Transforming revenue cycle management from chaos to control

Eustasis Psychiatric and Addiction Health is a healthcare organization located in the Midwest, specializing in providing comprehensive behavioral health services to a diverse patient population. Eustasis operates multiple clinics and facilities, focusing on delivering high-quality care while navigating the complexities of revenue cycle management (RCM). The organization has built a reputation for its patient-centered approach, but like many healthcare providers, they faced significant challenges in managing billing operations effectively.

Staffing challenges created unsustainable revenue cycle inefficiencies

Eustasis experienced a high turnover rate among its billing staff, which severely impacted their revenue collection capabilities. The remaining staff were stretched thin and struggling to manage their workloads, and it was difficult to find billing resources in the area to fill the vacancies. Compounding these stability challenges, the team had a limited understanding of athenaOne functionality, which led to inefficiencies and errors in claim management. With neither a clearly defined plan for improving RCM performance nor the resources at their fingertips to derive actionable insights, Eustasis was at risk of falling further behind in their revenue collection efforts.

They partnered with athenahealth’s Advisory Services to address their challenges. The team filled the staffing gaps by contracting full time experts to support their coding work, ensuring that Eustasis had the necessary resources to manage their billing effectively. The engagement began with one full-time equivalent (FTE) dedicated to supporting the billing staff, but as Eustasis quickly realized the value of this resource, they quickly expanded to more FTEs. The Advisory Services experts connected the billing staff to free, role-based training on athenaOne® to address knowledge gaps, enabling staff to get comfortable with athenaOne and improve their performance.

Advisory Services also created Claim Worklists to provide more visibility into workable claims, allowing them to optimize a strategy for work distribution, which helped reduce client days in accounts receivable (cDAR). The Eustasis team leveraged new insights to develop standardized processes, aligning them with best practices to enhance efficiency and performance. They implemented new dashboards to track key metrics so they can monitor progress and facilitate regular reviews.

Brenda Tunstill, Chief Compliance and Integrity Officer at Eustasis, said that their engagement with Advisory Services has been an “excellent addition” to their team. According to Tunstill, their partnership has, “created continuity for [their] facility in the event of a manpower loss at the local level.”

Empowering staff and streamlining revenue cycle management*

Working with Advisory Services yielded significant and transformative results for Eustasis. They effectively tackled their backlog of claims, leading to a streamlined process and a notable decrease in aging Accounts Receivable. Within the first month, client days in AR dropped 12.07%, from 5.8 to 5.1 days, and Manager Hold days decreased 14.3%, from 3.2 to 2.6 days. In addition, the percentage of AR over 90 days fell from 35.5% to 32%.

The performance of billing staff improved dramatically. The Advisory Services resources were able to bill 50 claims per day on average, surpassing the internal billers’ average rate of 19 claims per day. Ultimately, the collaboration with Advisory Services resulted in a remarkable 17.4% increase in cash collection yield within 10 months. The morale of the billing team also improved, as staff felt supported and empowered to perform their roles effectively.

As the leader of the Eustasis revenue cycle team, Turnstill feels better poised to improve their revenue cycle management processes with the support of athenahealth’s Advisory Services. "The expertise I have gained to provide oversight to the internal team has been invaluable,” she said. She meets with the athenahealth team regularly to discuss opportunities to strengthen Eustasis’s revenue cycle, and she finds these meetings “productive and meaningful.” Going forward, Turnstill feels that they’re positioned well for success, saying: “Both teams have worked well together utilizing strengths to position the facility to perform more efficiently and improve industry benchmark metrics.”

Engage with Advisory Services today

The partnership between Eustasis and Advisory Services Managed Services transformed the organization’s revenue cycle management. Through this engagement, Advisory Services continues to address complex operational challenges and drive sustainable improvements in Eustasis’ operational performance.

By addressing staffing challenges, providing targeted training, and standardizing workflows, Eustasis was able to enhance performance, reduce aging accounts receivable, and ultimately improve cash collection. These outcomes not only benefit the organization financially but also foster a more positive work environment for the billing team.

Learn more about how athenahealth’s Advisory Services experts can help transform your organization.