Richard C. Pfenniger Jr. loves to fix problems. He did it first with Whitman Education, reviving a publicly owned career school operator and bringing it back to profitability in six years.
With that problem solved, it was on to Continucare Corp. The health care provider was another company with a whole bunch of problems. It had negative working capital, significant long-term debt, nominal net worth and a history of significant losses.
Pfenniger, the company’s CEO, assembled a new management team that brought a wealth of industry experience to the table and helped Continucare refocus its business on organic growth. He worked with his team to develop a new strategy and mission statement for the company and to build a clear focus on three primary objectives: to provide high-quality health care, make efficient use of health care resources and provide stellar customer service.
The goal of these objectives was to create a model that would provide coordinated care to patients. It would keep a keen eye on wellness and prevention, but would also be right there when more complex medical needs were required. By taking this broader view, costs would be streamlined and successful outcomes would become the norm.
The numbers bear out the results of Pfenniger’s plan. Continucare’s Medicare patients average 11 outpatient visits annually, compared to a national average of six. The company’s inpatient bed days per 1,000 Medicare patients is 35 percent below the national average and the re-admission rate within 30 days of hospital discharge for Medicare patients at Continucare is 50 percent below the national average.
A culture has been built at Continucare that strives for excellence and outstanding customer service. Pfenniger asks his employees to live up to a high set of ethical standards and to always demonstrate respect, integrity and honesty in everything that they do.
How to reach: Continucare Corp., (305) 500-2000 or www.continucare.com
