Pattullo Lecture 2006. Crossing the educational chasm: preparing healthcare leaders for interprofessional practice.

Despite marked differences in training and professional interests, physicians and hospital administrators face similar problems: failure of reimbursement to keep pace with rising costs, new therapeutic modalities, critical workforce shortages, increasing government and managed care regulation, heightened consumerism, & an aging patient population. In the face of these mounting challenges, both physicians and hospital administrators could benefit significantly from a climate of collaboration and interdependence to optimize interprofessional practice. Teaching people to work with other healthcare professionals who play key roles in healthcare delivery is an important educational mission for the Association of University Programs in Health Administration (AUPHA) and for society in general.

Making hospital-physician collaboration work.

Hospital-physician collaboration can reduce costs, alleviate unproductive competition, increase revenue, and foster productive working relationships. Using structured dialogue can improve communications. A hospital medical advisory panel of physicians can champion collaboration.

Overview of physician-hospital ventures.

An ongoing environment of reimbursement lagging behind escalating expenses has led physicians to explore new sources of revenue. The goal of physician-hospital ventures is to create a valuable entity that benefits patients, physicians, and the hospital. Physicians may choose to invest in healthcare facilities to improve patient care and obtain increased control over daily operations.

Gaining hospital administrators' attention: ways to improve physician-hospital management dialogue.

Background: Despite marked differences in training and professional interests, physicians and hospital managers face similar problems stemming from the unprecedented rate of change in the health care delivery system: failure of reimbursement to keep pace with rising costs, new therapeutic modalities, increasing government and managed care regulations, heightened consumerism, and an aging patient population. In the face of these mounting challenges, both physicians and hospital managers could benefit significantly from a climate of collaboration and interdependence.

Methods: This article presents a "case report" of a community teaching hospital in which practicing physicians and hospital administrators collaborated to develop an operating plan for the next 3 years to improve the practice environment.

The necessity for physician involvement in strategic planning in healthcare organizations.

Strategic planning is necessary in health care organizations to meet the constraints of a lean economy, rapidly changing technologies, and an unprecedented need to provide quality services at affordable prices. It offers a structure for assessing core strengths and environmental conditions and an innovative approach to enhance revenue and minimize costs. During the planning process, organizations define their mission, identify direction, develop a unified approach, prioritize long- and short-term goals, assign accountability, and allocate financial resources.

Balance between activation and inhibition of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) is altered in colorectal tumors compared to normal colonic epithelium.

Matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) is overexpressed in human cancers and facilitates tumor growth and metastasis. It is synthesized as an inactive proenzyme that is activated by membrane-type matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MT1-MMP) and inhibited by tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-2 (TIMP-2). We hypothesized that there is an imbalance between the expression of TIMP-2 and the expression of MMP-2 and MT1-MMP that favors activation of MMP-2 in malignant colon tumors compared to normal colonic tissue.

Business plan writing for physicians.

Physicians are practicing in an era in which they are often expected to write business plans in order to acquire, develop, and implement new technology or programs. This task is yet another reminder of the importance of business principles in providing quality patient care amid allocation of increasingly scarce resources. Unfortunately, few physicians receive training during medical school, residencies, or fellowships in performing such tasks.