Achieving full physician-hospital alignment requires alignment along three factors: economic, purpose and clinical. Physician employment strategies are uniquely positioned to strongly impact all three of these elements. Many hospitals are seriously considering employment strategies because of the recent elimination of many of the previously permitted economic alignment tools; a desire by physicians to alleviate the administrative burdens and ongoing capital investment associated with running a professional practice; and increasing uncertainty of future reimbursement.
Below, Luke Peterson, a Partner with Kurt Salmon's Healthcare Strategy Group, discusses five tips for organizations to improve their physician alignment through employment.
1. Focus on the relationship. Physician employment is more than about a business contract. "At its best, it is a new opportunity for the physicians and hospital to create a stronger relationship built on common incentives,” Mr. Peterson says.
2. Structure the agreements to advance the vision, not just the income. Setting similar expectations and cultural norms for all employed physicians is important. "The incentives within a contract can vary depending on the desires and vision," Mr. Peterson says. "They can include payments for quality outcomes, serving selected markets, or providing management services."
3. Develop separate, yet linked, organizational structures. Employed physicians require a very different structure to manage and direct than typically encountered in most hospital and health system structures. A separate, but tightly coordinated and linked structure is usually needed. "The goal is to create the right structures for the physicians rather than force the physicians to adapt to the existing structures of the hospital," Mr. Peterson says.
4. Develop the physician group culture. Beyond the employment agreement, the development of a multispecialty group culture is the goal of most hospitals when employing physician practices. "Culture doesn't develop overnight," says Mr. Peterson. The great multispecialty clinics have decades of culture supporting them. "The long history of working together creates the relationship and trust needed to form a permanent team," he says.
5. Be ready for the backlash. The speed and intensity of the physician employment trend makes it likely there will be some backlash in the coming years. "Focusing on the relationship and vision creates the trust that allows organizations to be flexible should some of the employment relationships need to be significantly modified or unwound," Mr. Peterson says.
Luke Peterson is the national director of Kurt Salmon's Strategy Practice. He has focused his career on advising community and regional referral hospitals and healthcare systems particularly on the physician-hospital relationships and healthcare system organizational structures and roles. Luke is a co-author of the Physician-Hospital Alignment Diagnostic located at www.PhysicianHospitalAlignment.com. He can be reached at 612.810.8188 or at Luke.Peterson@kurtsalmon.com .
More Expertise From Kurt Salmon:
Physician-Hospital Alignment: 4 Strategies to Align Physicians
4 Tips for Improving Communication Between Hospital Executives and Physicians
Accountable Care: The Top Five Things the Community Hospital Can Do Now
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Below, Luke Peterson, a Partner with Kurt Salmon's Healthcare Strategy Group, discusses five tips for organizations to improve their physician alignment through employment.
1. Focus on the relationship. Physician employment is more than about a business contract. "At its best, it is a new opportunity for the physicians and hospital to create a stronger relationship built on common incentives,” Mr. Peterson says.
2. Structure the agreements to advance the vision, not just the income. Setting similar expectations and cultural norms for all employed physicians is important. "The incentives within a contract can vary depending on the desires and vision," Mr. Peterson says. "They can include payments for quality outcomes, serving selected markets, or providing management services."
3. Develop separate, yet linked, organizational structures. Employed physicians require a very different structure to manage and direct than typically encountered in most hospital and health system structures. A separate, but tightly coordinated and linked structure is usually needed. "The goal is to create the right structures for the physicians rather than force the physicians to adapt to the existing structures of the hospital," Mr. Peterson says.
4. Develop the physician group culture. Beyond the employment agreement, the development of a multispecialty group culture is the goal of most hospitals when employing physician practices. "Culture doesn't develop overnight," says Mr. Peterson. The great multispecialty clinics have decades of culture supporting them. "The long history of working together creates the relationship and trust needed to form a permanent team," he says.
5. Be ready for the backlash. The speed and intensity of the physician employment trend makes it likely there will be some backlash in the coming years. "Focusing on the relationship and vision creates the trust that allows organizations to be flexible should some of the employment relationships need to be significantly modified or unwound," Mr. Peterson says.
Luke Peterson is the national director of Kurt Salmon's Strategy Practice. He has focused his career on advising community and regional referral hospitals and healthcare systems particularly on the physician-hospital relationships and healthcare system organizational structures and roles. Luke is a co-author of the Physician-Hospital Alignment Diagnostic located at www.PhysicianHospitalAlignment.com. He can be reached at 612.810.8188 or at Luke.Peterson@kurtsalmon.com .
More Expertise From Kurt Salmon:
Physician-Hospital Alignment: 4 Strategies to Align Physicians
4 Tips for Improving Communication Between Hospital Executives and Physicians
Accountable Care: The Top Five Things the Community Hospital Can Do Now
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