Developing a High-Performing Physician Enterprise

A county health system (CHS) in the Southeast engaged Coker to assess and improve financial and operational performance. At the time, CHS employed 40 multi-specialty providers and had a primary hospital location with roughly 150 licensed beds. As is the case for many, financial performance of the physician enterprise was declining for a variety of reasons, and CHS had to make tough decisions about their long-term physician alignment strategy.

Initially, we conducted a revenue cycle assessment for the employed provider network and provided recommendations related to performance improvement, resource and staffing needs, and IT system utilization.

Our analysis and recommendations highlighted multiple areas of opportunity directly related to the revenue cycle and indicated broader opportunities across medical group operations.

After developing an implementation work plan with prioritized initiatives and action items, it was clear that CHS did not have the internal bandwidth or leadership experience to manage these efforts efficiently. To drive outcomes, we served as the interim Vice President of the physician enterprise for the next ten months, charged with improving all areas of medical group operations and financial performance and developing a sustainable infrastructure and leadership team for the future.