Centroplex Health System’s (CHS) premier Occupational Medicine Program, Workwell, is designed to lower health care costs, increase productivity and reduce absenteism, improve employee morale, retain and attract high-quality employees, and provide a positive return of investment. Workwell will be Killeen’s pioneer Industrial Occupational Medicine Program and will serve area businesses, helping them to become more productive, while lowering their overall costs.
Employers want to lower their health care costs. They seek out occupational medicine clinics that offer the following components. Accessibility, drug screening services and high quality staff are all important. State-of-the art care is also available. Workwell’s mission is to promote total health for body, mind and spirit while forming and nurturing relationships with local businesses.
WorkwellՉ۪s existence rests on two simple facts.
- Employees who are healthy are more productive than those who are chronically ill.
- It is less expensive to prevent injuries than to treat them when they occur.
By helping employees change their behavior patterns and choose more healthy lifestyles, Workwell will lower a company’s health care expenditures, while raising worker productivity. Reduced medical insurance premiums, lower absenteism, decreased turnover rates, worker’’s compensation claims, shorter hospital stays, and reduced tardiness will all result in lower health care expenditures.
Centroplex Health System’s (CHS), relationship is a key advantage for Workwell. CHS is the most preferred provider for health care services in the service area. This means that CHS supports all the structures needed to build a successful Occupational Medicine Program such as Workwell. These structures include an Emergency Department, freestanding walk-in facilities (i.e. COMC), a network primary and specialist physicians, and an MCO (currently in development). The four structures together should create a loop which serves as a catalyst for business to flow into Workwell. In return, Workwell should refer back to the four structures, complete the loop. The model proposes to provide both Occupational Medicine services and primary care services under one location, which is COMC. This service combination will provide a more comprehensive system for Occupational Health services and Primary Care to our client employers. This will create a synergy which expands the market and establishes new relationships. It also reduces operating costs and generates new revenues.
The keys to success and the key factors that will determine your success over the next three years according to Workwell are:
- Implementation of a winning marketing strategy/plan for employers.
- Resourcing experienced medical and administrative talent.
- Enter the Occupational Medicine market and build a “brand” name before the competition.
- Commitment to continually improve the quality of our service
- Demonstrate a financial return on investment.
- Senior Management’s commitment
CHS should develop and implement an occupational medical program as per the business plan. According to market research, there were 7,720 worker injury claims last year. CHS handled 2,532. In addition, worker compensation injuries are projected to increase to a total of 9,446 in the next four years. This business plan has a five-year goal to position CHS so that it can treat 5,064 workers compensation injuries, and thus achieve 53 percent market share.
Below is a chart that illustrates the overall highlights of the business plan for the next five-years. Total visits to COMC are projected to increase from 11,085 to 15,918 by Year 5. This will translate into an increase in total revenues as well as net surplus.
1.1 Objectives
- Workwell’s primary objective will be to help ESTABLISH Centroplex Health System in its service area as the #8220ONE STOP SHOPPING#8221 MEDICAL CENTER HEALTH CARE.
- Offer a full range of Industrial Occupational Medicine Services that provide prompt, high-quality medical care for all employees injured.
- By Year 1, you will provide Occupational medicine services to 10 Killeen employers with 50 employees and 20 small employers with 50 employees.
- To expand the market and offer Occupational Medicine services, employers will need to be able to access these zip codes by Year 2.
1.1.1 Observation, Recommendations
OBSERVATIONOccupational health programs have been stepchildren in hospitals because they’ve historically not brought in much revenue. They could be more lucrative if the health system develops the competencies to sell them directly to employers. Providers must take action and pursue new revenue streams as the health care dollar is shrinking due to the limitations of managed care. Occupational health can provide a venue and format for building positive relationships between local employers and employees, which could lead to new revenue streams.
RECOMMENDATIONS
The underlying factor in these recommendations is TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE FOR DEVELOPING WORKWELL.
The following are the options and recommendations that were made:
Hire a consultant to help you start your program.
This recommendation is based on two reasons: First, occupational medicine programs require expertise. Second, we don’t need to reinvent the wheel when there are proven methods. All of the programs studied hired either an experienced occupational medical director or an external consultant to bring the program to life. CHS has no expertise in this field and doesn’t plan to hire one. Therefore, it is worth considering consulting firms.
Other reasons are:
This option will allow CHS to start offering area employers as well as its own employees a formalized occupational medicine program within 30 – 45 days. It is possible to pay professionals to help implement the proven methods ($$$), reducing the staff burden. Senior leadership will be more committed to the program’s success if they spend the money to hire consultants.
CHS faces the possibility of having a “canned program”, but it is well-known that the positives outweigh all the negatives. Three consulting firms have submitted bids to this project. These three firms are Concentra Health Services Florida Hospital and Occupational Health Research. This information has been included in my presentation.
Develop an occupational medicine program in-house
Positives:
You can save money.
Program customized.Negatives:
Time frame
Lack of expertise.
The lack of senior leadership commitment.
Decision to remain status quo:
The program will still operate as before this option.
Positives:
None.Negatives:
Continue to lose revenue
Potential to lose market shares
Do not miss the chance to network with local employers
Miss the opportunity to become a “one stop shop” for health care services.
CHS employee injury costs will continue to escalate.
Division of COMC
This option involves placing COMC on a marketplace for sale.
Positives:
Many people have a lot to spend.
You can invest the $$$ to develop or expand new programs.
Leadership can be more focused on issues that are closer to their hearts.
In the short term, improve CHS’ bottom lineNegatives:
Lose new revenue stream.
Lose market share.
Loss in prime location
Establish a rival in that setting.
It is easy to lose your identity on the market.
1.2 Mission
Workwell is a client-focused, premier industrial occupational medical program. Workwell uses a team approach to provide high quality occupational health safety and rehabilitation services.
1.3 Keys to Success
Workwell’s keys to success are:
- Successful marketing strategies/plans for employers are developed and implemented.
- We are looking for experienced administrative and medical talent.
- In the Occupational Medicine Market and Building a “”8220”
Before the competition, brand” name.