Speaking Engagements

February 28, 2013

Power Home Health Referrals

Mike Ferris, Principal, Simione Healthcare Consultants

2:45 – 3:45 p.m.

How to compensate and incentivize sales staff for growth

Increase productivity and decrease turnover among your sales and marketing staff by creating an innovative compensation and bonus program that encourages more sales without breaking the bank. Attend this session and learn to create a bonus plan that aligns with your agency's specific goals and incentivizes sales staff based on individual needs. For example, older employees might be more incentivized with cash, whereas young people might be incentivized by gifts or trips.

 

 

February 28, 2013

Power Home Health Referrals-

Kara Osborne, Senior Project Manager, Simione Healthcare Consultants

9:00 – 10:15 a.m.

Turn regulatory challenges into opportunities

Increase referrals by leveraging CMS requirements related to face-to-face encounter rules, HH-CAHPS requirements and hospital readmission penalties. For example, invest in training marketers to sell your agency's disease management programs as a way to leverage your agency as a care-transition partner.

Tools: Flowchart for turning ACOs and other requirements into referral opportunities; sales guide for approaching hospital staff about the readmission requirement

 

April 12, 2013

Preparing for the Changes in Hospice Reimbursement: A Financial Perspective

Robert J. Simione

VNAA 31St Annual Meeting, Weston, Florida

The phase out of the budget neutrality adjustment factor (BNAF) and payment reductions enacted under the Affordable Care Act of 2010 has hospices scrambling to ensure financial stability.  The Congress may take additional steps in early 2012 that could futher affect hospice financial health.  At the same time, changes to the hospice payment system that could be in place as early as October 2013 demand that hospices thoroughly examine their operations and prepare for a major shift in payment incentives.  It's time for all hospices to move beyond theory and into action. This session will gather experienced hospice panelists to discuss what hospice programs can be doing to prepare their programs for the coming transformation of the Medicare hospice program.

 Objectives:

1. Outline scheduled hospice payment cuts and what is known (and not known) about anticipated hospice payments changes
2. Examine hospice operational and financial data to determine potential areas of risk in payment reform; and
3. Outline next steps for adapting hospice practices to anticipate payment reform.

 

 

April 16, 2013

Strategies for Managing Margins

David Berman, Principal, Simione Healthcare Consultants LLC
Andrea L. Devoti, President and CEO, Neighborhood Health Visiting Nurse Association

McKesson Homecare & Hospice 2013 National Users Conference

In light of the potential Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement cuts, it has become imperative that home health agencies manage their gross and net operating profit margins. Agencies need to identify and develop tools to analyze their margins and ensure that they are following best practices. Home health agencies sometimes face the question: “Why am I not meeting my budget?”. This session provides an analytical approach to assist agencies in finding an answer and getting back on track by using best practices. In addition, it will teach participants how to develop and monitor a cash flow plan based on their budget. Educational Objectives:

n  Identify and develop tools to analyze profit margins

n  Discover profit margin best practices

n  Develop and monitor cash flow 

 

April 18, 2013

Financial Benchmarking: Making Dollars Out of Cents

Rob Simione, CPA, Vice President, Simione Financial Monitor;
David Berman, CPA, CVA, Principal, Simione Healthcare Consultants

McKesson Homecare & Hospice 2013 National Users Conference

This session will review the importance of financial benchmarking to home health and hospice agencies, underlining how benchmarks can be used to grow agency bottom lines. Topics will include an overview of best practices when creating financial reports and dashboards and how to use industry benchmarks and key metric reports within your agency. It also will include a summary of sources available for benchmarking, choosing applicable benchmarks for your agency and applying benchmarks to get the most meaningful feedback. The presentation will also discuss ways to share financial benchmarks with your board, management and staff.

3 ways your business operations will improve:

• Identify key financial benchmarks within the home health and hospice industry

• Apply these benchmarks to better understand agency performance

• Identify revenue and cost drivers to increase agency bottom line

 

April 18, 2013

Productivity - The Good, the Bad and the Best”

Betty L. Gordon, RN, BSN, MPH, Simione Healthcare Consultants

11am-12:30pm Oregon Association for Home Care Eagle Crest Resort, Redmond, Oregon

This presentation will address one of the major driving forces for home health agencies —
productivity. Often this word is considered a "dirty" word for staff, however the effectiveness of
establishing and achieving productivity standards is a key of an agency's success. Some of the areas
impacted by productivity include Quality of Care (outcomes); patient and employee satisfaction;
utilization and perhaps most important the agency's financial performance. Included in the presentation
will be strategies to assist agencies in improving productivity while ensuring satisfied clients and
employees in this rapidly changing health care environment. This presentation will also provide
home health leaders with concrete ideas on how to achieve the most productivity out of their
employees while continuing to provide high quality services with "happy" employees.

