title: Promoting physician productivity through a variable compensation system.
abstract: Integrated delivery systems must find ways to achieve optimal physician productivity and accountability, while fostering an entrepreneurial attitude among physicians. Lovelace Health Systems, Albuquerque, New Mexico, has implemented a variable compensation system designed for this purpose. An assessment of Lovelace's physician productivity had indicated performance well below national medians. To offer physicians a strong incentive to increase productivity, Lovelace developed a variable compensation system based on the resource-based relative value scale and relative value units. Lovelace also developed benchmark productivity targets.
authors.affiliation: Healthcare Management Consulting, Albuquerque, NM, USA.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hickey
authors.forename: J T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Ichter
mesh_terms: D019033:Delivery of Health Care, Integrated / Q000458:organization & administration*; D017598:Efficiency, Organizational; D016520:Entrepreneurship; D008505:Medical Staff, Hospital / Q000145:classification / Q000191:economics*; D009516:New Mexico; D010816:Physician Incentive Plans; D015895:Relative Value Scales; D018582:Sick Leave; D014481:United States