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R one is the leader in health care

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revenue management, helping providers achieve new levels of

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performance through smart orchestration.

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With more than twenty years of experience, r

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one partners with 1,000 providers,

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including 95 of the top 100 US health

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systems and handles over 270,000,000

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payer transactions annually. If you want to learn

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more about how you can transform your revenue

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cycle operations, visit us at wwwr1rcm.com.

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Hello, and welcome to the Becker's Healthcare podcast.

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My name is Will Riley from r one.

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I'm joined today by Michael Muttera.

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Michael is president and CEO of Hill Silvercross

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Hospital in Illinois.

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Welcome to the podcast. Thank you, Will. Pleasure

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to be here. Good to have you. Good

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to have you. Tell us a little bit,

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please, about yourself.

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Tell us about Silvercross.

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Sure. As you said, I'm Michael Mutter, president

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and CEO at Silvercross Hospital. We are a

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348

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bed level two trauma center located in the

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suburbs of Chicago.

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We are

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a

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we service about,

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80,000 patients,

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per year through our emergency departments. We have

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a freestanding emergency,

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department, one of the only one of very

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few in in the state of Illinois that

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has a freestanding,

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emergency department,

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level three perinatal center.

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So busy busy hospital. We were a replacement

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hospital built in 2013,

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so,

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newer hospital as well. Okay. Okay.

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Tell me a bit about the area around

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you, the demographic, the community. What's it like?

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Yeah. So New Lenox, is a, you know,

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south suburban,

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suburb of of Chicago.

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We are,

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I'm gonna say a mixed community.

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I'm gonna say probably mostly middle class. So

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we're very blessed with our payer mix, within

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within our primary and secondary service areas.

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You know, we obviously do service a a

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small portion of public aid and,

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certainly do our charitable work for the community

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as well, but, but definitely blessed from a

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from a payer mix.

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Got it. Okay. Cool. Tell me, please, about

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some of the big priorities that you have

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going into 2026.

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Well,

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lots lots of priorities.

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I'm gonna say, you know, obviously, with, the

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ever changing world of health care,

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you know, you've you've constantly gotta be, I

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think, nimble and and be,

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able to to pivot, at a at a

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moment's notice.

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I would say our our largest priorities right

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now, first would be access.

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You know, really looking at,

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how do we, you know, how do we

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not only,

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make sure that we're open for business and

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have locations, bricks and, you know, brick and

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mortar available for,

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for populations,

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you know, throughout our primary and secondary service

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area.

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But really looking into the intricacies of, you

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know, how quickly do we answer the phone,

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you know, how fast is it to get

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an appointment, you know, with a with a

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physician or a specialist.

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You know, so really focusing on access for

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us. We're an independent hospital, not part of

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a larger system.

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So

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we have we have to be,

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in my opinion,

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focused on our market, whether it be the

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primary service market, secondary service market,

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Making sure that we continue to keep our

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market share and or, you know, capture market

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share from the competitors around us. So so

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access is a is a huge initiative and

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right along with that I would say is

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growth.

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So making sure that we're looking at the

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service areas that,

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that are, you know, with within, you know,

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both our primary and secondary markets to,

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to help us figure out points of care.

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Where do we open new urgent cares? Where

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do we open new physician practices?

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So so growth definitely

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a a a big

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piece of that for us as well. And

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so you're a you're a smaller player surrounded

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by in in a competitive space.

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So I'm interested in growth. And and how

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are you how are you making that work?

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And how do you have the

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resources? And how do you how do you

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allocate those resources to support that? Sure. Yeah.

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We're we're one of, I'm gonna say, in

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the Chicagoland

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area, one of three hospitals that are still

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independent, so not part of a larger health

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system.

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And so as we look at growth for

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us, it is looking at the competitive landscape

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out there and, you know, figuring out from

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a population perspective where it makes sense to,

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you know, add new buildings, brick and mortar.

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And then

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I'm gonna say from a marketing perspective, even

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if we don't have bricks and mortar, how

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do we market to that community?

