The financial manager's role in the Voluntary Effort.

"Voluntary Effort" hopes to duplicate its first year success by further reducing the annual rate of increase of hospital costs by another two percent. The financial manager will play a key role in the achievement of this goal. Mr. Shelton views the financial manager as part of the hospital management team with the responsibility to review the operating goals and management effectiveness of the institution. The Hospital Financial Management Association has developed a Code of Action to assist the financial manager in dealing with his/her assignments and goals. Ultimately, "Voluntary Effort" is striving to establish a cost-effective health care financing and delivery system. The financial manager is encouraged to initiate in-service training programs for support staff to develop a management team capable of creating such a system. The success of the "Voluntary Effort" is dependent upon the effectiveness of hospital managers in dealing with the 1979 minimum wage and social security tax increases, cost containment and inflation. The financial manager can help by determining the financial feasibility of institutional decisions, interpreting government regulations and supplying written facts and figures to the rest of the hospital management team and community.