Provider resource planning. A study of methods in multispecialty groups and systems

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Health Services Research
• Medical Group Practice Administration

Background:

• Provider resource planning is crucial for healthcare organizations.
• Large multispeciality group practices face unique challenges in resource allocation.
• Current planning methods exhibit considerable variability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To profile the current state of provider resource planning in large group practices.
• To identify variations in structural and process components of planning.
• To explore evaluation criteria for new physician positions.

Main Methods:

• Conducted telephone interviews with senior administrative representatives.
• Sampled 12 geographically dispersed large multispeciality group practices (each >100 physicians).
• Analyzed organizational practices regarding provider resource planning.

Main Results:

• Significant variation observed in planning components and evaluation criteria.
• Lack of consensus on criteria for evaluating new position requests was pronounced.
• Differences existed within and across organizations.

Conclusions:

• There is a need for more objective provider resource planning methods.
• Methods should accommodate organizational and market differences.
• Future research should focus on prospective needs identification and streamlined planning processes.