Bloomberg Law and Scotusblog, Clement and a second attorney challenging the law clashed with supporters over the reach of Congress' power to regulate interstate commerce. (Read Full Article)

    Comment

22. Over-the-counter medicines save $102B annually Explore Healthcare Finance News (Feb 1 2012) Business Process Improvement , Employee Productivity , Patient Friendly Billing For every dollar spent on over-the-counter (OTC) medicines, the U.S. healthcare system saves six to seven dollars, providing $102 billion in value annually, says a new report from the Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA). read more (Read Full Article)

    Comment

23. The Trust Deficit – what does it mean for health care? Explore Health Populi (Jan 24 2012) Business Process Improvement , Employee Productivity , Patient Friendly Billing Technology, autos, food and consumer products — two-thirds of people around the globe trust these four industries the most. The least trusted sectors are media, banks and financial services. Welcome to the twelfth annual poll of the 2012 Edelman Trust Barometer, gauging global citizens’ perspectives on institutions and their trustworthiness. This survey marks the largest [...] (Read Full Article)

    Comment Mentions:   Health Insurance Exchanges   Health Economics   Health Populi

24. CMS healthcare spending report doesn't account for bigger picture Explore Healthcare Finance News (Jan 20 2012) Business Process Improvement , Cost Reduction , Employee Productivity , Improving Collections , Vendor Management Growth in U.S. health spending remained slow in 2010 and the health share of the gross domestic product was unchanged from 2009, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has reported. But a nationally recognized economist is saying the federal agency is overlooking the bigger picture. read more (Read Full Article)

    Comment

1-24 of 97 // 1 2 3 4 »