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                As the sun pinnacled at its noon trajectory on Saturday, July 11, 2009, so, too, did Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome.  The staff, having already arrived at 0900, had prepared this pocket of history for its pioneer aircraft air show, and the parking lot, across Norton Road, had deposited an increasingly larger crowd through the covered, wooden footbridge, providing pulse to the heart which one man had first infused with air in his life-long project to recreate this era of aviation.

                A line of aircraft, mostly frail biplanes sporting bracing wires and exposed, uncowled engines, had been nosed into the boundary fence on the grass airfield.

                Today, however, had seemed a little different from the countless others which had begun this way, because it could trace its origin to the first one, 50 years ago. Today had marked the half-century anniversary of the aerodrome.

                Like so many successful ventures, it had been the result of several uniquely combinable elements whose successful result could neither have been predicted nor fathomed and whose whole had been of incomparable completeness.  In this case, those elements had included a 25-year-old man named Cole Palen, six World War I aircraft, a farm field in the Hudson Valley midway between New York and Albany, and inspiration, all of which had resulted in one man’s life, the legacy he had left, and the lessons he had taught with it.  Along with this story, it is worthy of a “read.”

                Born James H. Palen, Jr., on December 29, 1925, in Pennsylvania, he had been introduced to the Hudson Valley region which would someday cradle his aerodrome when his parents had moved to a poultry farm in Red Oaks Mills, New York, located next to the Old Poughkeepsie Airport.  Interest precedes, and yields to, inspiration.  The airport, generating the former, had provided his first fight in a Standard J-1 when he had been ten years old.

                After completing two years in the US Army as an Infantryman, G.I. bill-financed mechanic training at the Roosevelt Aviation School on Roosevelt Field, Long Island, had enabled him to earn his Airframe and Powerplant (A & P) license and, after a ten-hour flight training program in a Piper Cub, a pilot’s license as well.  Although both would later be instrumental in his life accomplishment, one other element at the Roosevelt Aviation School would prove integral to the ultimate result.

                Its Hangar 68 had housed nine dirty, disassembled World War I aircraft formerly displayed in the Roosevelt Field Museum, but had to be discarded to make room for the pending construction of the Roosevelt Field Shopping Mall in 1951.  To most people, they had been trash.  To “Cole” Palen, they had represented treasure—and his future.

                Although the Smithsonian Institution had purchased three of them, he had bid his paltry life savings for the other six, which had included a Sopwith Snipe, a SPAD XIII, a Curtiss Canuck, an Avro 504K, an Aeromarine 39B, and a Standard J-1.  He ultimately won the bid, which may well have been facilitated by the lack of any other, but the greater obstacle lay in the stipulation that he had to remove them and transport them to his father’s Hudson Valley farm within a 30-day period.    

                Nine 200-mile round-trips from Long Island with his equally feeble vehicle had ultimately enabled him to store these skeletal wing and fuselage remains in his father’s barn, but they had formed the foundation of his eventual, early-era fleet and life’s dream.

                But he worked from the bottom up, with the most fundamental, and the most fundamental number had been one.  The SPAD XIII, the first of the six to be painstakingly restored, had been that one and had first been flown at Stormville Airport.  Because of its considerably robust construction and reliable, Hispano-Suiza engine, it had been the prime candidate for distant-air show performance, enabling him to amass critical revenue, which had parlayed into future fleet acquisitions and restorations, and critical publicity.

                The Curtiss JN-4C Canuck, the first to have made the slow, precarious journey from Long Island, had paradoxically never flown at the aerodrome, but had been quickly sold to a private owner in Spokane, Washington, where it equally paradoxically remains the only one of the original six to still fly.

                The Sopwith Snipe, for which Palen had made a separate bid because he had wanted it more than the other five combined, joined the Standard J-1, which had appeared in the movie “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad World” in 1962, before having been traded for a Nieuport 28 and 0 in cash.

                The original Avro 504K had an equally short aerial career, while the Aeromarine 39B had never even made it into the sky: virtually destroyed by fire during road transport as a result of an inadvertently-tossed cigarette from a passing car, it later succumbed to a second fire when its remains, stored in the Palen farmhouse and only preliminarily restored, had been reduced to ashes when the house itself had been consumed by flames.

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                The journey between one’s dreams and the successful realization of them, as evidenced by these roadblocks, is hardly a smooth one.

