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Colaborate has the expertise to provide our clients with comprehensive operational assessments, including regulatory compliance reviews, facilities observations, work flow analyses, test menu offerings, send-out assays, equipment inspection, laboratory leadership (such as Medical Directors and Pathologists, including compensation plans), outreach offerings, test menu and volumes evaluations, fee schedules, billing and collections analyses, as well as profit and loss reviews by location (where and when possible). These objective assessments are necessary to evaluate organizational weaknesses that may negatively impact the laboratories' results and future growth strategies.
With yearly changes to CPT codes and the ongoing development of new laboratory tests and methodologies to perform current tests, it is vital for laboratories to stay abreast of the changes. Using an incorrect CPT code or irrational pricing could cost the laboratory thousands in lost revenue. Colaborate, calling upon qualified experts, will perform a comprehensive review of the laboratories chargemaster, pricing, and test utilization.
Colaborate offers a laboratory compliance assessment and a chargemaster CPT code review of all active billable tests in the laboratory information system (LIS). The approach used for this review is designed to ensure that the tests listed in each LIS are properly mapped to a correct CPT code line-item in the billing chargemaster. Such a review provides a test utilization analysis to determine if the top 30 tests appear to follow a reasonable ordering pattern, as well as a pricing analysis to determine if the test billing fees are rational (more complex tests are billed at a rate higher than less complex tests).
Recent acquisitions and joint ventures by publicly traded companies, as well as venture funds, demonstrate that there is considerable interest in investment in the laboratory sector. Colaborate has been retained continually to identify and implement approaches that will optimize our clients' potential for success in these endeavors. Our strategies may be used to evaluate the potential for successful sale, consolidation, or joint venture, as well as to provide perspective on any potential risk factors.
Staying abreast of laboratory compliance and billing industry practices is a challenge for most hospitals, independent commercial laboratories, and contract billing companies. Having an ongoing relationship with a qualified industry expert results in proper regulation application and integration, and prevents organizational misinterpretations, which often leads to management team paralysis, unnecessary costs, loss of revenue and legal exposure. Our compliance and billing advisory services are designed to meet the immediate and long-term needs of each individual client. This flexibility allows our clients to focus on areas of greatest concern to improve services and profitability and maintain an effective compliance program at a reasonable cost.
Laboratory Compliance Audit Assessment
Our laboratory compliance audit assessment is a prospective review of 135 regulatory issues. Our approach is comprehensive, participative, and geared to withstand federal scrutiny. We focus on all aspects of compliance issues, including not only coding and billing practices, but also all marketing and operational interfaces between referring physicians, contract hospitals, and pathology billing areas, which have traditionally been overlooked.
Hospitals, physicians groups, and other healthcare organizations are facing increasing pressure to ensure that expensive and limited physical space is used to its highest potential. With this in mind, Colaborate has lead the successful development, redesign, relocation, expansion, and contraction of laboratory space for a number of hospital systems and healthcare organizations throughout the country.
Ensuring that information technology (IT) implementation runs smoothly is a major challenge that requires detailed planning and careful management. Without proper management, the deployment of information systems can easily run over budget, consume excessive resources, and, in some cases, fail outright. Colaborate has vast experience in system integration analysis and execution. We've assisted large organizations with disparate systems, analyzing and integrating the best solution for their specific needs. Colaborate also has specific experience in all aspects of laboratory information technology.
Introducing automation in your laboratory represents a major commitment of both time and financial resources. Selecting the right automated technology can result in significant improvements in quality, productivity, service, and efficiency, while reducing costs and labor needs.
Colaborate can assist laboratories with the analysis and decision necessary to make such an investment, including goal development and expectations as part of the decision-making process. We can also help explore the challenges and opportunities involved in introducing automated systems in the lab environment.
Colaborate can assist with:
- Choosing the best fit for the laboratory in introducing new technology
- Assistance in how to evaluate the various levels of automation
- Assistance in exploring different technological alternatives to reach your business goal
- Assistance in the true cost of costs of automation, including understanding the return on investment (ROI)
Colaborate has been retained to assist clients in the development and expansion of laboratory outreach programs. Our consultants will evaluate your current capabilities in great detail and identify your market opportunity, as well as the operational gaps that would need to be addressed to successfully expand your outreach business. Projections of growth potential are included in the review, as well as a high-level assessment of any potential investment required for the development of your identified market opportunity.
To be successful in this highly competitive industry, any business must prepare a three to five year strategic plan. A well-conceived strategic plan involves significant research into current and future trends while taking into account the environment in which the business performs. Colaborate, will help our clients formulate a successful strategic plan for the next three to five years to optimize business growth and revenue expansion. Building a successful strategic plan, with Colaborate's help, will allow your business to experience growth superior to that of competitors and give its potential clients the needed products and services.
Colaborate has extensive background with healthcare venture capitalists, as well as traditional lending sources, regarding the due diligence of laboratory mergers and acquisitions. We also have the ability to respond quickly and look at all areas necessary to determine the valuation and viability of a potential investment or acquisition.
Areas we have reviewed for other potential acquisitions include:
- Billing and collections (compliance review)
- Revenue opportunity and exposure
- Client opportunity and risk review
- Leadership assessment (management)
- Staffing assessment and recommendation (labor and productivity benchmarking)
- Expense reduction opportunity (supplies, facilities, etc.)
- Facilities assessment and risks
- Market opportunity assessment
- Proforma viability
- Borrowing base calculations
- Liability exposure analysis
- Systems/IT review
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