UBMD

The merger moves forward

An important management council subcommittee is the transition committee, which is charged with handling the technical and logistical aspects of consolidating the 18 practice plans in anticipation of the 2012 merger deadline.

The committee is working on integrating the human resources, billing and other key operations of the different practice plans; and it is working with other council subcommittees to expand the bylaws as new policies are adopted. The contracting committee is developing a contracting process that eliminates disparities in coding and collections for the same service, and a strategy for contracting with hospitals and third parties.

Marketing

The marketing subcommittee is looking for a vendor to update the UBMD Web site and be the preferred choice for creating an online presence for each practice plan within the UBMD network. By 2010, says committee chair Larry Bone of Orthopaedics, the goal is that all UBMD departments have a Web site or page that is unified in look and feel with the UBMD parent site and brand. To boost internal referrals, the committee is developing a Web-based call center and updating the UBMD print directory.

To further unify the branding of various practice locations throughout the Buffalo area, UBMD is encouraging practice plans to send in their office location data in order for UBMD to file the "doing business as" (DBA) certificate with New York State. The certificate would allow each UBMD practice plan to officially change its external name to include the UBMD prefix (for example, UBMD Internal Medicine), to be used for all incoming phone calls, business letterhead, marketing and advertising materials, and appropriate signage. Such existing corporate practice names as University Orthopaedics Services Inc. would be retained for back-office and other legal filings. To file your practice's name under the DBA certificate, please contact UBMD counsel Brian White at 888-4704.

The marketing subcommittee is also offering UBMD practices high-quality, professionally mounted color prints of UB campus scenes (see example below) to hang in reception and exam areas. Each unframed print is 24" x 36" and is being provided to UBMD free of charge courtesy of University Communications. Mounting will be done by an outside vendor for approximately $40 each. To order, please call 888-4703.

VP funding

The UBMD management council, comprised of the chairs of each clinical academic department along with a representative from the basic science departments, representatives from the governing board, and representatives of the clinical faculty at large, has unanimously agreed that support for UBMD operational costs from the vice president for health sciences should be phased out over the next three years as UBMD moves toward a single corporation. "Everyone agrees that an academic enrichment fund, even if it is derived from clinical income, should support academic development, apart from the basic operations of the practice plan," says Steven Dubovsky. "The consolidation thus far has already produced some savings, and it's anticipated that there will be growing economies of scale, as well as expansion of sources of income." UBMD practice plans are currently supporting between 25 percent and 33 percent of their operational costs, with the VP covering the balance.

HEALTHeLINK

UBMD is now a member of HEALTHeLINK, the Western New York Clinical Information Exchange (WNYCIE), a relatively new nonprofit health information exchange. The consortium uses a central Web portal (www.wnyhealthelink.com) to connect Western New York health providers, insurers, hospitals, laboratories and other community partners. For clinicians, the exchange was designed to provide better access to lab and radiology data and e-prescribing tools, reduce medical errors and help them become better connected to each other and with local hospitals. The UBMD group became one of the first major medical groups to join, soon after HEALTHeLINK's launch in January.

Allscripts, UBMD's preferred electronic health record system, is one of six EHR vendors who are offering preferred pricing for their products to physicians through HEALTHeLINK. The WNYCIE will essentially be the hub for EHR-level clinical information for community physicians, and will provide connectivity to Medicaid and support reporting for public health needs and various disease outcomes.