                Palen’s love, interest, and inspiration had yielded to his first income-producing venture when the SPAD XIII and a later-acquired Bleriot had been hired for the filming of a movie in Hollywood, and this revenue had enabled him to buy a farm near Rhinebeck in November of 1958.  The field, cleared to create a 1,000-foot dirt “runway” bordered by tall trees, had witnessed its first take off in the form of a high-wing Aeronca C-3 and had become the location of his ultimate vintage aircraft collection.  That location had been today’s Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome.

                This collection had hardly been a static one, however.  Indeed, Palen had continually sold, purchased, swapped, and restored, until the Snipe and the SPAD had been the only two of the original six remaining.

                Inspiration, integral to Palen’s life and the successful pursuit of his goals, had been only one element of it.  Like the Wright Brothers, he had had the optimum combination of characteristics which had enabled him to complete his achievements: he had married late in life and, as mostly a loner, had abundant time to devote sun-up to sun-down focus on the necessary maintenance, procurement, and restorative steps needed to create his vintage fleet.  But inspiration has its boundaries within the self, and only contagious enthusiasm had enabled him to attract the many like-minded who, pulled into his quest, had enabled him to transform torn fabric into aircraft and dirt into runways.  The planet had provided all the resources.  Palen, interfacing them, had apparently known how to harness them.

                Like the nucleus of an early, resurrected aviation atom, his crude, but evolving aerodrome had attracted an increasing crowd which, adopting standard restaurant practice, dropped tips into a hat in order to watch its biplane flight demonstrations.

                The first scheduled air shows, held on the last Sunday of the month during the summer season, had entailed neither characters nor plots, but instead singular maneuvers of each aircraft.  Realizing that a larger, non-aviation-minded audience could only be attracted with promised entertainment, Palen devised a show with the standard triangle of a bad character (in the form of the Black Baron), a good character (in the form of Sir Percy Goodfellow), and an attractive maiden (in the form of Trudy Truelove), and the conflict to win her.  But the aircraft remained the real “players.”

                That conflict played out today, at the aerodrome’s half-century mark, but the real players, hampered by gusty winds, never made it on to their aerial stage, despite the prerequisite vintage fashion show, parade of antique vehicles, and commemorative performance by the Six-Pence Pipe and Drum World War I Scottish band to mark the occasion.  Only the 1931 Great Lakes, the Fleet biplane, and the 1968 Great Lakes had managed to perform “Delsey Dive” and balloon burst maneuvers.  Nevertheless, the mostly canceled air show, although undoubtedly disappointing to many in the audience, had emphasized the unpredictability of the era these fragile, unsophisticated designs had represented, which had often been pitted against the elements.

                Sunday’s conditions, however, had been the opposite of Saturday’s and, possibly combining the two aerial ventures into a single one, the aerodrome had succeeded in sending all of its flyable pioneer, barnstorming, and World War I aircraft into the flawless blue.

                The Great Lakes 2T-1R Speedster, powered by a 160-hp Ranger inverted six-cylinder engine and flown by Tom Daly, performed the show-opening Delsey Dive, while the Avro 504K, powered by its original, 110-hp Le Rhone rotary engine, had followed.  The aircraft, built in 1966, had been acquired by Old Rhinebeck in 1971. 

                 Hugh Schoelzel, Old Rhinebeck Air Show President, took the Bleriot XI, powered by its 35-hp, inverted-Y, Anzani engine and bearing serial number 56, for its characteristic short hop above the grass field. 

                The lumbering Caudron G-3, sporting its four-wheeled main undercarriage and flown by Tom Daly, had trailed the Bleriot.  Constructed in 1914, the aircraft, the first to have crossed the Andes Mountains in South America with its 10,000-foot service ceiling, is powered by its original Le Rhone engine and had last been restored in 1999. 

                The Hanriot, flown by Bill King, is a reproduction aircraft which sports an aerodynamic, mahogany skin fuselage and, like the Bleriot XI and the Caudron G-3, only made a short leap off of the grass. 

The Curitss D Pusher, a replica built in 1976 and powered by an original, eight-cylinder, 80-hp Hall Scott water-cooled engine of 1911, had been taxied across the gently-sloping field by Herb Gregory. 

The SPAD, which had been acquired by Old Rhinebeck in 1999, is powered by a 160-hp engine and provided a distinct maneuverability contrast with the pioneer aircraft in the air, able to attain 138-mph maximum speeds. 

The 1931 Great Lakes, along with the Canadian-built Fleet flown by Tom Daly and the modernized Great Lakes of 1968 flown by Neil Herman, had pursued balloon targets.  Ultimate speed and maneuverability had been demonstrated by the Fokker Dr-1, which had featured cantilevered upper, mid, and lower wings devoid of bracing wires and two Spandau 7.29-mm machine guns which had fired through the arc of the prop ahead of them.  The triplane had been built by plans captured from the British during World War I.

                Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome had not thrived for 50 years by chance.  Asked what he believed had been the reason for its longevity, Tom Daly, Air Shows Director for the past seven years, had rattled a long list of unique attributes.  “This is the last place left which does anything like this!” he had exclaimed.  “It’s all hands-on.  It’s very interactive, as opposed to the static displays of a traditional museum.  There’s such close proximity to the show, providing realism.”

                “It echoes Cole’s original purpose,” he had continued, “of introducing young people to aviation.”

                Looking round at the day’s complement of visitors, he had added, with tremendous enthusiasm, “It’s so family-oriented, where you can come and spend the day outside.  It’s the only air show which runs every weekend for four months of the year, with rain and wind checks which allow people to return any time if the show its canceled.  So many have told me that is the best-kept secret.”

                Watching the latest take off of the New Standard D-25, he extolled, “The low-cost of the D-25 flight is at least half of what other comparable, vintage flights cost.  The whole family can afford to take it.  Some people come from all over the country just to take this flight!”

                A Mecca of aviation enthusiasts and professionals, the aerodrome attracts a diverse group.  “Every weekend, I have photographers, pilots, writers, aircraft builders here,” he had explained.

                The field, which can be considered both remote in distance and remote in time, “makes people feel as if they’ve stepped back into the barnstorming era as soon as they walk through the covered bridge,” he added.

                There may, however, be one additional reason for its success—a living expression and reflection of Cole Palen’s life and the product of his inspiration.

                Despite countless, sun-up to sun-down days, Palen, fueled by that elusively-pinpointable source, demonstrated that, once you discover your life purpose, that the pursuit of it will not even resemble traditional “work,” permitting you to become engrossed in it in such an immersive way that you virtually transcend the time you use to do so.

                After his death on December 7, 1993, his life’s work and accomplishments had been preserved, retained, and perpetuated with the creation of two non-profit educational corporations—the Rhinebeck Aerodrome Museum and Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome Air Shows.

                Old Rhinebeck, which has collected, restored, and flown more vintage aircraft from aviation’s first three decades than any other world museum, attracts some 20,000 annual visitors and its signature New Standard D-25 has flown more than 11,000 passengers.

                Today, on the occasion of its golden anniversary, the breeze blowing across the gently sloping grass airfield echoes the life lesson Cole Palen had taught with it.  Follow your inspiration, it had said.  We never really know why we are motivated to do certain things, but that motivation serves to provide direction to our lives.  His purchase of a few antique airplanes and airplane pieces, unknown to him at the time, had led to a living aviation museum and aerodrome for generations to enjoy well beyond his own lifetime.  Follow your inspirations.  They all serve to lead to your life’s purpose and the successful, fulfilling completion of it.

                Interest precedes inspiration.  Inspiration had brought the wood, fabric, rotary engines, and smell of burning castor oil of aviation’s budding years into the present.  Legacy will ensure that they continue into the future.

                The July 18-19 weekend will mark the beginning of the next 50 years at the aerodrome…

A “Business Milk” that briefly explains the scope of the business plan.  (written as a last step)
Business Milk own 71 acres in the town of South Bend of Sheffield County.  There are 50 acres of tillable land currently all in grass for hay and pasture.  The family currently raise approximately 202 goats for meat production and the sale of breeding stock.   

Short Term Goals:  (Within 2008 calendar year)

Determine best alternative to establish a goat diary
Establish financing for selected alternative

Intermediate Term Goals:

Sign contract and build barn/milking facility or locate suitable farm for purchase and establishment of dairy in existing facility.

Long Term Goals:

1.         Goat dairy is a final phase for complete utilization of time and energy in the enterprise.              

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The owners are considering two options:

One possibility is to build a milking facility on their current property.

Debt load may be larger

Allows for alternative use of existing barn

Avoids cost of moving entire enterprise

Second possibility is the purchase of an existing facility near Watertown and move the enterprise to that location.

Facility could  be modified, not built from scratch

More land may be available

Debt load is minimal with sale of current facility and house.

Cost and stress of moving entire enterprise is high.

Farm Business Plan,Milk from the  dairy will be marketed in two ways.  The primary market will be to freeze the milk in shipping  bags and transported periodically to the Old Chatham Cheese company in Albany, NY.  The second market is developing a branded product in conjunction with Kutter’s Cheese.  The current market price for milk is $ .94 per pound.

