Brian Rothman, MD, associate professor of Anesthesiology, Biomedical Informatics and Surgery, and medical director for Perioperative Informatics, has been named to the newly created position of Medical Director for Vanderbilt University Medical Center Revenue Cycle.
In this role, Rothman will provide medical leadership for the Revenue Cycle by facilitating clinician interactions with the Revenue Cycle team in the Department of Finance to ensure patient-centered practices and the effective and efficient delivery of patients’ financial care.
While hospitals and health systems are known for delivering life-saving patient care, every health care organization needs successful processes and policies to maintain financial health. Revenue cycle management is the financial process employed by health care facilities to manage the administrative and clinical functions associated with claims processing, payment and revenue generation.
At VUMC, the Revenue Cycle includes billing, collections, pre-patient registration and financial clearance, hospital and emergency registration, professional coding, revenue management, patient financial customer service for hospital and clinic technical charges, and clinician professional charges billed through the Vanderbilt Medical Group.
“Revenue Cycle is an integral part of patient service and is dependent upon successful processes designed to support clinicians throughout the care continuum. Having a medical leader such as Dr. Rothman with deep experience in both information technology and finance will allow us to take our revenue cycle results to the next level,” said Cecelia Moore, MHA, CPA, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer.
Working closely with Gayla Harvey, senior vice president for Revenue Cycle Services and Payer Strategy, Rothman will have a range of responsibilities that span medical coding, clinical pre- and post-billing denials, clinical payer policy and improving professional clinical documentation.
He will also serve as a key liaison to the medical directors of managed care and governmental payer organizations. In addition, Rothman will coordinate closely with teams working to enhance patient experience.
In coordination with David Raiford, MD, Chief of Clinical Staff, and Paul Sternberg Jr., MD, Chief Medical Officer, Rothman will serve as VUMC’s primary medical liaison with the medical leadership of external managed care plans, governmental plans and other governmental and public entities. He will also coordinate as needed with Gerald Hickson, MD, Senior Vice President for Quality, Safety and Risk Prevention.
“Dr. Rothman will provide a critical link between our clinicians, our faculty practice and our finance team. Brian has great experience at evaluating complex problems, helping dissect out the key elements and bringing the team together with a novel and effective solution. I am thrilled he has accepted this key role on our leadership team,” said Sternberg.
Rothman joined VUMC in 2007 and has assumed increasing levels of responsibility within the Department of Anesthesiology and has also made significant contributions toward the advancement of information technology (IT) in the perioperative environment and elsewhere across the Medical Center.
In addition to being involved in the development of and helping to usher into use new IT advancements, Rothman serves on numerous Medical Center committees and workgroups including: the Joint Operations Oversight Committee, Supplies and Equipment Committee, Integrated Presence Core Group, Informatics and Perioperative Services Steering Committee, Health Records Executive Committee and the Clinical Health Information Management Advisory Group.
“We are delighted that Dr. Rothman has accepted this new role. His analytical ability helps him identify and exploit opportunities for systems improvement. In addition, Brian’s interpersonal skills help him create collaborative consensus, an essential element in advancing this type of work,” Raiford said.
The author of numerous research articles and editorials and a frequent presenter at national and international scientific meetings, Rothman is also actively involved in teaching Vanderbilt University School of Medicine students and training anesthesiology residents.
Rothman earned both a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Accounting and Finance and a medical degree from the University of Cincinnati. He served his internship in internal medicine at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore and underwent residency training in anesthesiology and critical care medicine at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.
“Our goal is to develop a closer connection between the Revenue Cycle team and our patients, providers, payers and regulators to build a better experience, greater system efficiencies and maintain Vanderbilt’s financial health,” Rothman said.