In the rapidly changing healthcare environment, CFOs need to engage physicians or face the failure of some financial initiatives.
While better patient care is the first and foremost result of physician engagement, said Paul Weygandt, MD, JD, vice president of physicians services for J.A. Thomas, part of Nuance Communications, it also results in more accurate reimbursement through clinical documentation improvement, enhanced organizational stability and the necessary infrastructure for continuing success.
Weygandt and Money Atwal, the chief financial officer and chief information officer of Hilo Medical Center in Hawaii, pointed to five key practices CFOs can use to engage physicians during the Healthcare Financial Management Association's annual ANI conference:
Communicate. Be present at physician meetings and tailor financial information for the physician audience, said Atwal. Draw correlations between clinical care and costs. Involvement. You can't introduce new programs to doctors without getting them involved in the decision-making process, said Weygandt. For instance, if the CIO is considering new technology that will impact doctors, CFOs should demand that doctors be included in discussions from the start, said Atwal. With physician involvement from the get-go, the CIO has a chance to address physician concerns immediately, and ensures the new technology fits physician needs. Education. Explain to doctors and the broader medical staff the clinical benefits of technology and process improvements. Lean processes. Leverage the tools of lean without getting into the weeds of the processes' spreadsheets and terminology, said Atwal. Focus. Consider physician workflow. Before making changes that will impact physician workflow, discuss with physicians so they can work through alterations to adjust to the change and take the time to shadow a physician to find out firsthand what the workflow is like.