The primary issue at the current location is the land base and available land to provide necessary forage given the tight land market and hay market in the past few years.  Ensuring access to adequate forage is a necessity prior to working toward the 400 animal goal.

An additional unknown is the availability of a part time labor force to cover the time invested in running 400 animals through the parlor as well as keeping feed costs in line.

Moving to Watertown would require additional time to finish interior of house and bring the existing property up to speed in preparation for sale.

Existing cashflow is a concern.  Debt capacity is strong, but income from meat sales will decrease some as herd size is increased by retaining more young  for breeding / milking potential.

Moving to northern NY increases land base and should require very little debt if current farm is sold.  However, the time involved may set back dairy plans by up to 12 months.

(PRWEB) June 13, 2002

The National Youth Agency (NYA) provides information and advice to those working with young people in social education. Funded primarily by the Local Government Association and Government departments, it works to improve and extend youth services and youth work, enhance and demonstrate youth participation in society, and promote effective youth policy and provision.

Part of the NYAÂ’s remit is to award Government-funded grants on a project-by-project basis. ALBACS will be instrumental in this process by automating the delivery of grant payments to approximately 250 recipients per month, significantly increasing payment cycles.

Daksha Patel, Head of Resources at NYA, explains, “We have been using BACS for our eTransactions enablement for some time, but ALBACS is much more efficient than our original solution. Before evaluating ALBACS we didn’t actually realise that it was possible to achieve such cost efficiencies from an EFT product. We are now able to reduce the time spent on payment processes from around one day a week to just two hours, which is an extremely significant saving.”

National Youth Agency will also use eCONNECT to enable the electronic distribution of remittance advices, which will slash the administration overheads normally associated with having to issue manually prepared statements to confirm delivery of BACS payments.

She continues, “Although we were focused on implementing a more cost effective BACS solution, our decision to implement eCONNECT means that we can further extend the benefits of our eTransactions strategy. The combination of the two solutions enables us to truly automate the payment process by sending both payments and remittances electronically. Furthermore, the implementation has been painless and the software is self-sufficient, so there has been no need for additional IT resource to support our systems.”

Commenting on the working relationship with Albany Software, Daksha Patel says, “Albany is at the forefront of BACS, EDI and electronic document delivery software. We have been impressed with Albany’s responsiveness to date and will be working with the company to explore further opportunities that will allow us to take advantage of its eTransactions software products. Albany is a pro-active, enthusiastic organisation and we are looking forward to a long-lasting business partnership.”

About Albany

Albany Software, based in Alton, Hampshire, is the leading developer and supplier of eBusiness-to-Business solutions in the eTransactions enablement marketplace. 10,000 customers in the UK are using AlbanyÂ’s solutions in order to streamline business administration, increase efficiency and reduce costs.

Albany operates across a broad range of industries including banking, finance, insurance, retail and government organisations. Customers include British Telecom, Coca Cola, Halifax, McDonalds, Accurist Watches, Alton Towers, Help the Aged and the Disney Store.

AlbanyÂ’s product portfolio includes; eCONNECT, simple, safe and instant Electronic Document Delivery and Receipt; ALBACS, the market leading Electronic Funds Transfer software solution; ALBACS Verify, enabling validation of bank account details; ALBACS Messaging for streamlined communication between businesses and the BACS Messaging Service; ALBACS Remit, enabling the electronic distribution of remittance advices and EDIfy, designed for organisations wanting to use EDI more effectively.

Saratoga Springs, NY (PRWEB) August 3, 2010

Chequed.com, Inc. announced it has closed a financing round from a combination of current and new angel investors. The financing round was lead by Martin Babinec, Founder of TriNet Group, Inc. and current Chairman of Upstate Venture Connect, Inc.

?We have been continually pleased with the reception and support of our current investors. We are looking forward to welcoming a new group of angel investors as well and are grateful for their trust and encouragement of our business,? said Greg Moran, Founder and President of Chequed.com, Inc.

According to Martin Babinec, ?Completion of this financing round is a validation of investor confidence that Chequed.com is on the right path in rolling out a leading edge platform in this new and rapidly expanding category of online HR services. The company is well positioned to enter a rapid growth phase and expand its market presence.?

The funding will be used to accelerate Chequed.com?s commercialization of its predictive, online reference checking and pre-employment testing tools.

