Guess all the money directed to technology and processes to facilitate the sharing of healthcare data (across providers) has not been enough...
While online data sharing may be possible within a closed network, linking to those outside the network remains elusive - not real helpful in an emergency situation. To bring healthcare fully online, seamless transfer is critical.
Dr. Louis Sullivan, a former Health and Human Services Secretary, founded WEDI (Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange) in 1993. The organization's latest report suggests that the medical system "was close but still not there yet". The organization's CEO, Devin Jopp, is hopeful that seamless information transfer will be a possibility within 10 years. Fingers crossed.
What experience or background will help mold you into an extraordinary company leader?
CEO.com suggests five jobs that teach lessons that will last a lifetime. A few jobs on the list are logical, others may prompt you to say…"Really?". For better insight to their selections...Click Here
- Sales
- Fast Food
- Manual Labor
- Customer Service
- Babysitter
U.S. HealthWorks added another Florida urgent care center to its network with the recent acquisition of Urgent Medical Care in Pompano Beach. The deal increases their Sunshine State sites to 14 and 203 company-wide.
U.S. HealthWorks clinics offer occupational health care and urgent care services, preventive
care, pre-employment and post-offer exams and screening, and
return-to-work rehabilitative care. U.S. HealthWorks operates as a Calfornia-based subsidiary of Dignity Health - who acquired them in August, 2012. >>Read more
AxelaCare, a 2013 acquisition of Harvest Partners, is moving on up into the Top 5 of home infusion companies. With the recent acquisition of SCP Specialty Infusion* (SCPSI) from Shore Capital Partners, the company will double its pharmacy network. SCPSI's pharmacy and infusion center locations span Arizona, New Mexico, California, Colorado and Oregon complementing AxelaCare's Southwest, Midwest and East Coast market coverage. Year end sales for the merged companies (AxelaCare and SCPSI) are projected to exceed $200M. >>Read more
*Includes Sirona Infusion, Access IV, HomeCare IV and Infusource
A few weeks back, the principals at MT Consulting (Steve Mountain & Tony Lynch) presented at one of the premier events for physical therapy business owners. The event, 2013 Private Practice Section Conference & Expo, was held in New Orleans and featured keynotes, educational sessions as well as a party in the SuperDome.
While thrilled with the opportunity to address this sharp group of professionals, there was a question if the MT topic would resonate with attendees. That concern was allayed when attendees trickled... then streamed into the session room with many forced to stand through the presentation.
Yes, Steve and Tony --- your topic, Valuing Your Business…What's Really Important? hit a chord among many in this time of healthcare changes and transition. The energy was high and the questions flowed as the MT team outlined key factors to monitor in a PT practice…whether owners were preparing for a sale or looking to benchmark practice performance. It was a good show and good showing...
Did you miss Steve and Tony's talk? Conference presentations were recorded and available on the PPS website.
QuadMed, LLC brought primary care inside a company with its first clinic for parent, Quad/Graphics. The business model - increased quality of care, decreased company healthcare costs, enhanced patient satisfaction - expanded to other employers over the last 20 years. This week, QuadMed announced completion of the acquisition of another Midwest-based provider of employer-sponsored on-site clinics, Novia CareClinics. QuadMed expects that the combined company will run 90+ clinic locations in 18 states serving 150 patients. >>Read more
In October, Accelerated Physical Therapy is rolling out a Women's Health Program targeting unique female health conditions. In describing the new program, Christina M. Christie, PT, CCE, FAFS, FMR explained "…in conjunction with your physician, we design an individualized program to address the core of the problem to decrease symptoms and assist a woman in achieving her goals to return to normal daily activities…"
Women health specialists will be available at 25 select Accelerated's locations in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, Wisconsin.
>>Read or View more about the Accelerated Women's Health Program.
Florida's busy urgent care provider, MD Now Urgent Care, is expanding…again. With the opening of the eleventh location, it has become the largest independent non-hospital Urgent Care company in South Florida.
The company was established in 2004 and has grown rapidly offering residents of Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade Counties an alternative to a local crowded and costly hospital ER. The recent opening of its Plantation, FL location fuels its growth plans. According to MD Now CEO, Dr. Peter Lamelas, company plans include "upwards of 30 Urgent Care Centers throughout South Florida by 2015".
Read more about this growing urgent care provider.
Physiotherapy Associates, the Exton, PA based rehabilitation service provider company, recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Accounting concerns along with a $325M debt load are reportedly at the core of the bankruptcy. Physiotherapy operates 575 outpatient rehab and O&P clinics in 34 states.
The firm was a 2012 acquisition by Court Square Capital Partners - part of a trend toward increased PE investments in healthcare over the past few years. Physiotherapy Associates is NOT headed down the bankruptcy road alone. Rotech Healthcare, a home medical equipment company and Rural/Metro Corp., a provider of ambulance services hit the path earlier this year. >>Read more
Source: wsj.com
ATI, one of the country's leading physical rehabilitation companies, again moved outside its Midwest base. The recent acquisition of North River Physical Therapy extends its coverage into the Southeast US. ATI brings on board eight Chattanooga, TN-area locations which includes a northern Georgia location. According to ATI, Senior VP, Jason Hafner, the former owners of North River will stay on and continue "steering the ship…"
With the North River acquisition, ATI tops 275 locations in ten states. It is the largest operator of comprehensive outpatient orthopedic rehabilitation clinics unified under one name. >>Read more
The healthcare sector has been lackluster when it comes to its share of PE deals in 2013, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Check out 2013 vs. 2012 activity (Jan 1 - Sept 11):
2013: 268 deals valued at $5B
2012: 292 deals valued at $14.26B
A principal at The Riverside Company, Joseph Ibrahim, offers a differing perspective on this year's healthcare deal activity. That is, middle-market M&A activity has not experienced a significant decline. In fact, Ibrahim reveals "…[In terms of healthcare M&A], it was one of the strongest June, July and August [periods]."
