Dead Certain

quickly is that they have someone inside the target hospital feeding them information.”
    “What kind of information?” I demanded.
    “What kind of information would you want if you were trying to take over a hospital?”
    “Financial information, inside dope on the medical staff, like which docs are calling the shots and which ones are bringing in the bucks. I’d want to know about the physical assets, the property, buildings, and equipment, union contracts, relationships with suppliers, any formal referral contracts they have in place—”
    “So who would have access to that kind of information?”
    “Depends on the hospital, but it would be someone at the top, either a doctor or an administrator. Do you think there’s any chance that they’re pulling the same stunt in Chicago?”
    “I have no way of knowing, but in my experience companies aren’t that different from the people who run them. They tend to stick with what they know and what has worked for them in the past.”
    “Is there some way to find out for sure?”
    “You know our motto. There’s always a way to find out; all it takes is time and money.”
    “We don’t have much time.”
    “Then it would help if we could narrow down the field. Who at Prescott Memorial is in a position to provide the kind of information we’re talking about to HCC?”
    “Not too many people. Most of the docs at Prescott Memorial are only there a couple of days a week. They’re not involved in the running of the hospital per se. That puts Kyle Massius on the top of the list. He’s the president of the hospital, and he’d not only have access to the information, he’d know most of it off the top of his head. The only trouble is that he’s also made no secret of the fact that he’s in favor of the sale.”
    “Why would that be a problem?”
    “Because it makes him either incredibly altruistic or incredibly naive.”
    “Why is that?” Elliott prodded.
    “One of the first things HCC will probably do if they take over the hospital is fire him and bring in their own people.”
    “Not if he’s already cut a deal with them. One of the things we keep hearing from people is that after HCC takes over, unexpected people wind up on top.”
    “Which is why everyone thinks the winners in the takeover were secretly working for HCC before the fact. I don’t know. The whole thing sounds like a mixture of sour grapes and paranoia to me. Besides, what kind of incentives could HCC offer? Villas in Tuscany?”
    “How about a cut of the profits? According to the company’s annual report, and I quote, ‘Aligning physicians through financial incentives is one of HCC’s primary tools for medical efficacy.’ ”
    “Meaning that the best way to get doctors to do what you want is to cut them in on a piece of the action. How big a piece do you think we’re talking about?”
    “I don’t know, but apparently the dollar amounts are huge,” Elliott replied. “According to one source there was a radiologist in Kansas City who actually did buy a villa in Tuscany after HCC took over.”
    “Yeah, but you couldn’t even buy a cheeseburger with what Prescott Memorial makes a year. They lose money.”
    “I see your point.”
    “Unless whoever it is has made a deal for a piece of the bigger picture,” I mused out loud. “It’s pretty obvious that HCC is trying to make their move into a major metropolitan market and Chicago is it. I just found out they’ve approached the archdiocese about taking over the management of the city’s Catholic hospitals. The good news is that my mother seems to have succeeded in derailing that. The bad news is that they’ve sued my mother, alleging millions of dollars in damages.”
    “But I still don’t get why HCC is interested in Prescott Memorial.”
    “Because none of the physicians at Prescott Memorial are on staff full-time. They’re all affiliated with other hospitals, and most hold medical school appointments, as well. Win the hearts and minds of the Prescott Memorial medical staff and you’ve got a foot in the door of every major hospital in the city.”
    “So who at Prescott Memorial besides Massius would be in the best position to help them do that?”
    “When you think about it, it’s still a pretty short list. There were only three trustees who voted for the sale: Carl Laffer, the hospital’s chief of staff; Gavin McDermott, who’s chief of surgery; and Kyle Massius.”
    Elliott jotted their names down on the