Printer-friendly format

Michael Conrath

As executive director of the Frist Clinic, Michael Conrath, MBA, CMPE, oversees a large, diverse practice with a little more than 200 employees who cover the main office on Patterson Street on the Centennial Medical Center campus plus Frist Clinic Family Care Centers in Ashland City and Kingston Springs.

Founded in 1993, the HCA-affiliated, multi-specialty practice is home base for 40 board-certified physicians and mid-level providers. Specialties include internal medicine, family practice, gastroenterology, pulmonology, endocrinology and infectious disease.

Conrath joined the practice in January 2008 when he relocated to Nashville from south Florida. Although he has more than two decades of medical practice management experience, Conrath's early career was spent in the diversified energy industry. With a growing sense of "same old, same old" in his original field, Conrath said he was attracted to healthcare because there was an ongoing sense of excitement and innovation.

"Medicine seemed to be so dynamic," he recalled of the early enticement.

While he laughingly admits some days can be filled with a bit too much excitement, he hasn't regretted the switch. His first practice management experience came in the field of radiology as he helped build imaging centers in Florida. At the beginning of this year, he and his family embarked on yet another new adventure when they pulled up stakes and moved to Nashville.

"We have family here so we've visited about twice a year for the last 25 years," he said. "We decided we wanted to move here with kids and grandkids."

The diversity of the Frist Clinic has been a natural fit for his management skills and his love of the new and challenging.

"Although I've managed physician groups for a long time, it was in a single specialty. Managing a multi-specialty practice has been a bit different," he noted, adding he likes the mix of viewpoints and specific needs. Conrath also said that no matter what the specialty, practices face some very similar issues.

NMN) What is the most challenging part of managing a large, multi-specialty practice with multiple locations?

MC) Communication is a huge challenge. Even in a world of instant electronic communication, it is extremely difficult to keep everyone in touch with each other, especially in a multi-specialty practice where information needs aren't necessarily uniform from specialty to specialty or location to location. It's also challenging to keep different geographic locations feeling like they are part of the same cohesive team when they don't interact on a regular basis.

NMN) How do you mitigate this challenge?

MC) We asked our employees! Based on their responses, we are putting in place several communications enhancements, including comprehensive e-mail, an employee action group to communicate back to management, and better feedback to employees to let them know how they … and the company … are doing. We have determined 10 key factors that are indicative of our performance –– such as patient satisfaction survey results and key volume metrics –– and will post them regularly in conspicuous locations.

NMN Note: Conrath added that the process begins with the company-wide HCA survey that goes to all 200,000 employees. From those broad-based results, he explained, "We find the general opportunities for improvement and hone in on those." He added one of the joys is involving staff in the decision-making process to bring about improvements. He said it's always fun to see someone who thinks nothing will change realize their opinions and ideas are valued. "Ideas start pouring forth … it's energizing," he added.

NMN) What do you consider a common mistake made by administrators that can ultimately erode success?

MC) I think a common mistake is the tendency to forget that the world is changing very quickly, and you have to change with it. Unless you stay aware of what's happening in the industry and anticipate changes, the "We always did it that way" syndrome can set in. Just because something worked well 10 years ago doesn't mean it is relevant today.

NMN) What can administrators do to either anticipate or react to market changes?

MC) Industry associations always seem to be the best source of advance news about trends, whether through publications and conferences, or simply through networking among members. I would recommend membership in associations such as MGMA, and subscriptions to a few key national publications such as HealthLeaders and Group Practice Journal as a good starting point. Joining a local industry group or local chapter of a national association will keep you abreast of more local and regional issues, as will subscribing to local publications such as Nashville Medical News.

NMN) Over the past few decades, many in the healthcare industry have remarked that care has become increasingly complex both in clinical and administrative functions. How has managing a practice changed over time?

MC) Healthcare is an extremely complex industry to begin with, and it has been seriously burdened by a myriad of complex and expensive regulations. Keeping healthcare costs down is very difficult in an age of incredible new (and expensive) technology coupled with a dramatic shift in patient demographics due to aging baby boomers. When we pile on layers of expensive regulations that slow down processes and increase costs, we only add to the problem.

NMN) If you could have one-on-one time with the incoming U.S. President, what would you say are among the most pressing issues in healthcare reform?

MC) The two most pressing issues in my opinion are: a) The increasing number of uninsured; and b) The situation caused by an increasing number of elderly healthcare consumers at a time when there is a dwindling number of active workers available to finance those needs.

NMN Note: Of the growing uninsured and underinsured, Conrath pointed out the expectation of rendering services for free is really unique to medicine. He added, "We all feel an obligation to take a certain number of indigent cases." However, he continued, "The share is getting too big."

NMN) What advice do you like to pass along to young practice managers or those considering entering the field?

MC) Medical management is probably one of the most complex (and sometimes frustrating!) occupations you could possibly choose. It is also undoubtedly one of the most rewarding … if you remember that your primary mission is to improve the health and lives of your patients. Even though you will be distracted by a flurry of daily activities, never forget why you are here.

Tags:

None

Login and voice your opinion!