Since the inception of Premier’s service-oriented model Parma’s anesthesia department has experienced significant improvements in surgical services and unparalleled growth in anesthesia services.
With the support of Parma Hospital’s executive board, Pamela Falasco, RN, MSN, Vice President, Surgery and Business Development, searched for a contract management group that would partner with Parma’s anesthesia department to achieve their goals. Parma administrators chose Premier Anesthesia. “We were most impressed with the opportunity to partner with a group that was prepared to work with us to design the anesthesia services that we envisioned,” Falasco said.
Within 60 days, surgery cases had increased by 100 per month. Within 5 months, Premier had recruited 8 permanent anesthesiologists and 29 permanent CRNAs, including Dr. James Harper, former Chair of Anesthesiology at the Mayo Clinic. Today's team of 10 permanent anesthesiologists and 30 permanent CRNAs have "mutual respect" and are "able to concentrate on patient care rather than politics," according to Chief CRNA Stewart Hoven, who has been at Baptist for nearly 15 years.
Premier's financial model provided a plan for increasing OR profits through anesthesia management services. Premier manages all recruiting, billing and collections while maintaining frequent reporting and site meetings. As a result, the anesthesia team provides better care to a larger number of patients — and Baptist Health has become increasingly profitable and well-renowned for high-quality anesthesia services.