About Chequed.com

Founded in 2008 by some of the foremost experts in employee screening and selection, Chequed is an emerging leader in the rapidly growing market for Predictive Employee Performance? technology. Utilizing industry leading pre-employment testing and online reference checking technology, Chequed?s revolutionary Performance Engine (TM) delivers rapid, accurate predictions of a new hire?s performance.

Chequed has commercialized innovative research developed in partnership with The Research Foundation of The State University of New York and The University at Albany?s world-class Department of Psychology. Complementing these research innovations is the software?s practical, real-world emphasis.

Chequed?s experienced management team, board of directors and advisory committee have helped hundreds of startups and growing companies hire talent that made them industry leaders. Their extensive expertise has fortified the Chequed software to meet the day-to-day challenges of human resource managers facing competitive markets for human capital.

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Although it seems like the bad news about the economy is never ending, there is one bright spot for the people of Louisiana: the film and production industry in this state is actually growing. Not only has the entertainment industry as a whole has seen an increase in number of jobs, Louisiana specifically has seen a dramatic increase in the number of films produced locally over the past few years. This trend is due largely to a combination of state initiatives and the unfortunate economic environment of other potential locations.

 

One of the things that made shooting movies and television shows in New York City affordable for production companies were tax credits from both the state and city authorities. This allowed companies to defray the expenses associated with producing their work in such a large and expensive location. However, the credits that were taken for granted for so long are now in question at both a state and city level. The state government in Albany has yet to settle on a budget for the upcoming year, leaving the existence of the credits in question. The credits given by the city authorities were part of a program that used the entirety of its funding last year and has yet to be renewed.

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Additionally, in one of the states that competes with Louisiana for films, a major studio recently declared bankruptcy. At the end of July, 2010, Albuquerque Studios filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company has listed debts ranging from only to over 0,000, and the debtors include dozens of New Mexico businesses as well as Hollywood companies such as DreamWorks SKG. Thus far, the studio has been able to maintain their production schedule without interruption. However, as the studio seeks additional sources of financing, their precarious financial position may lead future productions to choose an alternate location.

 

Given the current situations in other locations, Louisiana is in a great position to step in as a leading location for the production of major Hollywood films, and has done during the first half of 2010. So far, 24 films have been shot in New Orleans alone! With a terrain that can imitate many different locations, architecture that can work for a variety of time periods and locations, and skilled crews available, Louisiana has the elements necessary to make it a viable location for films. Even more, in contrast to the situation in New York, Louisiana offers some of the most competitive film industry tax credits in the country, and those credits continue to attract new productions in this growing industry to the state.

New York City offers cultural attractions, museums, parks, lots and kinds of shops and restaurants. The city is home to world famous attractions such as Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, the Museum of Modern Art, Times Square, Rockefeller Center, Chrysler Building and much more. And all of these are mustsee places for the travellers.

A state of the United States located in the northeastern region, New York plays an important role not only as a state itself but also as a state of the whole country. It has always been, mainly New York City, a gateway for immigration to the United States. The state is one of the most populous one. As a travel destination, New York offers various sights and attractions to see. Among them, some have worldwide fame. The capital of New York is Albany. Among the cities of the state, New York City is the largest one. Buffalo, Syracuse, Rochester, Schenectady, Yonkers, New Rochelle, Utica, Ithaca, Mount Vernon, Cooperstown, Kingston, Geneva, Hudson, Tonawanda, Elmira, Binghamton, Jamestown, Johnstown are some of the names of the cities of New York.

Taking a trip to replenish your wardrobe, shopping is a marathon affair in New York holidays. Whatever you want to buy you can get in this mixture of finance, culture, history and romance. Take advantage of the concierge service at the hotel and get a ticket to a show, reservations to the spa, or a Limo tour.

New York City offers cultural attractions, museums, parks, lots and kinds of shops and restaurants. The city is home to world famous attractions such as Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, the Museum of Modern Art, Times Square, Rockefeller Center, Chrysler Building and much more. And all of these are mustsee places for the travellers. Superior service, that’s what sets hotels in New York above and beyond those anywhere else. New York is famous for incredible concierge service. A good New York concierge can get you almost anything immediately, except maybe an audience with the Pope. That will take a few hours.

New York hotels are in a class by themselves. The amenities, the service, the food and the access to some of the most famous places in the world they offer are second to none. When you take New York holidays you feel special. You know anytime of the day or night you can get anything you want. You also know the person in the room next to you is probably richer and more famous than you are. But not to worry. You will be so well pampered and paid attention to it will be as if no one else in the world existed. When most people take New York holidays they want to go shopping. New Yorkers know style and are used to quality. Why go to Paris, Milan, London and Madrid to go shopping when they have it all in New York? Both Fashion Avenue and Madison Avenue are in New York. They make trends. The clothes might be designed in other cities but they are not really a hit unless they can make it in New York.