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Some of the, you know, great things that

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we have to offer at Silver Cross. You

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know, we've been blessed to be a leapfrog

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a rated hospital 22 consecutive times in a

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row.

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You know, we've vacillated between the CMS four

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and five star.

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You know, health grades, we've been, the number

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one surgical hospital in the state of Illinois

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for the last two years, so beating out

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all of the major players, I would say.

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So we focus on quality and patient safety,

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and,

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I think our communities respond to that. Yeah.

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Okay. Okay. So you have some differentiators,

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really, that We do. Yeah. Yeah.

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I'd like to ask you about technology Yes.

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And technology innovation,

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another area because that requires investment.

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Sure. I'm curious

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of how you think about this.

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One of the questions I'm asking everybody on

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the podcast is about,

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health care's

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new,

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seemingly new enthusiasm

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for technology because of AI. Yes. Feels like

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health care has traditionally been rather conservative in

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how it's been adopting technology,

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but it feels like that's changing

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with AI. People are finding use cases that

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are genuinely valuable and getting excited about that.

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Are you seeing that too? So I am.

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I'm we definitely see it around us. I'm

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gonna say we're probably,

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definitely not on the bleeding edge of of

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AI. So I'm gonna say we're one of

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those hospitals that sit back a little bit

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and,

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and

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evaluate,

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what's out there. Not to say that we

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aren't, in the AI space. So we have

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a a number of different areas where we've

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implemented,

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some AI solutions.

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We're working right now with ambient listening with

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our physicians. I mean, obviously, that's the biggest,

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I'm gonna say,

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buzz around right now. Every doctor asks me

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every day when can I get it? Right.

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Yeah. So that's been interesting.

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We recently partnered with a with an organization,

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that has AI detection

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in their colonoscopy,

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you know, in colonoscopy

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procedures. So, again, having that artificial

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intelligence behind the eyes of our of our

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proceduralists,

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to be able to detect,

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polyps that maybe the naked eye wouldn't see.

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So that's been

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interesting as we implement that because I feel

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like that from a quality perspective is is

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great for the communities that we serve.

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You know, we've recently partnered, on the revenue

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cycle area,

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with a

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solution that helps our CDI team,

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that, looks at appropriate diagnosis and and coding

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for the patients, and appropriate statusing Yeah. Whether

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a patient's observation or fully admitted into the

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hospital. So so, yeah, we're we've we're dipping

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our toes in it,

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and and interested in seeing where where it

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takes us. When you think about that and

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you think about

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who to work with,

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well, I suppose the question is how are

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you thinking about who to work with? Are

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you working with

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your traditional

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partners,

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that you've always had by your side? Are

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you working with new kinds of companies?

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Yeah. No. I think we've branched out a

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little bit. I mean, I'm a big believer

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in competition breeds excellence.

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So I think as we as we look

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at the landscape out there, you know, we

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definitely look at, you know, sort of the

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top player, but then also, very interested in

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looking at who else is in the in

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the space.

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So we've branched out a little bit over

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the last, you know, twelve to twenty four

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months in some of the partnerships that we've,

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decided to to go with in in the

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AI space. So, so, yeah, I would say

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we're we're definitely open to, to new players

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in the market as well. You mentioned clinicians

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coming to you,

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looking for the solution.

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Is that an an interesting experience

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and and, I mean, like a new experience.

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Right? And and and is it giving you

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challenges in terms of then

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governing some of these projects and thinking about

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how you do it? Because like you said,

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you don't want to be on the bleeding

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edge. So how do you sort of

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restrain the enthusiasm, if that's if that's the

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right way of saying it? So

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it it is not easy,

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especially as it looks as we look at

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the, ambient listening for the physicians. I mean,

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literally, every day, I have somebody coming in

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and asking, can they get on the platform?

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And, you know, right now, we're really focusing

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on our,

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on our high volume physicians and staying within

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the primary care space I see. Initially.

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I I would say our,

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my chief, informatics officer and her team are,

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very

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closely monitoring from a governance perspective,

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a, what companies we partner with, b,

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how

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quickly we implement and launch these solutions.

