Great Plains Regional Medical Center in North Platte, Neb., had been managed for 25 years by an outside organization — until 2009. The hospital examined the partnership and decided the contract included a bundle of services the hospital had no use for.
Instead, the board and hospital executives decided to look for a partner that could provide what they needed. What they wanted was "not to be taken over, not someone to run us, but a trusted partner to help us achieve our goals and vision," Greg Nielsen, CEO of GPRMC, said in a Community Hospital Corp. whitepaper.
So, the hospital brought in CHC Consulting. In order to improve efficiency and profits, CHC helped GPRMC do the following:
• Analyze revenue cycle, supply spend and productivity
• Join a group purchasing organization
• Gain custom contracts for orthopedic implants
• Provided practice management support
• Adjust and manage staffing levels
As a result of the partnership, the medical staff at GPRMC grew from 45 to 90 members in five years, and the hospital added several service lines, including cardiology.
Through the custom contracting for physician preferred items — like hip and knee implants — the hospital saved an estimated $425,000 on its annual budget of $1.7 million for hip and knee implants.