Grant Newman, CEO of Regional Medical Center (RMC), expected the worst from the meeting that was scheduled to begin in less than an hour. The anesthesiologists were at the end of their rope, and the hospital's surgeons and obstetricians were pretty riled up too. Eighteen months earlier, Newman had made the decision to outsource RMC's anesthesia services, and he had signed a contract with Physicians Development Services (PDS), a contract management company. At the time, PDS seemed a good fit. It had a reputation for providing high-quality physicians both on a permanent basis and for temporary assignments. Unfortunately, however, PDS was undercapitalized and chronically mismanaged. PDS's paychecks to the anesthesiologists began arriving late and then bounced several times over a three-month period. In addition, the contract between the anesthesiologists and PDS had expired three months earlier, and the anesthesiologists were providing services without a contract. What can Newman do to resolve this conflict? In 95309 and 95309Z, Ken Alvares, Anthony R. Kovner, Joellin Comerford, Rudy Puryear, Vaughn Hovey, Tom Chapman, and Gary P. Pisano offer advice on this fictional case study.

Grant Newman, CEO of Regional Medical Center (RMC), expected the worst from the meeting that was scheduled to begin in less than an hour. The anesthesiologists were at the end of their rope, and the hospital's surgeons and obstetricians were pretty riled up too. Eighteen months earlier, Newman had made the decision to outsource RMC's anesthesia services, and he had signed a contract with Physicians Development Services (PDS), a contract management company. At the time, PDS seemed a good fit. It had a reputation for providing high-quality physicians both on a permanent basis and for temporary assignments. Unfortunately, however, PDS was undercapitalized and chronically mismanaged. PDS's paychecks to the anesthesiologists began arriving late and then bounced several times over a three-month period. In addition, the contract between the anesthesiologists and PDS had expired three months earlier, and the anesthesiologists were providing services without a contract. What can Newman do to resolve this conflict? In 95309 and 95309Z, Ken Alvares, Anthony R. Kovner, Joellin Comerford, Rudy Puryear, Vaughn Hovey, Tom Chapman, and Gary P. Pisano offer advice on this fictional case study.

Greater Southeast Community Hospital is located in the center of one of Washington, D.C.'s most troubled and isolated neighborhoods. Like so many inner-city hospitals, it serves a population struggling with high rates of poverty, crime, and illiteracy. As a result, the area suffers from the highest rate of infant mortality, cancer, and coronary disease in the D.C. area. When Tom Chapman joined the hospital in 1984, it was giving away roughly 11% of its care--or about $11.5 million worth of medical services to indigent residents. If that rate continued, the hospital would soon go out of business. His challenge: to keep Greater Southeast solvent while shoring up the community that surrounds it. Working in tandem with community residents, Greater Southeast has developed a broad range of preventive and supportive programs, such as housing, day care for children and the elderly, nursing home services, and literacy training.