If you are interested in buying a business, it is worth considering business for sale New York. The geography, population, economy, and transportation of New York have together contributed in creating a successful business environment in this US state. Here is a quick overview of the business environment in New York to help you decide for yourself whether or not you should buy business here:

Location

New York is a state in the North eastern region of the United States. It is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east. The state shares a maritime border with Rhode Island east of Long Island, and an international border with the Canadian provinces of Ontario to the north and west, and Quebec to the north.

New York covers 54,556 square miles (141,300 km2) and ranks as the 27th largest state by size. New York City is the largest city in the state and the most populous city in the United States comprising five counties, the Bronx, New York (Manhattan), Queens, Kings (Brooklyn), and Richmond (Staten Island). The New York City is home to more than two-fifths of the state’s population.

Albany is the state capital, and the Town of Hempstead is the civil township with the largest population. With over 7000 residents, it would be the second largest in the state had it been a city.

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Most businesses for sale in New York survive due to its superb geographical location.

Population

In 2009, the estimated population of New York was 19,541,453. It is the third most populous state in the nation. New York State is one of the leading destinations for international immigrants. Its immigration population is 4.2 million, which is the second largest immigrant population in the country after California. If you consider business for sale New York, you would have a considerably large market to cater to.

Economy

New York has a diversified economy. It offers agricultural outputs such as dairy products, cattle and other livestock, vegetables, nursery stock, and apples and has a large manufacturing sector that includes printing and publishing and the production of scientific instruments, electric equipment, machinery, chemical products, furs, garments, railroad equipment, and bus line vehicles.

New York City is the leading center of banking, finance and communication in the United States and is home to the New York Stock Exchange, the largest stock exchange in the world. Many of the world’s largest corporations too are based in the city. If you consider business for sale New York, you definitely will be spoilt for choices.

Infrastructure

New York has one of the most extensive transportation infrastructures in the country. While the mass transit subway is the most famous out here, the state also has waterways and railroads. Population expansion of the state resulted in the development of the path of the early waterways, first the Hudson River and then the Erie Canal. Further, four suburban commuter railroad systems enter and leave the city: the Long Island Rail Road, Metro-North Railroad, Port Authority Trans-Hudson, and five of New Jersey Transit’s rail lines. If you consider business for sale New York, you can rest assured of smooth and hassle-free entry to and from the state for carrying raw material and other items required for production of your goods.

To buy a business New York, please go through the listings on the site. The website offers business for sale online, business for sale by owner, and franchise for sale in New York, California, Washington, Texas, and many other states in the US and Canada.

Those planning to sell a business Canada may also visit the site.

I was impressed! I was impressed with Patrick’s integrity. V. Bailey – Morley.

YOU PUT US FIRST!!! Yesterday was only our second dealing together with your Organization and once again you surprised on the upside. When we Initial dealt with your Firm back in April 2009, we bought our dream automobile, a 2005 MX5. It was fantastic and we negotiated difficult and got what was an outstanding deal, thanks in component to you, but also to Jobe, who genuinely took on the customer champion role of putting us Very first and negotiating on our behalf, with our interests in mind!!

Answered questions!!! There was no pressure from Lewis. He answered questions in a straightforward manner and was polite and honest. R. Nash – Lesmurdie.

ABOVE & BEYOND…!!! We accidentally took the keys of our traded-in vehicle residence with us after collecting our new vehicle and Trevor offered to pick them up from our house that evening. This was significantly appreciated, specially since it was our mistake and it was above and beyond our expectation. S. Henshaw – Heathridge.

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MICHAEL LISTENED!!! Michael listened to what we wanted and showed us a variety of vehicles with out being too pushy. Gave us time to discuss and think about the vehicle. I can’t believe of any way to enhance as our whole buying experience proceeded really smoothly. M. Barlow – Bayswater.

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How well the medical billing and collection pieces work in your practice is a reflection on your practice’s use of its resources. Getting this right the first time reduces the amount of effort it takes to get you paid timely and properly.

 Where does the revenue chain begin? Some people think it begins when the patient’s charges are entered into the computer system, but in reality the revenue chain starts when the patient first calls your office and ends when the account is paid in full. Let’s take a look at the primary steps and resources needed to get paid better.

