Straight talk--new approaches in healthcare. The best starting point for performance improvement: a healthy bottom line. Panel discussion.

Bon Secours Health System's South Division launched a multitude of performance-improvement projects in 2004 even though it boasted a 9% margin. Why? Officials at the Catholic healthcare system wanted to increase the amount of money available for its nation-wide charitable commitments as well as to invest in capital projects critical to its mission. In this installment of Straight Talk, we look at the performance-improvement initiatives of the South Division of Bon Secours Health System, Inc., which saved $8 million in just five months and expects to gain a total of $41 million after it completes all projects. Modern Healthcare and PricewaterhouseCoopers present Straight Talk. The session on performance improvement was held on March 22, 2005 at Modern Healthcare's Chicago headquarters. Fawn Lopez, publisher of Modern Healthcare, was the moderator.