Fiduciary Liability of Non-Profit Directors

The volunteer director is the backbone of the governance structure of the non-profit corporation model of corporate enterprise. Directors are responsible for exercising oversight of, and maintaining loyalty to, a business entity created not-for-profit—one that may have a financial value in the tens or hundreds of millions of dollars and, in the case of the largest non-profits, billions of dollars. Yet, recent non-profit sector scandals have, in many instances, served to highlight failures of board oversight and occurrences of self-dealing. It is within that context that perspectives on the fiduciary duties attributed to—and associated liability profile of—the non-profit director, are subject to reexamination by the public, non-profit regulators, those serving or seeking to serve as directors, and by their legal counsel. More Info

Federal Health Reform: The Impact on Hospitals and Health Systems

Federal health reform is now the law of the land. The far-reaching healthcare legislation has been compared to the original Medicare law passed in 1965, the Social Security Act of 1935, and the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This white paper takes a first look at the new reform law to help demystify its many provisions. It includes a historical overview of how the law came to pass and introduces the basic goals of reform. More Info

Specialized, Integrated, and Connected: Building a Strategic Framework for the Hospital of 2020

Hospital leaders will need to identify their organizations’ internal strengths and limitations relative to the implications, and develop a comprehensive strategic framework encompassing external and internal assump­tions, mission/vision, key strategic issues for the organization, and resource allocation, in order to prepare for the future hospital of 2020 and beyond. The premises explored in this white paper are:

1. The opportunities to be exploited can be distilled from the nine major forces driving transformation.
2. In the context of these major forces, providers should use a stra­tegic framework to (intentionally) become more specialized, more integrated, and more connected.

Maintaining Philanthropy in Hard Times: Weathering the Current Storm and Positioning the Organization for Long-Term Success

This white paper provides a helpful overview of the importance, but also the challenges, of securing enhanced philanthropic funding support for the missions of our nation’s hospitals and health systems. Board leaders, however, must move beyond the immediate challenges of raising funds as we struggle to move out of a painful and confusing era of recession and reform. More Info

Investing Capital in Uncertain Times: The Board's Role

The new economic realities challenge board members with difficult questions about what to do next. Of course, it is tempting to "just stop everything until we figure this out." However, figuring this out-during a period of great uncertainty-takes a systematic process and time. It requires openness to new, sometimes radical ideas about the future of hospitals and healthcare in general; the discipline to demand improved short-term operating performance when many in the organization feel that there is nothing left to cut, acceptance of your organiza-tion's current financial realities (forget about your former strength; it has been diminished!), the willingness to be patient until a variety of scenarios have been examined and your strategic plan reexamined, and the need to be exceptionally clear about your organization's risk preference. More Info

Leadership in Healthcare Organizations: A Guide to Joint Commission Leadership Standards

Good leadership is important for the success of any organization. In a healthcare organization, good leadership is more than just important, it is absolutely critical to the organization's success. Why is it so critical—but also challenging—in healthcare organizations? Who are the "leaders" in healthcare organizations? What is "good leadership" in healthcare organizations? And what is the "success" that healthcare organizations seek? These are the questions that Joint Commission accreditation standards on leadership attempt to answer and are the focus of this white paper, which serves as a guide to the standards. More Info

Dealing with Unprofessional Conduct: A Guide for Physician Leaders & Healthcare Organizations

There is no more daunting challenge for a physician leader than addressing the problematic performance of a peer. This task frequently intimidates both new and experienced leaders. Trained in a culture that emphasizes the value of a clinician’s autonomy, physicians are inherently reluctant to infringe on that autonomy by exerting leadership control. Nevertheless, addressing inadequate performance is perhaps the most important work that physician leaders undertake. More Info

Aligning Hospitals and Physicians: Formulating Strategy in a Changing Environment

The Days of loose cooperation between hospital and the medical staff are quickly coming to an end... More Info

Is It Safe? Addressing the Legal Liability Concerns of Physician Leaders

Healthcare is an enormous industry rife with legal conflicts and litigation. This white paper is intended to provide physician leaders with information that can assist them in their medical staff work to avoid stepping on legal landmines; to make them more confident in carrying out their responsibilities; and to arm them with information so they can make knowledgeable decisions about the risks they are willing to undertake. The discussion is focused on the legal dangers associated with medical staff work; however, it is also appropriate for the activities of physician leaders in group practices, physician organizations, insurance companies, and other institutions in our healthcare delivery system. More Info

Pricing Transparency: Implications for Hospitals, Health Systems, and Their Boards

Pricing transparency refers to a situation in which consumers know the price of goods or services they are considering purchasing before they actually make the decision to purchase them. While appropriate for many industries, this definition faces a number of complications when applied to healthcare. More Info