In This Issue
CHNA Member Briefing
New HCWP Staff Members
Rural Floor Budget Neutrality Appeal
Board Meeting
Allied Member Meeting and Reception
Health Literacy
Survey Update
Upcoming Committee Meetings
June Meetings and Programs
Past Meeting Summaries
New Allied Members
Other Programs of Interest
May Member Briefing on Community Health Needs Assessments
Prioritization and Action Planning will be the focus of Hospital Council's next member briefing on Community Health Needs Assessments. The briefing will be held on May 23, 2012 at Hospital Council's Conference Center from 1 p.m. until 3 p.m. Lunch will be available from 12:30 p.m. to 1 p.m. Hospital Council's CHNA Steering Committee will meet immediately following the briefing from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Debra Thompson and Toni Felice from Strategy Solutions, Inc. will conduct the briefing. They will cover the following topics:
- Summarizing the data to make it "actionable"
- Identifying "issues categories"
- Developing criteria for selection issues & priorities and interventions
- Deciding who is going to be involved in the prioritization process
- Identifying areas for action
- Deciding what the hospital will "select" for interventions
- Developing the action plan itself (and tying it to readmission and continuum of care strategies)
- Understanding the role of evaluation in the development of an action plan
The briefing is provided free of charge to Hospital Council members, however, registration is required. For more information contact Pat Raffaele at .
Hospital Council Appoints New Staff Members
Hospital Council announced the addition of two new staff members: Carmela Breslin, coordinator of Data and Special Projects, and Denis J. Lukes, CPA, vice president of Payor Relations and Reimbursement.
Carmela Breslin joined Hospital Council as coordinator of Data and Special Projects in March 2012. She works on the data collection for Hospital Council's Flash Survey and Human Resource salary surveys as well as on other surveys. In addition, she works on special projects such as with Hospital Council's health literacy project.
Before formally joining Hospital Council's staff,Carmela worked as an Administrative Resident with Hospital Council while she completed her master of Public Health in Health Policy and Management from the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She received her bachelor of Arts degree in Health, Science, Society and Policy from Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts and while there served as a legislative intern for State Senator Susan Fargo.
Denis J. Lukes, CPA, joined Hospital Council as vice president of Payor Relations and Reimbursement. In his role, Denis works with member chief financial officers to help drive financial improvement in the region's hospitals with a focus on reimbursement and revenue cycle issues. He also manages Hospital Council's Flash Survey and other special financial surveys and serves as a key staff member to several member Committees and work groups.
Prior to joining Hospital Council, Denis served as vice president, Finance for the West Penn Allegheny Health System and before he held that position, served as vice president of Finance and Chief Financial Officer for the St. Francis Health System. He has held variousother positions as well.Denis holds a bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and is a certified public accountant.
Please join Hospital Council in welcoming Carmela Breslin and Denis Lukes. Carmela can be reached at and Denis can be reached at .
Rural Floor Budget Neutrality Appeal
A group of Hospital Council members will receive more than $21 million in retroactive payments from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services as a result of an appeal process initiated by Hospital Council in conjunction with Dale Baker Consulting and the law firm Hall Render. The appeal process started in 2007. As a result, 21 Hospital Council members will receive retroactive payments. In addition, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center hospitals will receive $23 million from the appeal process.
Hospitals are expected to receive settlement amounts by June 30, 2012. Hospital Council members who did not participate in the initial appeal can still appeal for any years that have not been closed by CMS. In many cases this will include years back to 2008 and earlier. Hospital Council member chief financial officers will receive more information in the near futureon the new appeal process. For more information contact Denis Lukes at .
Board of Directors to Meet
Hospital Council's Board of Directors will meet on Friday, May 11, 2012 beginning at 10 a.m. at Hospital Council's Conference Center. Reese Jackson, president and Chief Executive Officer of West Penn Allegheny Health System Forbes Regional Campus, will be joining the Board as a new member. For more information about the meeting contact Judy Harrison at .
Allied Member Meeting and Reception
Hospital Council's Allied Members and Business Partners are invited to a special meeting and reception on May 16, 2012 at Hospital Council's Conference Center. The meeting will be held from 3 p.m. until 4:30 p.m. and will be followed by a reception from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. The reception will feature hors d'oeuvres, beer, wine and soft drinks. The meeting and reception is sponsored by Cowden Associates, Inc., an Allied Member of Hospital Council.
The meeting will feature a presentation by Jim Aubel, chief financial officer of Jameson Health System. Jim will speak on Challenges Our Community Hospitals Are Facing Today. In addition, Jere Cowden, founder and chairman of Cowden Associates, Inc., will provide a brief presentation and Hospital Council President A. J. Harper will provide an update.
The meeting is provided free of charge to Hospital Council's Allied Members and Business Partners. To register for the meeting contact Peggy Maxwell at . For more information contact Pat Raffaele at .
Health Literacy Project Receives Initial Funding
The regional Health Literacy project received initial funding from the Highmark Foundation. The $45,000 grant will be used to conduct a baseline survey of people in Allegheny and surrounding counties on health literacy. The results of the survey will be used to determine specific areas of focus for the project.
The Health Literacy Advisory Council will meet at Hospital Council's Conference Center on May 22, 2012 and alsoon June 19, 2012 from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
For more information contact Carmela Breslin at or Pat Raffaele at .
Survey Update
Flash Survey
Hospital Council released the Flash Survey results for the Second Quarter of FY 2012. The survey reflects continuing trends related to volume and uncompensated care with operating margins decreasing further to 4.13 percent. For more information contact Denis Lukes at .
