Unfortunately providers often view a CRM tool to be the magic bullet and expect that it will cure much of what ails them (yes, pun intended). They also expect it to be mostly ready to go out of the box, and easy to configure and start using. In most industries this is somewhat true. You […]

A concept that still has me thinking is the discussion around how much of a focus is put on driving volumes. I can see where this makes sense. With reduced reimbursements, shrinking inpatient volumes, and continued financial strain in the market, providers are looking to increase volumes in hopes of driving top-line growth.  The question […]

Bluestone will be attending and exhibiting at the 2015 Physician Liaison Summit – South in Houston TX on May 18th and 19th. Bluestone is a technology & management consulting firm delivering Enterprise Cloud Computing solutions to midmarket firms and healthcare providers nationwide. We partner with clients to accelerate practice growth and improve business operations. Our […]

For Providers, Competition is Key The news continues to be bleak for the healthcare provider market. Inpatient admissions volumes have been dropping since 2009, and a recent report showed a 2% further decline. Hospitals continue to fail, and many non-profit health systems are at risk for going out of business. The AHA also reported that, […]

When It Comes To Physicians, It’s Relationships Not Ownership One of the largest trends in recent years has been the acquisition of physicians and groups by providers, and this trend only looks to continue in 2015. But is this the right approach for hospitals and health systems? This trend is driven by the continuing decline […]

Healthcare Shouldn’t Fear the Cloud I was just reading an interesting article in Health IT Security about the Top 10 Healthcare Data Breaches of 2014. Security breaches are an everyday topic, the most recent one that has been quite embarrassing for a corporate icon is the breach at Sony. As embarrassing as this was, there […]

Physicians Need to Look to the Cloud! It might be hard to believe, but one of the last professional groups to have an interest in the cloud is physicians – yet they have the most to benefit from its capabilities. Traditionally, healthcare providers have never been early adopters of technology or seen as information technology […]

Moody’s Investor Services recently came out with their Investor Report for the not-for-profit healthcare market and to say that it was bleak would be an enormous understatement. Revenues and cash flow margins hit all-time lows in 2013 Operating revenue dropped to an all-time low of 3.9%, from 5.1% in 2012 and the   industry norm […]

Big Data is a Big Bust! (Unless You Do the Little Things First) Big data is the current buzz word and is all the rage. Big data this, big data that – I think even the Girl Scouts announced a big data initiative recently. This truly is great news, and I have been preaching the […]

Our last healthcare blog, Meaningful Use: A Valuable Asset, focused on utilizing Meaningful Use and theHITECH Act as a means to effect positive change.  We left off with the recommended shift to healthcare consumerism and provider relationship management. What does that even mean? Healthcare consumerism is generally accepted as the movement to empower patients to be more […]

Our last healthcare blog, Meaningful Use: A Valuable Asset, focused on utilizing Meaningful Use and the HITECH Act as a means to effect positive change.  We left off with the recommended shift to healthcare consumerism and provider relationship management. What does that even mean? Healthcare consumerism is generally accepted as the movement to empower patients to be […]