Rogers

How can you plan ahead when the market is changing daily all around you?

"It has been difficult for our physicians and management to focus on long range issues in the face of overwhelming immediate problems and opportunities. But a changing environment requires a very clear sense of direction and well defined priorities; The Tompkins Group was the key to achieving these for ACP."

Alan Rogers, M.D.
Executive Committee, Board of Directors
Arizona Community Physicians
Tucson, Arizona

Arizona Community Physicians of Tucson, Arizona, is a primary care physician group formed in 1995 and located in heavily managed care-penetrated market. The physician members of the group held widely differing views about the group’s managed care direction, both in terms of external positioning and internal infrastructure development. In addition, many felt that because of constant change and urgent immediate issues (such as contracting), it was impossible to develop a strategic plan that would have any validity.

To help the group develop a managed care strategy, The Tompkins Group:

conducted one-on-one interviews with most of the group’s physicians, using a standardized "survey" so that "statistical" results could be tabulated to assess the range of opinions held by the physicians;
identified and recruited a cross-section of physician leaders to participate in a managed care committee and to become "experts" in managed care and the local market;
conducted a series of meetings with the committee that were both educational and strategic, using literature reviews to prepare for discussion of important strategic issues; and
helped the committee develop a vision statement, goals, objectives, and specific critical actions for five strategies: expansion and configuration of the group’s delivery system; payer relationships; medical management; information management, and changing the group’s culture from fee-for-service to managed care.

The actions recommended by the committee were endorsed by the group’s Board of Directors -- as were the vision, goals, and objectives -- and are now being implemented.