November 12 , 2004

MGPO: A decade of progress

Ten years ago, MGH physicians came together to form the Massachusetts General Physicians Organization (MGPO) to provide a unified voice for the hospital's physicians. Today, the MGPO is made up of 1,700 physicians and is the largest group practice in New England. It is a partner of the MGH, a member of Partners and a teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School.

The organization has had three CEOs during the past decade — W. Gerald Austen, MD, Peter L. Slavin, MD, and David F. Torchiana, MD, the current CEO and chairman. Its management team includes three members who have been a part of the MGPO since the beginning — Anne J. Dubitzky, vice president of Managed Care Contracting and Marketing, Daniel A. Ginsburg, president and chief operating officer, and James L. Heffernan, chief financial officer.

For the past 10 years, the MGPO has had one overall goal — to support doctors in their efforts to provide excellent care to patients. The MGPO has made much progress educating payors, government leaders and the public about the resources needed to provide this care — an especially challenging task given the high cost of living and low reimbursement levels in Massachusetts.

Over a decade ago, the hospital had no managed care contracts. Today, the MGPO has more than 20. The MGPO helps manage the requirements of these contracts. In addition, the MGPO has played a key role in ensuring that physician payment is based on delivering care safely and efficiently, not on limiting services.

Getting timely and fair reimbursement is another goal of the MGPO. The Professional Billing Office (PBO) helps doctors get paid quickly and accurately. Each year, the PBO works with 200 practices and processes 1.8 million claims. At the same time, the PBO continues to improve the collection rate and reduce the number of days that claims spend in accounts receivable.

The MGPO also focuses on physician worklife issues.The administrative burden that physicians face is broader than billing issues. The MGPO sponsors a physician leadership development program, an ambulatory consulting service, a physician compensation team and has recently launched a practice advisory board, with a goal of helping physicians run their practices in this complex environment.

The MGPO plans to strengthen its efforts to advocate for physicians and their patients. "It's not easy to be a doctor these days," says Torchiana. "There's pressure to work harder for less, and outside forces increasingly dictate how we do our jobs. As an organization, we are committed to making sure that doctors continue to have the resources and responsibility to effectively care for our patients."

For more information about the MGPO, visit its website at http://is.partners.org/mgpoOnline/index.asp.