This is the point of entry and it is important to clearly define the responsibility the scheduler has in getting you paid. Since their first duties are to give patients good customer service, answer the patient’s questions and understand the appointment needs, the financial responsibilities can quickly become diluted and appear less important.   

The scheduler’s first cue on relating the appointment scheduling process to finances is the pre-registration for new patients and updating demographics and insurance information for established patients. Teach schedulers the right way to do it:

Collect appropriate and accurate insurance data rather than breeze through it;
Make sure the patient understands if the practice is contracted with the payer or whether the patient will be seen “out of network”, which means he or she will be paying a larger portion of the bill; and 
Document any payment discussions and commitments made by the patient when he called for an appointment.

It is important to call upon your billing department to train schedulers on the nuances of insurances – what information is needed from the patient and what to communicate to the patient that will clarify their financial responsibility – and to do this in a way that keeps the patient and the staff working together.

This comes down to check-in and check-out responsibilities. At check-in, the receptionist needs to go beyond collecting patient registration information – such information needs to be reviewed for legibility and thoroughness. Failure to verify information and accurately enter it into the system can result in costly errors and delayed or non-payment. 

Receptionists need to align their thinking to look beyond the cost of and understand how much money the patient already owes the practice. Management has an important role in clearly identifying what the receptionist’s collection responsibilities are and to help them set goals for collections at time of service.

This must be supported by training receptionists to examine patient balances and address this when the patient is in the office. To achieve this, the receptionist must learn how to audit a patient’s account and help patients understand how this balance was accrued. Receptionists also need a clear understanding of the practice’s payment policies and what steps should be taken to ensure the patient complies with these policies. This can be accomplished by:

Establishing payment expectations in the financial policies;
Providing staff with the skills on how to effectively ask and obtain payment from patients; and
Identifying methods to reinforce policies.

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Physicians, mid-level providers and clinical support staff are critical to providing essential documentation for the care that provided with each visit. Whether this is accomplished with an electronic or paper chart, timeliness is vital to improving accuracy and minimizing the possibility of dropping a service and failure to charge and code (ICD-9) the diagnostic reasons for the visit and the procedure code selection (CPT). Documentation of the contents of the visit is what supports the level of service for evaluation and management CPT code and the need for diagnostic testing and procedures performed.    

The goal is to have documentation for services rendered complete and entered into the practice management system at the end of the day.

Each practice needs a coder in residence. This requires someone who has superior knowledge in coding rules and application. The practice needs to make an investment in providing the resident coder with the training to become a certified coder. The AAPC coding certification is acquired through gaining expertise and passing the test provided by the American Academy of Professional Coders, www.aapc.com. Certified coders are required to obtain continuing education credits to maintain their certification. Once this is accomplished your coder will qualify as the “go to” person when there are questions about coding. 

Important responsibilities that can be included in the job description for this position are:

Monitors coding and billing performance including variances between providers;
Obtains continuing education on coding each year [at the practice's expense] with close attention to changes affecting the practice’s specialty; 
Trains appropriate staff  on coding matters, including changes that affect the practice and its specialty each year; and
Provides formal coding training sessions for new clinicians and new billing staff members within 30 days of hire.

With physicians typically charging a minimum of 0,000 a year [and double that for some specialties], it’s worth protecting your revenue and investing in a resident coder to keep the practice on track with billing properly for the services that are rendered. There’s a big upside to having a sharp coder that helps the entire office understand coding requirements so that you get paid better for what you do.

Once billing is accurately submitted, the arduous job of following up on claims begins.   Following up on claims is where staff expertise pays off big time!

Auditing claims payment and sending appeals is vital to protect the practice’s revenue. Don’t assume the insurance plans are adjudicating claims appropriately. They make errors that result in lower reimbursement for the practice. 

It’s difficult to imagine, but in the United States a whopping 30% of insurance claims submitted are denied, according to Healthcare Business Advisors, LLC, Albany NY 2007 report – and of that 15% are resubmitted. Guess who gets the short end of that stick? You are right – It’s the practice.

CMS (Center for Medicare Services) reports that Medicare denies 11% of submitted claims and 40% of those are never resubmitted. That’s a huge number. To make it even more interesting, Medicare data reveals 65% of the claims reviewed on appeal result in increased payments. Experts say 50-80% of appealed claims are eventually paid – so fight for your money! 

The message is clear: Hire the best, let them know what you expect and treat them right. This presents new challenges, as some medical office staff members abandon the practice environment and seek opportunities outside of medicine. To identify ways to appeal to the best candidates, answer a few important questions:

How attractive is our practice opportunity for a prospective employee;
What significant changes can be made to appeal to the best candidates; and
Does our culture value staff?

