UMUC HMGT322 2019 March All Weeks Discussions Latest

HMGT322  Health Care Financial Management
Week 1 Discussion
Please answer all the questions in Theme 1. Answer only ONE (1) discussion question in Theme 2. Once you posted your initial discussion, respond to TWO (2) of your fellow classmates’ responses. In responding, either constructively expand on their statement or add discuss an additional advantage or disadvantage.  (Try not to repeat the same advantage or disadvantages that others have already posted)
Theme 1:                               
It is a challenging job to be a student. All students juggle multiple priorities and responsibilities trying to gain the highest grades at the same time. Please offer your strategies on time management and study skills to your peers. Provide minimum three of the most helpful tools and/or strategies that you use to a high degree of success. Tell us how you apply those tools or skills by sharing an example.  Discuss the tips offered by your peers and reflect how or if they will work for you. Some of the additional information could be found in Helpful Tips overview.
 Theme 2:
Choose only  ONE (1) of the following options below to discuss. Include question with your response.
You just started your new job as a Health Services Manager at a local hospital. The CEO wants your opinion on the advantages and disadvantages of various third-party reimbursement arrangements with respect to revenues and provider incentives. Pick one of the reimbursement arrangements discussed in this week’s reading, explain how it works, and discuss ONE advantage and ONE disadvantage.
You are working to develop the business plan for a new business. You are trying to determine the best organizational structure to use.  Of course, the legal structure you pick will depend on the nature of your new company (e.g. who owns it, the number of owners, liability, etc).  Pick one of the legal organizational structures discussed in this week’s reading and state ONE advantage and ONE disadvantage of the structure for your new firm. Be sure to identify the characteristics of your new firm (e.g hospital, physician practice, outpatient center, etc.).
 
HMGT322  Health Care Financial Management
Week 2 Discussion
Choose ONE (1) question below to discuss and then respond to TWO (2) of your classmates answers (Try not to repeat others answers). Include the question with your response.
Discuss the key differences between cash and accrual accounting? Explain why most health entities use accrual accounting.
What is the matching principle? Explain and detail what methods of accounting and what types of assets most easily conform to the matching principle.
What is the revenue recognition principle?
What are Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP)? Why are they important?
What is a “qualified opinion” in an external audit? Is this good for the firm? Why?
HMGT322  Health Care Financial Management
Week 3 Discussion
Choose ONE (1) question below to discuss and then respond to TWO (2) of your classmates answers (Try not to repeat others answers). Include the question with your response.
How do charity care and bad-debt differ in both definition and how they are treated on financial statements? Explain.
What is the difference between net income and cash flow? In your discussion, include a discussion of what financial statements are used to report these measures.
What are the three types of revenue on an income statement? Explain each.
What is a non-cash expense? Provide some examples. What financial statement are non-cash expenses recorded on? 
What is financial accounting? How does it differ from managerial accounting?
 Once you posted your initial discussion based on the above, respond to TWO of your fellow classmate’s responses in an area different from what you responded to initially.
 
HMGT322  Health Care Financial Management
Week 4 Discussion
Choose ONE (1) question below to discuss and then respond to TWO (2) of your classmates answers (Try not to repeat others answers). Include the question with your response.
Explain why cost management and cost allocation is important information for a healthcare manager? 
What are indirect or overhead costs? Discuss one method in which overhead costs can be allocated?
What is the degree of operating leverage? What does it mean if one firm has a measure of 40% and the other has a measure of 50%, which is better?
Define fixed cost and provide an example of a fixed cost in a healthcare setting.
Define variable cost and provide an example of a variable cost in a healthcare setting.
Once you posted your initial discussion based on the above, respond to TWO of your fellow classmate’s responses in an area different from what you responded to initially.
 
 
 
 
 
HMGT322  Health Care Financial Management
Week 5 Discussion
Choose ONE (1) question below to discuss and then respond to TWO (2) of your classmates answers (Try not to repeat others answers). Include the question with your response.
What is depreciation expense and what is its purpose? What type of long-term assets are subject to depreciation and what factors are needed to calculate depreciation?.
What is the difference between a current and a long-term liability? Provide an example of each in the healthcare sector.
What is debt financing? Identify ONE advantage and ONE disadvantage of debt financing?
What is equity financing? Identify ONE advantage and ONE disadvantage of equity financing.
Why is it important to calculate the future value of a dollar borrowed today?  What is the future value formula?
 Once you posted your initial discussion based on the above, respond to TWO of your fellow classmate’s answers in an area different from your initial response. In responding, either constructively expand or critique their statement or add another advantage, disadvantage or example.
 
 HMGT322  Health Care Financial Management
Week 6 Discussion
Choose ONE (1) question below to discuss and then respond to TWO (2) of your classmates answers (Try not to repeat others answers). Include the question with your response.
Why is it important to hold some liquid and some illiquid assets?
Discuss one of the liquidity ratios in this week’s course content? Using the 2014 data for Holy Cross in this week’s Power Point summary slides, what is the 2014 ratio you identified? Given information provided what is your interpretation of this ratio?
Discuss the formula used for a ratio to measure leverage or capital structure? What exactly does this ratio measure?
Identify two operating indicators and explain how they may supplement a ratio analysis using financial data.  How would you interpret the operating indicators?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 HMGT322  Health Care Financial Management
Week 7 Discussion
Choose ONE (1) question below to discuss and then respond to TWO (2) of your classmates answers (Try not to repeat others answers). Include the question with your response.
What are the key differences between a strategic and operational plan? Explain.
What is the statistics budget and how does it influence other budgets?
What demographic factors impact volume and future revenues?
What is variance analysis and why is it important to the budget process in a healthcare organization?
What is a flexible budget, how does it vary from a fixed budget?
Compare and contrast zero-based versus incremental budgeting?
 
HMGT322  Health Care Financial Management
Week 8 Discussion
This week’s discussion will focus on the Group PowerPoint Presentations on Best Practices in Healthcare Finance.  Discussion forums have been set up with each Group’s Best Practice PP.  Please respond to all of the presentations (excluding the one you participated in).
In responding, provide positive and constructive feedback on the best practices they highlight. Do you agree with their best practices, why or why not? Do they provide sufficient support for the best practices? Is the presentation easy to follow? What do you like best about the presentation? What recommendations for improvement do you have about the presentation?
Each group is to develop a powerpoint presentation devoted to the best financial practices for health care. Each presentation should:
Identify and describe your healthcare organization (e.g. hospital, physician organization, laboratory, other).
List at least five “Best financial practices” that you believe are important for your healthcare organizations to follow (One Best Practice per participant). Base your choice on your reading in this course and research.
Explain why each of these practices are important for your healthcare organizations given the current policy and regulatory environment.
Explain what can go wrong if the practice is not followed.
Post your group presentation to the Assignment folder by Sunday at 11:59 pm. The Professor will post your group’s PowerPoint at the beginning of Week 8  for the week 8 discussion. Your final grade for the group presentation will be based on the PowerPoint that is posted and will take into account your classmates feedback.