Detroit hospitals' approach to physician employment affects how the hospitals reduce costs and improve quality, according to a Crain's Detroit Business report.
The report examines three systems — William Beaumont Hospitals, Henry Ford Health System and St. John Providence Health System. Beaumont has a voluntary, private physician staff, while St. John Providence has formed a co-management joint venture with a group of cardiovascular physicians. Henry Ford Health System employs 1,200 physicians through its medical group, allowing the system to include financial incentives for reducing costs and improving quality.
According to Mark Kelly, CEO of the Henry Ford Medical Group, employment makes it easier for the hospital to keep physicians on track with strategic and operational goals. Because the physicians' salaries are at risk, they are incentivized to reduce surgical errors and hospital-acquired infections.
St. John and Beaumont, both of which keep their physicians independent, cannot provide physicians with direct financial incentives to meet organizational goals. Instead, Beaumont focuses on building physician engagement by giving providers responsibility on capital and clinical decisions — tasks for which the physicians are not paid.
Read the Crain's Detroit Business report on physician employment and incentives.
Read more on hospital employment:
-Hospital Employment Up More Than 0.5% for February
-Physician Integration May Be "Tipping Point" for Success of ACOs
-Study: Physician Employment Improves Coordination But Could Lead to Increased Healthcare Costs
The report examines three systems — William Beaumont Hospitals, Henry Ford Health System and St. John Providence Health System. Beaumont has a voluntary, private physician staff, while St. John Providence has formed a co-management joint venture with a group of cardiovascular physicians. Henry Ford Health System employs 1,200 physicians through its medical group, allowing the system to include financial incentives for reducing costs and improving quality.
According to Mark Kelly, CEO of the Henry Ford Medical Group, employment makes it easier for the hospital to keep physicians on track with strategic and operational goals. Because the physicians' salaries are at risk, they are incentivized to reduce surgical errors and hospital-acquired infections.
St. John and Beaumont, both of which keep their physicians independent, cannot provide physicians with direct financial incentives to meet organizational goals. Instead, Beaumont focuses on building physician engagement by giving providers responsibility on capital and clinical decisions — tasks for which the physicians are not paid.
Read the Crain's Detroit Business report on physician employment and incentives.
Read more on hospital employment:
-Hospital Employment Up More Than 0.5% for February
-Physician Integration May Be "Tipping Point" for Success of ACOs
-Study: Physician Employment Improves Coordination But Could Lead to Increased Healthcare Costs