Boost Healthcare Revenue, Even in a Crisis
Pandemic doesn’t have to equal Pandemonium
In order to thrive in a crisis, we must all stay focused and creative in order to serve our patients and keep our organizations afloat. Only a few months into this global pandemic with many more on the horizon, many healthcare organizations are drowning in fear without proper communication.
Here are a few recent statements I’ve received from coaching clients of mine:
“I feel like we doctors and nurses are just told to row this ship at the lower deck and these administrators at the upper deck are going to drive us into the rocks.”
“It’s all helter skelter and our leaders don’t have time for us.”
“For the first time in our meeting we openly talked about why we need these administrators.”
Can you hear the fear in these voices? The mistrust? Perhaps you’re feeling the same. Perhaps your organization is floundering, and, understandably, losing income during this time. Now, more than ever, is the time for healthcare workers and administrators to realize that we are all in the same metaphorical boat. We must work together in order to avoid pandemic panic.
If you’re a healthcare administrator worrying about revenue losses, you’re not alone. If you’re a healthcare leader struggling to find a way to pay all your clinicians and administrators, you’re not alone. If you’re a physician, nurse, or administrator frustrated by the sudden changes and lack of communication, you are not alone.
For years, administrators have been (often thanklessly) relied upon in their organizations to keep everything running smoothly. They’re expected to find the money, distribute it, and keep the boat afloat. But with elective procedures (aka the ones that bring in the $$) on hold temporarily, revenue slows down and crisis creeps in. It’s unfortunate that the American healthcare system is so money-driven, since we’d all love to just focus on our patients, but for now these are the confines within which we must administer care. All of us, administrators and clinicians, together.
Frustratingly, attempting to predict the future at this point looks pretty bleak. The crystal ball is dark and murky. And the early numbers that are coming out aren’t promising. The Mayo Clinic is already projecting 3 billion dollars worth of losses for 2020, and this is just the beginning. This is an organization which had 13 billion in revenue last year, and has 900 million in reserves to dip into. And no, not many administrators have access to this kind of money. The article goes on to state that, “Mayo also is planning strategies for a “W,” or “double dip” scenario, where COVID-19 runs rampant again, as well as an “L” scenario involving a prolonged recession and less traveler demand for Mayo’s health care services”.
So...what can we do?
Amid all this bleak news, I do see some early solutions emerging that should give us hope. The overarching theme I’ve observed and will outline below is that your team must look to find local solutions. Realize that in all the situations, communication will be your secret weapon. In the absence of that, the command and control top-down style of leadership, though it may appear to work short term as the leader acts like a war-time general, will ultimately fail to serve your patients and your staff.
Here are some basic strategies to keep your organization serving patients, earning revenue and staying solvent.
telehealth to the rescue
First, we must address the surge in telehealth. This is an extreme blessing within the worldwide deluge of terrible news. Suddenly the legislative barriers that were holding telemedicine behind have fallen. Three year plans have been implemented in three weeks!
As an expert in telehealth, leading remote teams since 2006, with over 28,000 hours of direct experience and counting, I am extremely encouraged by the now widespread focus on telehealth and it’s many benefits. For primary and preventive care, telehealth is an excellent approach to use physician time effectively, keep patients at home and everyone safe and healthy. But it does require some adjusting. You’ll have clinicians who will love it right away and some who will need some time to get up to speed. New procedures must be created, and, of course, training needs to be done. Luckily, as a healthcare leader, you have an opportunity to do it the right way the first time. Communicate early and often, be patient with your staff that needs time to adjust and encourage everyone to embrace this new direction of the healthcare industry.
local solutions
Second, when telehealth is not possible, caring physicians are coming up with enterprising, local solutions. Many of us serve rural areas where patients don’t have reliable access to the internet. It won’t be effective for a healthcare leader to simply implement a nation-wide program or system without asking what is possible and what their employees are willing to do. Many workplaces are “deploying” clinicians to patients’ homes without having any input from them. I predict it won’t be long before team members rebel, refuse, or simply quit.
Whereas, the smart leaders are asking questions and creating novel programs. I’ll share three quick examples here.
Drive-In Clinic: a parking lot where patients drive (or are driven) in and the visit is completed within the patients’ vehicle.
Modified Home Visits: the physician travels to the patient’s home and conducts the visit outside on the curb without entering the patient’s home. This works for patients who don’t have access to transportation or are too at-risk to be on public transport.
Telehealth Combo: The physician stays at home, but several medical assistants drive to visit patients at their homes. Each MA has a teleconferencing device so the physician can be present at the visit, but the assistant can do multiple tasks that are needed. The physician can virtually visit many patients with several assistants traveling throughout the day. This approach in particular will need a lot of help from hospital administration to make sure everything runs smoothly and is well-organized.
All three approaches need great communication within a clinical team. A daily huddle to decide who to serve and how, who can wait for what, and how best to use everyone’s time. These meetings, conducted virtually, can quickly become the nerve center for creativity, implementation, and innovation.
prevent elective from becoming emergency
Third, of course we need to limit bodies in hospitals right now so we can prepare for whatever may come. But, we must take a close look at what procedures are labeled as “elective”. A surgery that is elective today will become extremely necessary to the patient in the future -- and at that point may be more dangerous and expensive. Administrators and clinicians must work together (within local guidelines) to find ways to schedule “elective” surgeries and procedures before they become emergencies. Preventative care should still be a priority within the organization, because we know that untreated conditions eventually fill emergency room beds.
Here’s the common thread...COMMUNICATION.
You must communicate with your team. Each and every one of them. Realize how much more difficult their jobs have become this year. Find ways to appreciate them and take the time to ASK WHAT THEY NEED instead of telling your team what to do. Everyone wants to keep serving patients safely and keep their organizations afloat. And you may be surprised by the local, innovative solutions your staff comes up with. Beyond that, individual clinical teams must communicate with each other. Approach communication with lots of patience. It’s like a tree that won’t immediately yield fruit -- plant the seed, water it often, and realize it will take time. As the old proverb says, “the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, and the second best time is today.”
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