 

April 25, 2013

Hospice Salesnomics: The Science and Art of Hospice Growth

Mike Ferris, Principal

10:15am-11:45am 2L NHPCO 28th Management and Leadership Conference Gaylord National, National, MD

Learning Objective:
1. Describe the impact of the new healthcare continuum, including ACOs, on the growth of hospice programs
2. Discuss how to sell hospice services, in this new world, effectively and efficiently
3. Improve referral management processes to cut costs and improve revenues and satisfaction scores

Description:

In the new healthcare continuum, hospices must be adept at selling quality outcomes, cost savings and risk management. They must be able to grow referrals while cutting their costs. This workshop explores industry best practices along the entire referral process, from sales to admission. Discover sophisticated hospice growth strategies to support your hospice’s future viability.

 

April 25, 2013

Understanding the Changes in Hospital Reimbursement and Adjusting Your Sales and Marketing Strategy Accordingly

Katherine Northcutt, RN
Kara Osborne, MBA,

NHPCO 28th Annual Conference Gaylord National, Washington DC

 

GET INVITED TO THE CARE CONTINUUM CONVERSATION: UNDERSTANDING THE CHANGES IN HOSPITAL REIMBURSEMENT AND ADJUSTING YOUR MARKETING STRATEGY ACCORDINGLY

This session describes to hospices how to develop programs

focused on favorable re-hospitalization outcomes and how to

present them to the hospital partners in their communities,

ensuring repeat hospice referrals in an environment of

restricted hospital reimbursement.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

• Describe the approach to developing a program designed

to decrease re-hospitalizations

• Cite outcomes from such programs

• Demonstrate techniques for presenting re-hospitalization

programs to your hospital referral partners

 

May 1, 2013

Benchmarking and Best Practices: Understanding How to Establish Home Care Benchmarks that Reach Organizational Goals

Bill Simione, III, Principal

CAHSAH Annual Conference, Monterey, CA Convention Center 3:00pm-4:30pm

 

Wednesday, May 1, 2013, 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM

The pressure to make good decisions is more intense than ever.

Do you really know if you’re making the correct ones? Using

industry specific benchmarks can help your organization focus

on making good sound business decisions. Learn how to use

benchmarks to maximize your financial outcomes and provide a

measurable matrix that provides insight into your organizations

success.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

• Learn what key benchmarks are used to measure success

• Understand how benchmarks play an integral part of

budgeting

• Understand the driving forces that comprise all benchmarks

 

May 2, 2013

HOME CARE AND HOSPICE: THE PRE-ACUTE SOLUTION

Michael Ferris, Principal

CAHSAH Annual Conference, Monterey, CA Convention Center 3:45pm-5:15pm

 

It is vital that home health and hospice agencies are able to

demonstrate the value to the referral community of identifying

patient referrals prior to hospitalization. It is the number one

growth strategy for most agencies and is our obligation. It only

makes sense to deliver care at home and prevent unnecessary

hospitalizations.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

• Describe our passion for the difference we make in the

community

• Discover how each member of the home health or hospice

agency can play a part in getting the referral of patients on a

pre-acute basis

• Take home a plan to implement at least three things to

increase appropriate utilization of home health and hospice

services in their community

 

May 2, 2013

Understanding Changes in Hospital Reimbursement and Adjusting your Marketing Strategy Accordingly

Kara Osborne & Katherine Northcutt, Rn, Senior Manager

CAHSAH Annual Conference, Monterey, CA Convention Center 3:45pm -5:15pm

GET INVITED TO THE CARE CONTINUUM CONVERSATION: UNDERSTANDING THE CHANGES IN HOSPITAL REIMBURSEMENT AND ADJUSTING YOUR MARKETING STRATEGY ACCORDINGLY

This session describes to hospices how to develop programs

focused on favorable re-hospitalization outcomes and how to

present them to the hospital partners in their communities,

ensuring repeat hospice referrals in an environment of

restricted hospital reimbursement.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

• Describe the approach to developing a program designed

to decrease re-hospitalizations

• Cite outcomes from such programs

• Demonstrate techniques for presenting re-hospitalization

programs to your hospital referral partners

 

May 2, 2013

Risk Assessment to Develop Preemptive Compliance audit Plan

Karen Bommelje RN BSN HCS-D CHC, Senior Manager

CAHSAH Annual Conference, Monterey, CA Convention Center 2:00pm-3:30pm

A robust and effective compliance audit plan is essential in today’s environment of increased scrutiny in areas related to fraud prevention. In this presentation we will discuss the “vegetable soup” of pre and post payment review activities and the resultant impact on Home Health and Hospice Agencies.  Areas of heightened risk for both Home Health and Hospice Agencies will be identified and discussed.  Agency Risk Assessments are key in the development of an effective compliance audit plan and imperative in the identification of resource allocation in order to develop focused preemptive compliance audits.  We will address the importance of a just culture and the role of culture in the development of an effective compliance audit plan.  We will discuss how a risk assessment will assist you to identify risk areas which are unique to your agency and how to design your audit plan in order to address these risks.

