ABPM Health Care Administration, Leadership & Management flashcards

33 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Break-even volume

The number of units or visits at which total revenue equals total cost; calculated as fixed costs divided by contribution margin per unit.

Contribution margin

Revenue per unit minus variable cost per unit. It shows how much each unit sold contributes to covering fixed costs and then to profit.

Budget variance

The difference between actual and budgeted financial results. A negative expense variance is favorable because spending was below plan.

Full-time equivalent

A staffing measure converting paid hours into whole-time equivalents, typically by dividing total paid hours by 2,080 annual hours per full-time position.

Days in accounts receivable

A revenue-cycle metric computed as accounts receivable divided by total charges, multiplied by days in the period; it estimates collection speed.

Cost per RVU

Total physician or practice cost divided by total relative value units produced; a benchmark for comparing productivity and cost efficiency across providers.

Work RVU

A relative value unit reflecting physician work effort (time, skill, stress) for a service; commonly used as the productivity benchmark in compensation models.

Span of control

The number of direct reports assigned to one manager. Wider spans suit standardized routine work; narrower spans suit complex or high-risk work.

PDSA cycle

Plan-Do-Study-Act, a rapid-cycle improvement method for testing small changes, studying results, and then adopting, adapting, or abandoning the change.

DMAIC

Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control, a Six Sigma structured method for improving existing processes by reducing variation and defects.

Lewin change model

A three-stage model of planned change: unfreezing existing behavior, moving to the new state, and refreezing to sustain the change.

Kotter eight-step change

A sequenced change framework beginning with urgency and coalition building, moving through vision and short-term wins, and ending with anchoring change in culture.

Just culture

A safety framework that consoles human error, coaches at-risk behavior, and sanctions reckless behavior, distinguishing system failures from individual accountability.

Servant leadership

A leadership approach prioritizing followers' needs, growth, and empowerment, with the leader acting as steward rather than directing through positional authority.

Transformational leadership

A leadership style using idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration to raise follower performance and commitment.

Emotional intelligence

The capacity to recognize, understand, and regulate one's own emotions and those of others, supporting conflict management and team effectiveness.

Strategic planning cycle

A recurring process of environmental assessment, mission and vision setting, goal formulation, resource allocation, implementation, and periodic performance review.

SWOT analysis

A planning tool that maps internal strengths and weaknesses against external opportunities and threats to inform strategy and resource prioritization.

Triple Aim

The Institute for Healthcare Improvement framework targeting improved population health, improved patient experience and quality, and reduced per-capita cost of care.

Quadruple Aim

An extension of the Triple Aim adding clinician and staff well-being, recognizing that burnout undermines quality, access, and cost performance.

Donabedian model

A quality framework evaluating care through structure (resources and capacity), process (what is done), and outcomes (results achieved).

Structure measure

A quality indicator describing capacity to deliver care, such as staffing ratios, equipment availability, or electronic health record capability.

Process measure

A quality indicator describing whether recommended care was delivered, such as screening rates, vaccination rates, or guideline-concordant prescribing.

Outcome measure

A quality indicator reflecting results of care, such as mortality, readmission, infection rates, or patient-reported functional status.

Sentinel event

An unexpected occurrence involving death or serious physical or psychological harm, or the risk thereof, requiring immediate investigation and response.

Root cause analysis

A retrospective, structured team method used after a serious event to identify contributing system factors and design preventive actions.

Failure mode and effects analysis

A prospective risk-assessment method scoring severity, occurrence, and detection for each failure mode to prioritize process redesign before harm occurs.

High reliability organization

An organization that sustains safe performance in high-risk settings through preoccupation with failure, reluctance to simplify, sensitivity to operations, resilience, and deference to expertise.

National Patient Safety Goals

The Joint Commission's prioritized safety requirements, including patient identification, staff communication, medication safety, infection prevention, and risk identification.

Population health management

Stratifying a patient panel by risk and targeting care coordination, prevention, and outreach to reduce avoidable utilization and improve outcomes.

Social determinants of health

Nonmedical conditions such as income, housing, food security, transportation, and education that shape health outcomes and drive care utilization patterns.

Health information exchange

Electronic sharing of patient clinical data across separate organizations to support coordinated care, transitions, and reduced duplicate testing.

Emergency preparedness cycle

A recurring cycle of mitigation, planning, response, and recovery, commonly supported by hazard vulnerability analysis and periodic drills.