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So I think we're starting,

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you know, with a with a core group

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of physicians and evaluating how that's going and,

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you know, looking at, you know, what what

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opportunities it's it's giving those physicians,

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and evaluating on the back end,

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you know, as, you know, as we look

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at those physicians from a, you know, billing

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and coding perspective, is it similar to where

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they were prior to using the ambient listening?

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Are we seeing improvement in, you know, in,

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their their

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billing documentation their documentation and billing.

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And, you know, I think just really kinda

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keeping a close eye on

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on what it's

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how it's helping us Yeah. Organizationally

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and,

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and going through there. Keeping

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physicians close,

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guide

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using them to help guide you, focusing on

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outcomes. Yeah. For sure. Yeah. I think, you

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know, they're inherently, I would say, our physicians

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have not been,

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super open to change.

283
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Right? And so I I think this has

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been

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a little bit of of a refresh,

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and and I think what's happening is they're

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hearing other physicians talk about how it's making

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their job easier, I'm gonna say, That they're

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not spending as much time after hours documenting,

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that the notes seemingly are a little bit

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better than even what they would have produced

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had they have, written the notes themselves.

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So

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I think overall, the product is helping speak

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for itself. And so I think that's what's

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also pushing Yeah. You know, our physicians to

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to ask what about me or when can

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I Sure? When can I get on the

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platform? Sure. Yeah. You touched on,

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payer mix earlier on, and you said you

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had a pretty favorable payer mix. How are

302
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relations with your payers right now?

303
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I'm gonna say I I'm gonna say I

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I believe we have good relations with payers,

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but it's always a struggle. You know, the

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denials are increasing,

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you know, just challenging.

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I'm gonna say every day there's a challenge

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with, you know,

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of peer to peer,

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or,

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you know, a denial that comes through or,

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you know, just challenges on down coding,

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etcetera.

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So at the end of the day, I

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don't know that it's that our relationship has

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changed year over year. I just think it

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it's it's seemingly a little bit more heat

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you know, the the heat is a little

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bit higher than what maybe it's been in

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the past.

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You've touched on technology potentially having the potential

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to,

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improve

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payment performance, improve revenue cycle performance. Yes. Revenue

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cycle's been an area historically that's been or

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it's very labor driven, labor centric,

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using technology as a sort of aid or

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a tool.

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But it seems now that it is an

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an area that can become technology led and

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human supported.

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Do you agree with that?

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I think I think it can transition to

335
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that. I'm gonna say that we you know,

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this is one of the areas that we've,

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you know, dipped our toe into the water.

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We were working with a more people centric,

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revenue cycle support group,

340
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that was more of a concurrent

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review of of charts working with our CDI

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team. Mhmm. And

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feel that our our team, our physicians, our

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CDIs,

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our coders,

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really benefited from that, to a point where,

347
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we did recently implement a AI

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focused solution. So sort of moving away from

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the people support,

350
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and moving to a more,

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computerized,

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AI,

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style,

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of software that's that's supporting our team right

355
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now. So it's it's new for us. So,

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I mean, we're in the first couple of

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months of launching that. So really keeping an

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eye on

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if it's gonna continue driving the performance that

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we saw with the concurrent reviews.

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And, you know, we're very hopeful that that

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is true that not only have our people

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learned, but now the,

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software is gonna help guide them. So, patiently

365
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awaiting results and

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seeing, you know, if if that is true.

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And do you think that can improve payout

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relationships over time just through visibility,

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speed, performance, accuracy,

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for example? Yeah. I I do. Yeah. I

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do. I think, you know, I think there

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is,

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there is

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a a sense that that that that is

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true, that through

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improved performance and,

377
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and,

378
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I'm gonna say more accurate coding

379
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Yeah. That that definitely could, you know, improve

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payer relations. Yeah. Yes. Okay.

381
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Let's end with a thought on the the

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patient,

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and and and and you talked a bit

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at the start about about access.