 

May 22, 2013

Change, Control, and Culture: The Evolution of a Utilization Review Process

Ron Barrera, Director, Simione Healthcare Consultants
Coleen M. Schmidt, Senior Vice President of Clinical Services & COO, Horizon Home Care and Hospice
Mary Haynor, President & CEO, Horizon Home Care and Hospice

4;15pm-5:45pm-National Association for Home Care & Hospice Annual Meeting & Exposition in Washington, DC

This program will provide clinical and financial managers with a model for management of home health utilization that can be applied at any home health agency with pay-per-visit staff. The presenters will describe and offer guidance for implementation of the model, which includes clinical review and internal authorization of Medicare visits based on clinical documentation and patient needs.

 

May 22, 2013

2:30pm-4:00pm-Strategies for Managing Margins-Working Smarter not Harder

William J. Simione, III

Michigan Association for Home Care 2013 Annual Conference Grand Traverse Resort & Spa Acme, Michigan 2:30pm-4:00pm

 Program Participants will be able to:
1.  Identify operational tips and strategies that home care agencies can use to operate at peak performance;
2.  Identify financial strategies that means thinking beyond cost cutting; and,
3.  Creating a culture of performance excellence and accountability.

 

May 22, 2013

1:00pm-2:30pm- Integrating Clinical and Financial Management

William Simione, III

Michigan Association for Home Care 2013 Annual Conference, 2013 Grand Traverse Resort & Spa Acme, Michigan 1:00-2:30pm

 

Program Participants will be able to:
1.  Recognize key clinical and financial indicators that can be used daily, weekly etc.
2.  Analyze trends by comparing to previously run data;
3.  Use data to integrate and educate your clinical and financial teams; and,
4.  Report to senior managers and Board of Directors.

 

June 5, 2013

Using Metrics to Manage Your Hospice

Rob Simione, Vice President, Simione Financial Monitor
Kim Skehan, RN, MSN, Senior Manager

New England Home Care Conference and Tradeshow, MGM Grand at Foxwoods, Mashantucket, CT

 10:30am-11:45am

 

In this climate of challenge and change, it is critical that hospices successfully utilize and integrate relevant, up-to-date, easy-to-interpret data. This interactive program will focus on the unique challenges the hospice organizations face and the importance of effectively utilizing data to identify clinical, operational and financial goals for both inpatient and community-based settings. Participants will identify strategies to foster hospice organization management and staff engagement in successful implementation of these goals. Examples of how best integrate hospice clinical, operational and financial data in clear and concise reports to better inform management decisions will also be presented.

 

June 6, 2013

Round Table Discussion: Engaging Employees and Overcoming Resistance to New Technology Initiatives

Marian Entin, Principal, Simione Healthcare Consultants
David Berman, Principal, Simione Healthcare Consultants

7am-8am, HomeCare and Hospice LINK, Swissotel, Chicago, Illinois

 

June 13, 2013

Measuring the Impact of Managed Care on Your Bottom Line

Rob Simione, CPA, Vice President, Simione Financial Monitor
Frank Giannantonio -FGA, Inc.

Home Care Association of New Jersey Annual Conf. and Expo Tropicana Casino, Atlantic City, NJ 2:00pm-3:30pm

Agencies must manage quality care while understanding costs associated with managed care contracts. This presentation will benefit Home Health and Health Care Service Firm agencies by outlining the financial impacts from today’s managed care population. It is designed to explain what financial processes should be in place before signing a managed care contract. This program will cover how to measure your direct care costs as well as the implications on your back office staff such as billing, intake and clinical. Attendees will be better prepared to deal with the challenges managed care can impose.

 

June 13, 2013

Beyond the 7 Elements”: How to Create a Culture of Compliance

Dolly M. Curley, RN, DABFN, BSN, LNCC, HCS-D

Home Care Association of New Jersey Annual Conf. and Expo Tropicana Casino, Atlantic City, NJ 2:00pm-3:00pm

The OIG stresses that the culture of an organization should promote ‘prevention’, ‘detection’ and ‘resolution’ with respect to compliance issues. This session will prepare an agency for the CMS age of recovery and enforcement and will provide a review of the OIG’s seven elements of compliance and how to incorporate these elements into an assessment tool. An effective compliance program will allow agencies to be in a much better position to defend and maintain a successful business where success integrates a multidisciplinary approach that begins with leadership and a “Just Culture”.

