I’d like to formally announce Carolina Value, a system-wide initiative to improve our operational efficiency, enhance the quality of our system processes and strengthen our financial stability.
Dear Colleagues:
Thank you for your commitment and service to UNC Health Care. Your hard work and dedication help ensure that we continue to deliver quality health care that improves the health of North Carolinians.
I’d like to formally announce Carolina Value, a system-wide initiative to improve our operational efficiency, enhance the quality of our system processes and strengthen our financial stability.
Over the past two years, the UNC Health Care System and the UNC School of Medicine have grown significantly: we now have eight hospital locations across the state with more than 22,000 employees and revenues of more than $3.2 billion. Despite our rapid growth and strong financial health, UNCHCS is not immune from downward reimbursement pressures facing the health care providers in our state and throughout the country.
We chose to partner with Huron Healthcare to complete a comprehensive review of our operations and provide recommendations to further enhance our performance and ensure our long-term fiscal stability. Our leadership team will evaluate Huron’s recommendations this winter and communicate our next steps at that time. We expect to realize significant savings over the next five years through improved revenues and decreased expenses.
This is an exciting time for UNC Health Care and the right time for Carolina Value – we are in a position of strength and have grown to a level in which collaboration across the system can create better efficiency. We are confident that by working together we will achieve our goals.
Thank you for your support of this important system-wide initiative. Following this letter is a set of questions and answers. Please contact CarolinaValue@unchealth.unc.edu if you have any additional questions.
Sincerely,
William L. Roper
CEO, UNC Health Care
Dean, UNC School of Medicine
Questions & Answers
- Why are we doing the Carolina Value initiative?
Despite UNC Health Care’s significant growth and strong financial performance over the past few years, we are operating in an increasingly challenging health care environment. Reimbursements are under growing pressure even as our expenses continue to rise. It is more important than ever that we invest in our clinical programs, facilities, technology, research, and people as we strive to remain strong in a highly competitive marketplace. In short, doing more with less is the new normal in health care. It’s vital that we find ways to work more efficiently.
- How will you insure that we will maintain the quality of care we provide as we begin Carolina Value?
The focus of Carolina Value will be on best practices across the system, streamlining and simplifying our processes and improving systems that enhance the quality of care we provide to our patients.
- How will Carolina Value help determine the opportunities for process improvements and cost savings in my department?
Over the next two to three months, Huron teams will conduct a full assessment of current processes and begin to document financial, operational and patient service opportunities within each department across UNC Health Care and the UNC School of Medicine. The success of this process will depend on everyone’s full participation. We will need to work together to identify what’s working well, what’s not working well, the challenges we face, and the barriers we encounter.
- Will I get to see the data that was used to determine the projected savings goals for my department?
Each improvement area (Human Resources, Clinical Documentation, Clinical Operations, Physician Services, Revenue Cycle, etc.) will have an Oversight Committee that will review both the improvement goals and the potential initiatives that will move UNC Health Care and the UNC School of Medicine rapidly toward those goals. Each Oversight Committee will set up a number of functional teams that will focus on specific areas within the overall improvement area. For example, the Purchased Services Oversight Committee will form a Pharmacy Work Team. All of the Oversight Committees and functional teams will have the opportunity to review the data and will receive the support they need to meet each goal.
- Will Huron help implement the performance changes we identify, or does implementation fall entirely to UNC Health Care?
The Huron consultants will work closely with us to coach, mentor and assist in any way possible in the implementation of the project. They have vast experience in hospitals and health systems across the country, and their knowledge of best practices will help us achieve our performance improvement goals.
- What is my role?
Each of us should focus on how we can help meet the goals we establish for Carolina Value. We should all be asking ourselves, “How can we make this happen?”
- How much time will I need to invest in this?
Your time commitment will depend on the level of your involvement in the specific improvement initiatives in which you participate. Because so many of the initiatives will be aimed at improving efficiency, many of the improvements we undertake — once implemented and learned — should make your job easier and save time.
- How will decisions be made?
An Executive Steering Committee and core team leaders will oversee the major improvement areas (Human Resources, Clinical Documentation, Clinical Operations, Physician Services, Revenue Cycle, Labor, Nonlabor). These leaders will review the improvement recommendations. If some recommendations are particularly complex and/or controversial, the Executive Steering Committee will review and approve them prior to implementation.