A culture of respect places a high value on staff – respecting them as individuals and for their talents – and it starts top-down. Practice leaders must demonstrate how they value employees in their words and actions. Don’t compromise staff’s value by cancelling staff meetings, allowing physicians’ failure to participate in staff meetings, or by failing to respond to their job needs or delaying purchasing needed equipment so they have tools to do the job better and grow their skills.

Communication is essential to building strong relationships with staff. Make sure staff members understand what you expect from them and provide the guidance to help them meet that expectation. When staff members feel appreciated and know they have management’s support, they will band together to reach higher levels of success.

Healthcare reform brings many new issues to the forefront; some are obvious, others are fluid and will change over time. Guidelines and regulations will continually change. Those regulations will impact the way physicians conduct their business, the revenue they generate and the overall profits that are attainable.

One thing is evident; physicians are being pushed into the information age and the need to embrace electronic health records to manage internal data and provide clinical data to regulatory agents that will be used for industry experts to define standards of care and quality of services. 

It is the responsibility of physicians (and the administrative staff they depend on) to be well-informed and make prudent decisions in the interest of providing a high level of service and use wise economic practices. Keeping everyone in the office informed about their sphere of influence in both the service and financial component of the practice is just plain smart. Good communication and a clear sense of what it takes to succeed keeps everyone working as a team with a vested interest in achieving practice goals and rising above the nuances of practicing medicine in times of reform.

Your continual challenge will be to improve revenue and manage costs without compromising patient care or services. Methods to achieve this vary, including:

Advancing the quality of internal systems and services;
Establishing and monitoring clear standards of care;
Identifying when it is time to outsource and tap into another level of expertise; 
Streamlining processes and eliminate those without value; and
Obtaining optimal performance by achieving high morale and impressive productivity.

In the end, the most important factor is creating a culture of value and respect across the continuum of care and across the organization – a culture where everyone wins!

New York is the heart of USA and also known for various trends. A lot of economy of USA is based on this state. It is the biggest state of USA too. New York’s gross state product in 2007 was .1 trillion, ranking third in size behind the larger states of California and Texas the other two states of USA. If New York were an independent nation it would rank as the 16th largest economy in the world. Its 2007 per capita personal income was ,364, placing it sixth in the nation behind Maryland and eighth in the world behind Ireland.
New York’s agricultural outputs are dairy products, cattle, other livestock, vegetables, nursery stock, and apples. Its industrial outputs are printing and publishing, scientific instruments, electric equipment, machinery, chemical products, and tourism. A recent review by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities found 13 states, including several of the nation’s largest, face budget shortfalls for Financial Year 2009. New York faces a deficit that could be as large as .3 billion. New York exports a wide variety of goods such as foodstuffs, commodities, minerals, computers and electronics, cut diamonds, and automobile parts. In 2007, the state exported a total of .1 billion worth of goods, with the five largest foreign export markets being Canada ( billion), United Kingdom ( billion), Switzerland (.9 billion), Israel (.9 billion), and Hong Kong (.4 billion). New York’s largest imports are oil, gold, aluminum, natural gas, electricity, rough diamonds, and lumber. Canada is a very important economic partner for the state. 21% of the state’s total worldwide exports went to Canada in 2007. Tourism from the north is also a large part of the economy. Canadians spent US7 million in 2004 while visiting the state.
New York City is the center of banking, finance and communication in the United States and is the location of the New York Stock Exchange, the largest stock exchange in the world by dollar volume. Many of the world’s largest corporations are based in the city. The state also has a large manufacturing sector that includes printing and the production of garments, furs, railroad equipment and bus line vehicles. Many of these industries are concentrated in upstate regions. Albany and the Hudson Valley are major centers of nanotechnology and microchip manufacturing, while the Rochester area is important in photographic equipment and imaging.
New York is a major agricultural producer, ranking among the top five states for agricultural products such as dairy, apples, cherries, cabbage, potatoes, onions, maple syrup and many others. The state is the largest producer of cabbage in the U.S. The state has about a quarter of its land in farms and produced US.4 billion in agricultural products in 2001. The south shore of Lake Ontario provides the right mix of soils and microclimate for many apple, cherry, plum, pear and peach orchards. Apples are also grown in the Hudson Valley and near Lake Champlain. New York is the nation’s third-largest grape-producing state, behind California and second-largest wine producer by volume.