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Like, what what

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we've we've talked about

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using technology to improve the clinician experience and

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help administratively.

389
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How do you see some of these advancements

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helping the the patient as well

391
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and maybe patient access?

392
00:14:07,190 --> 00:14:08,870
Yeah. I mean, I can think of a

393
00:14:08,870 --> 00:14:11,190
couple ways. I mean, we've we've recent recently

394
00:14:11,190 --> 00:14:13,750
put a a focus on our a call

395
00:14:13,750 --> 00:14:14,889
center, and,

396
00:14:15,509 --> 00:14:18,230
we had a abandonment rate of upwards of

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fifteen percent, which obviously, as a CEO, you

398
00:14:20,870 --> 00:14:21,429
don't wanna hear,

399
00:14:22,214 --> 00:14:23,894
that fifteen percent of your patients are hanging

400
00:14:23,894 --> 00:14:26,315
up before they actually get an appointment scheduled.

401
00:14:26,855 --> 00:14:28,394
So we've worked, very,

402
00:14:28,934 --> 00:14:30,774
we've had very focused efforts over the past

403
00:14:30,774 --> 00:14:31,514
twelve months,

404
00:14:32,054 --> 00:14:35,514
bringing that, abandonment rate below the industry

405
00:14:36,309 --> 00:14:38,470
average of five percent. We're running right around

406
00:14:38,470 --> 00:14:40,649
three percent right now, which is a significant

407
00:14:40,709 --> 00:14:41,209
improvement.

408
00:14:41,909 --> 00:14:43,829
So from an access perspective, I think that's

409
00:14:43,829 --> 00:14:44,870
great for our patients.

410
00:14:45,669 --> 00:14:47,370
I'm gonna say our patient population,

411
00:14:47,909 --> 00:14:50,329
in in New Lenox isn't as supportive

412
00:14:50,709 --> 00:14:51,209
of,

413
00:14:52,105 --> 00:14:52,605
of,

414
00:14:53,545 --> 00:14:56,045
using technology. So, like, our check-in process,

415
00:14:56,425 --> 00:14:57,705
we have the ability to be able to

416
00:14:57,705 --> 00:15:01,085
check-in electronically or via a person.

417
00:15:01,625 --> 00:15:03,144
And I'm gonna say the majority of our

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00:15:03,144 --> 00:15:05,950
patients still prefer to use the person even

419
00:15:05,950 --> 00:15:08,590
when redirected and and helped. So we're we're

420
00:15:08,590 --> 00:15:10,670
coaching and, you know, working, you know, working

421
00:15:10,670 --> 00:15:12,590
with the population to get more comfortable with

422
00:15:12,590 --> 00:15:13,870
it. Mhmm. Because at the end of the

423
00:15:13,870 --> 00:15:16,190
day, it does streamline things and and makes

424
00:15:16,190 --> 00:15:17,250
access easier.

425
00:15:18,174 --> 00:15:19,855
But, but, but, yeah, I I think there's

426
00:15:19,855 --> 00:15:21,694
lots of solutions out there that can continue

427
00:15:21,694 --> 00:15:23,694
to help with access and and improve our

428
00:15:23,694 --> 00:15:24,194
patient

429
00:15:24,654 --> 00:15:27,294
satisfaction. We've just gotta, you know, keep dabbling

430
00:15:27,294 --> 00:15:29,134
in it and find what works, for the

431
00:15:29,134 --> 00:15:32,014
populations we serve. Yeah. Very good. Michael, are

432
00:15:32,014 --> 00:15:34,450
there any concluding thoughts that you want to

433
00:15:34,450 --> 00:15:36,850
leave us with? No. Just excited to be

434
00:15:36,850 --> 00:15:38,769
here at the Becker's conference, and thank you

435
00:15:38,769 --> 00:15:40,850
for, thank you for your time. Cool. Thank

436
00:15:40,850 --> 00:15:42,690
you very much for yours. We really appreciate

437
00:15:42,690 --> 00:15:44,709
talking to you. Thank you, Will. Thank you.