Benchmark Salary Survey
Hospital Council is collecting data for the July release of the Benchmark Salary Survey. Many members have already submitted their data; however, data will be accepted until May 22, 2012.For more information contact Carmela Breslin at r Pat Raffaele at .
Upcoming Committee Meetings
HR Committee Meeting
The HR Committee will meet from 9:30 a.m. until noon on May 10, 2012 at Hospital Council's Conference Center. The Committee will focus on three primary topics:
- The HR and service focus related to the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCHAPS)
- House Bill 1880, the Pennsylvania bill that requires hospitals to have nurse committees for the purpose of advising hospitals in establishing nurse staffing plans for each unit of the hospital
- HR and physician practices
The meeting will also include a roundtable discussion. For more information contact Pat Raffaele at .
AR Committee Meeting
The Accounts Receivable Committee will meet on May 16, 2012 from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Hospital Council's Conference Center. Novitas/Medicare will provide an update and discuss current issues as well as their transition from Highmark to Novitas. In addition, Highmark will discuss current topics. The meeting will also include a roundtable discussion. For more information contact Denis Lukes at .
CFO/COO Committee Meeting
The Medicare Wage Index and Medical Assistance Modernization will be two primary topics for the May 18th CFO/COO Committee meeting. The meeting will be held from 9:30 a.m. to noon at Hospital Council's Conference Center. Other meeting topics include the Medicare rural floor appeals, audit issues and revenue cycle enhancement opportunities. For more information contact Denis Lukes at r Pat Raffaele at .
Risk/Quality Committee Meeting
Tools regarding risk assessment for high risk clinical and nonclinical units and following serious adverse events will be one of the key areas of focus for the May 23rd Risk/Quality Committee meeting. The meeting will be held beginning at 9:30 a.m. at both Hospital Council's Conference Center and Brookville Hospital's Education Center. The two sites will be video-linked together. Other topics include a focus on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) efficiency measures and an update on the Patient Safety Authority Hospital Engagement Network projects. Current roundtable topics are value based purchasing, meaningful use, employee influenza vaccines and surveys. For more information contact Jane Montgomery at , Kathy Wonderly at or Pat Raffaele at .
Managed Care Committee Meeting
Hospital Council's Managed Care Committee will meet on May 30, 2012. An agenda and additional information will be available in the near future. For more information contact Jane Montgomery at .
June Meetings and Programs
CEO Assistants Forum
Hospital Council will hold its annual CEO Assistants Forum on June 13, 2012 at Hospital Council's Conference Center from 10 a.m. until approximately 1:30 p.m. The primary topic will be wellness and Janet Banaszak MA, RN from Highmark will provide a presentation. The meeting will also include a roundtable discussion. For more information contact Judy Harrison at .
Retired Administrators Luncheon
Hospital Council will host its annual luncheon for the region's retired administrators on June 19, 2012. The luncheon will be held at Hospital Council's Conference Center beginning at 11:30 a.m. For more information contact Judy Harrison at
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Compliance Committee Meeting
The Office of Civil Rights will provide an update and information at Hospital Council's June 21st Compliance Committee meeting. The meeting will begin at 9:30 a.m. and conclude with a networking lunch at approximately 1 p.m. The meeting will also include a focus on "hot" topics from the national Health Care Compliance Association (HCCA) conference, a discussion on RAC and other audits, an update on the HCCA East Region Conference and a roundtable discussion. For more information contact Pat Raffaele at .
Summaries of Past Meetings
Compliance Committee Meeting
The Compliance Committee meeting on April 20, 2012 focused on RAC audits. The Committee discussed the current status of RAC Audits in the region as well as conducted an in-depth review of data available from the American Hospital Association's RAC Trac tool. The group also discussed the final agenda for the East Regional HCCA conference and held a roundtable discussion. For more information contact Pat Raffaele at .
HIM Committee Meeting
The Health Information Management Committee met on May 2, 2012 and focused on CDI integration and also on voice recognition. Mel Tully, senior vice president of Clinical Services and Education for J.A. Thomas and Associates discussed CDI integration and Earl Schweinsberg, project manager for ACUSIS discussed voice recognition software. The group also held a roundtable discussion. For more information contact Jane Montgomery at
New Allied Members
Hospital Council welcomes two new Allied Members:
Citizens Bank is a full service bank and works with the region's hospitals on finding capital funding and on other banking needs. For more information contactMarc Kennedy at .
Celerity is a business acceleration consultancy with an office in Pittsburgh. One of the primary areas of focus for Celerity is assisting healthcare organizations with process improvement through Lean, Six Sigma and other programs. For more information contact James Heatherington at .
For more information about Hospital Council's Allied Membership program contact Pat Raffaele at .
OtherPrograms of Interest
HCCA East Central Regional Conference
The Health Care Compliance Association East Central Regional Conference will be held on October 12, 2012 at the Regional Learning Alliance in Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania. Among the confirmed speakers are Shelly Harris, compliance officer for the Upper Allegheny Health System; Linde Wilson, chief executive officer, Sharon Regional Health System; William Maruca, an attorney with Fox Rothschild LLP, Pittsburgh; and Robert H. Ossoff, assistant vice chancellor for Compliance and Corporate Integrity, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee. Several members of Hospital Council's Compliance Committee served on the Program Planning Committee. The Committee is chaired by Linda Lattner, director of Compliance and Insurance at St. Clair Hospital and Co-Chair of Hospital Council's Compliance Committee. For more information visit
Hospital Council ofWestern Pennsylvania
Hospital Council of Western Pennsylvania is a strategic partner with western Pennsylvania health care providers and affiliated organizations, enabling them to realize their missions while maintaining their status as economically viable entities.
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