RLI Summit

The program kicks off with the Summit Pre-Conference Resident and Young Physician Leadership Program on Thursday evening. Free to residents, and all Summit attendees, topics reflect a mix of both topical and timeless business management and leadership content designed specifically for rising leaders.

Welcome, Thank You to and Brief Remarks by the Massachusetts Radiological Society

Building Resilience in Times of Change: Tools to Be Entrepreneurial for Radiologists

Radiologists face challenges on multiple fronts, including managing increasing workloads, workforce shortages, and rapidly changing technologies.  In this ever-changing environment, the same tactics we are used to will not always work. Babson’s Entrepreneurial Thought and Action (ET&A) methodology is a tool you can bring to these challenges. While you may not identify as an entrepreneur, the current-day radiologist is faced with many decisions that require a similar way of thinking and acting.  In applying ET&A together in this session we will practice an adaptable way of thinking to help you in your daily work.  We will do a series of interactive exercises designed to help you make this tool your own to help navigate environments that are increasingly uncertain and unknowable. 

Case Study Breakout Sessions

This case explores the complex considerations when a well-meaning group of patient advocates champions the need for better access to supplemental screening for patients at high risk for breast cancer.  Their chosen approach is to secure a new CPT code for abbreviated breast MRI (AB-MRI) for breast cancer screening. While the advocates believe a new CPT code will lead to greater accessibility and insurance reimbursement for AB-MRI, a radiologist raises several concerns based on her experience with medical coding and varying reimbursement policies by different payers. The case explains the need for caution when undertaking advocacy efforts and addresses strategies to encourage collaboration among multiple different interested parties when seeking to tackle payment policy issues.

Shared Interests, Shifting Power:  Balancing Leverage, Partnership, and Risk when Negotiating Hospital Stipends for Radiology Services

An interactive case study challenge where teams will negotiate hospital-based stipends and the associated contract terms for providing radiology services at a large hospital. Our participants will have to explore common interests and finances for both the hospital and the radiology group. Creativity and honest exploration of the opposing parties’ perspectives will be required to secure the best long-term deal. While money is often the focus of discussion, our teams will be challenged to find value in their contractual relationship beyond the financial terms.

Healthcare Financial Planning: Providing Justification for Radiology Investments 

Financial planning is crucial in radiology because it allows healthcare organizations to strategically allocate funds for long-term investments like new medical equipment, infrastructure upgrades, and technology advancements, enabling them to make informed decisions, improve patient outcomes, and maintain their competitive position. 

This session will explore how healthcare organizations use financial planning and analysis to determine whether a capital investment is worth pursuing, ensuring that the organization’s financial resources are allocated properly. This session will be accessible for those that consider themselves novice or experienced when it comes to finance and will conclude with recommendations on how radiologists can best pitch capital investments to the CFO of their organization.

Case Study Breakout Sessions

The Advocate's Dilemma: A Radiologist's Plea for Prudence in Payment Policy

This case explores the complex considerations when a well-meaning group of patient advocates champions the need for better access to supplemental screening for patients at high risk for breast cancer.  Their chosen approach is to secure a new CPT code for abbreviated breast MRI (AB-MRI) for breast cancer screening. While the advocates believe a new CPT code will lead to greater accessibility and insurance reimbursement for AB-MRI, a radiologist raises several concerns based on her experience with medical coding and varying reimbursement policies by different payers. The case explains the need for caution when undertaking advocacy efforts and addresses strategies to encourage collaboration among multiple different interested parties when seeking to tackle payment policy issues.

Shared Interests, Shifting Power:  Balancing Leverage, Partnership, and Risk when Negotiating Hospital Stipends for Radiology Services

An interactive case study challenge where teams will negotiate hospital-based stipends and the associated contract terms for providing radiology services at a large hospital. Our participants will have to explore common interests and finances for both the hospital and the radiology group. Creativity and honest exploration of the opposing parties’ perspectives will be required to secure the best long-term deal. While money is often the focus of discussion, our teams will be challenged to find value in their contractual relationship beyond the financial terms.

Influence in Healthcare: Difficult Conversations and Persuading Others

The ability to have difficult conversations effectively—whether with colleagues across departments, administrators over resources, insurance companies regarding reimbursements, or patients about treatment plans—directly impacts patient care outcomes and organizational effectiveness.  The ability to appreciate their business partners' pressures and constraints will enable radiologists to be influential and state their case persuasively. The objective is to develop the ability to find common ground as a foundation for a mutually beneficial, sustainable relationship where both parties better understand each other's drivers and complexities that influence any decisions. The session will help radiologists determine optimal ways to communicate, from an informal meeting to establish the relationship or to a formal email to wrap up an agreement. After this session, radiologists will walk away with a deeper appreciation of business partners' challenges and strategies on how to prepare for interactions that lead to productive relationships and outcomes.  

Amanda Weirup, MBA, MS, PhD

Geoff Rubin, MD, MBA, FACR