 

June 20, 2013

What Role Can Homecare Play in Your Strategic Plan

Bill Simione, III, Principal
Kim Skehan, RN, MSN, Senior Manager

Leading Age Connecticut Webinar: 11am-12noon

 

June 25, 2013

Home Care and Hospice:The Pre-Acute Solution

Mike Ferris, Principal

Texas Association HCSSA Administrator Program, Irving, TX

Want to grow your referrals from your best accounts? Want to better connect with the community through social media? Don’t miss this session with the national expert on home care and hospice sales strategies. Becoming a pre-acute provider is a win-win-win-win! Good for patient, referral partner, your agency and Medicare.

 

June 25, 2013

How Might Hospice Enhance Your Scope of Services?

Kim Skehan, RN, MSN, Senior Manager
Lisa Lapin, Principal

Leading Age Connecticut Webinar: 11am-12noon

 

June 27, 2013

Smart Marketing: Business Building with Limited Time and Limited Money.

Mike Ferris, Principal

Visiting Angels Annual Meeting, Baltimore, MD

 

June 27, 2013

ACO's. What are they and Why Should I Care?

Mike Ferris, Principal

Visiting Angels Annual Meeting, Baltimore, MD

 

July 24, 2013

Understanding the Changes in Hospital Reimbursement and Adjusting Your Sales and Marketing Strategy Accordingly

Kara Osborne, Senior Manager

Rosen Shingle Creek Resort in Orlando 1:30-2:50pm

Get Invited To The Care Continuum Conversation: Understanding The Changes In Hospital Reimbursement and Adjusting Your Marketing Strategy Accordingly.
This session describes to hospices how to develop programs focused on favorable re-hospitalization outcomes and how to present them to the hospital partners in their communities, ensuring repeat hospice referrals in an environment of restricted hospital reimbursement. 

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

• Describe the approach to developing a program designed to decrease re-hospitalizations

• Cite outcomes from such programs demonstrate techniques for presenting re-hospitalization programs to your hospital referral partners

 

August 12, 2013

Acute Care Hospitalization

Katherine Northcutt, Senior Manager, Simione Healthcare Consultants

Westin Hilton Head Island Resort & Spa Hilton Head Island, SC

 

November 1, 2013

How to Maintain Your Margin and Still Provide Superior Quality Care

David Berman, Principal, Simione Healthcare Consultants and Andrea Devoti, President, Neighborhood Health

8am-9:30am-National Association for Home Care & Hospice Annual Meeting & Exposition in Washington, DC

The participants in this program will learn about managing their margins for both hospice and home care without loosing the quality scores and care that the patients deserve. The presenters will discuss benchmarking of data and outcomes that one agency uses to ensure that the care provided is both high-quality and cost effective.

 

November 2, 2013

802-Change, Control, & Culture - The Evolution of a Utilization Review Process

Ron Barrera, Director, Simione Healthcare Consultants
Mary Haynor, President and CEO of Horizon Home Care
Colleen Schmidt, Hospice Director

Gaylord National, National, MD

4:15pm-5:45pm
This program will provide clinical and financial managers with a model for management of home health utilization that can be applied at any home health agency with pay-per-visit staff. The presenters will describe and offer guidance for implementation of the model, which includes clinical review and internal authorization of Medicare visits based on clinical documentation and patient needs.

 

November 2, 2013

Move That Bus! Extreme Marketing Makeover (It's Easier Than You Think)

Kara Osborne, Senior Manager

8am-9:30am-National Association for Home Care & Hospice Annual Meeting & Exposition, Gaylord National Maryland

This session will describe how to makeover your business development strategy by focusing on the basics. Participants will learn how to identify and overcome barriers to success, and to drive growth by utilizing existing resources. Basic tactics for driving growth by utilizing existing resources will be presented.

 

November 18, 2013

How Value-Driven Care Changes Your Value Proposition

Mike Ferris, Principal

16th Annual Private Duty National Conference & Expo, Las Vegas on 4:00 to 5:00 p.m.

Rapid changes in the health care delivery system mean that you need to reposition your value proposition in order to grow your home care agency going forward. Find creative ways to communicate how you can help ACOs and other population managers reduce readmissions, increase patient satisfaction, decrease costs and view your agency as a forward-thinking innovative partner.