Ibrahim's middle-market industry insight suggests there is a "backlog of deals that will come to market". Certainly, that activity would demonstrate continued strength in this healthcare segment. >>Read more
What triggered the overall healthcare PE deal slowdown in 2013? Was it Obamacare uncertainty, "hangover effect" from 2012, or...? Let us know your thoughts.
Source: PE Hub
Les McKeown has been around the proverbial block…with 40 companies and a few books under his belt, he knows about success. McKeown's latest book, "The Synergist: How to Lead Your Team to Predictable Success" suggests he also knows about effective leadership skills.
Inc. offered up McKeown's quick (and really logical) list of Do's and Don'ts for being a better leader. Several are noted below:
- Ask "What can I do for you?"
- Distrust what you trust.
- Ask more than you tell.
- Be present.
- Be nice.
Click here to check out the rest of the list. As the intro states…it's not rocket science! What else would you add to the list?
Source: Inc.
The urgent care industry is poised for more expansion driven by the Affordable Care Act, hospital closings, primary care doctor shortage, high Emergency Room costs. Industry sources expect a steady flow of patients seeking regular care (vs. acute care) to flow into urgent care centers within the next 5 to 10 years.
Dr. Kenneth Palestrant, founder of Physicians Immediate Care in Florida, recognizes this trend. Approximately, 20% of patients use his five centers to receive primary care. With ACA implementation, Dr. Palestrant expects more hiring of nurse-practitioner and physician assistants in urgent care to address the gap in primary care. >>Read more
Source: MedCity News
It's not always money that drives key employees to exit.
Columnist Jeff Haden outlines and explains a few non-salary reasons. Know of any others? >>Read more
- The business has grown - and so has your ego.
- A boutique turned into a corporation.
- The sky no longer seems the limit.
- Exceptional skill resulted in handcuffs.
- Flat became multi-layered.
- Major League Baseball turned into Little League.
Source: CEO.com
Bregal Partners acquired US Community Behavioral (USCB), a multi-state provider of community-based residential and behavioral services to adults and children. The PE firm will leverage the size and organization's reputation to foray deeper into behavioral health care sector. The acquisition, made in partnership with management, presents a well-capitalized platform poised for expansion.
US Community Behavioral is a best-in-class provider offering a full continuum of services including supported living, licensed homes, employment services, autism and other therapy-based behavioral services. >>Read more
Physicians Endoscopy (PE), a healthcare services company that develops and manages endoscopic ambulatory surgery centers (ASC), is now a Pamlico Capital investment. Pamlico recently acquired the stake in Physicians Endoscopy from Silver Oaks Services Partners. (PE was a Silver Oaks portfolio company since 2008). Under Silver Oaks, PE doubled its numbers to 29 centers nationwide. The company partners with practicing physicians and hospitals. Its services include development, management, and billing services..an effort to minimize the administrative burden on physicians.
>>Read more
BioScrip, recently announced the completion of its acquisition of CarePoint Partners. With 30 years of infusion therapy expertise, BioScrip's coverage area encompasses 46 states, including 40 specialty infusion pharmacies, and 33 nursing locations. The BioScrip and CarePoint consolidation will provide home infusion services to over 100,000 patients annually.
The home infusion industry has experienced healthy growth over the past few years and is estimated at $9-11B, according to Russell Bodoff, president and CEO of the National Home Infusion Association. Since 2011, the industry has seen M&A activity resulting in the acquisition of Crescent Healthcare by Walgreens; Pediatric Health Choices's home infusion, enteral divisions acquired by CarePoint. >>Read more
Came across a timeless blog post that should resonate with many small or medium business owners considering a sale:
- Where to start?…Prepare an exit strategy.
- What's next?…Organize key company information.
- What kind?…Generally, the info falls into these categories: Financial History, Intellectual Property, Regulatory Compliance.
>>Read more
Source: Appfolio / Secure Docs
Envision Healthcare Corporation successfully debuted on Wall Street with its initial public offering. The Colorado-based company is a provider of ambulance services for local governments, facility-based physician services (ER, anesthesiology, hospitalist/inpatient care, etc.) as well as patient care across various settings for the chronically ill. The company, formerly EMSC Corporation, had been expanding via new contracts and physician practice acquisition.
Envision, which operates American Medical Response (AMR), EmCare Holdings and Evolution Evolution Health, LLC, is expected to thrive in the era of the Accountable Care Act. >>Read more
Michael Shafe, MD leads a growing urgent care business, The Urgency Room - starting and expanding the business to 3 locations within six years. While growing can be anxiety-ridden, Dr. Shafe reduced some stress by following a roadmap that would apply to other healthcare service businesses. Check out his Expansion TOP TEN List:
- Determine what went right and Repeat
- Ensure business can be replicated
- Keep locations legally separate
- Do your research
- Contract with payers early
- Prepare financially
- Hire early
- Allow adequate time for hiring and training
- Create a comprehensive Operations Manual
- Market cost effectively
>>Read more
While online data sharing may be possible within a closed network, linking to those outside the network remains elusive - not real helpful in an emergency situation. To bring healthcare fully online, seamless transfer is critical. 
