Essentials of Cost Accounting for Health Care Organizations / Edition 3

by Steven A. Finkler, David M. Ward, Judith J. Baker

Overview

Instructor Resources: PowerPoints, Sample Syllabus, TestBank, Case Studies, Excel Files Given the challenging economic environment in health care today, all healthcare managers, not just accoun­tants, are becoming more and more aware of the importance of understanding costs. Essentials of Cost Accounting for Health Care Organizations is a comprehensive text that applies the tools and techniques of cost accounting to the health services field. It is unique in that it goes beyond the introductory level and provides an advanced, in-depth look at cost accounting for healthcare managers. Each concept is thoroughly illustrated using practical, real-world examples drawn from every sector of the healthcare industry. Divided into four sections, the book covers the foundations of cost accounting, information for planning and control, tools to aid in decision making, and future trends. The Third Edition has been thoroughly revised to reflect the recent changes in Medicare/Medicaid and includes an all new chapter on activity-based costing. Features:Practical, understandable, healthcare-specific examples engage the reader and bring the concepts to life.Challenging exercises and problems in each chapter provide hands-on experience in applying cost accounting techniques to management decision making.Excel spreadsheet problems that enhance student learning. click here to download excel instructions and click here to download excel templates.Extensive, 500-word glossary provides at-a-glance definitions of critical terms. © 2007 | 484 pages

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780763738136
Publisher:	Jones & Bartlett Learning
Publication date:	03/21/2007
Edition description:	3E
Pages:	484
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 9.90(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Steven A. Finkler, PhD, CPA is Professor Emeritus of Accounting and Financial Management at New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, where he directed the Healthcare Financial Management specialization for over twenty years. He is an award winning teacher and author.''Among his publications are eighteen books, including Accounting Fundamentals for Health Care Management (with David Ward), Budgeting Concepts for Nurse Managers,'and Finance and Accounting for Nonfinancial Managers.' Dr. Finkler has published over 200 articles in Healthcare Financial Management, Health Care Management Review, Hospitals and Health Services Organizations, Health Services Research, the New England Journal of Medicine and many other health care journals.' He received a B.S. and M.S. from the Wharton School where he majored in Accounting and Finance. His Master’s degree in Economics and Ph.D. in Business Administration were awarded by Stanford University.' Dr. Finkler, who is also a CPA, worked as an auditor with Ernst and Young and was on the Wharton School faculty before joining NYU.' He served for four years as a member of a National Advisory Board at NIH.' He is a member of the Executive Board of the International Society for Research in Healthcare Financial Management, former member of the editorial board of Health Care Management Review, and is currently Treasurer and a member of the Board of Governors of Daughters of Israel Geriatric Center.

David Ward, Ph.D., is Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs in the College of Health Professions at the Medical University of South Carolina. Prior to becoming Associate Dean, Dr. Ward served as Chairman of the Department of Health Administration and Policy at the Medical University of South Carolina. Dr. Ward’s teaching activities at the Medical University include Financial Management, Healthcare Accounting, and Applied Research Methods. Dr. Ward has numerous peer-reviewed publications in journals such as Health Care Financing Review, Public Budgeting and Financial Management, and the American Journal of Public Health. In addition, Dr. Ward is the co-author of two health care accounting text books. Dr. Ward received his B.A. from Colgate University and an M.P.A. and Ph.D. from the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at New York University.'

Judith J. Baker, PhD, CPA, is Executive Director and a partner of The Resource Group, a Dallas-based health care consulting firm. Judith has over thirty years experience in health care and consults on numerous health care systems and costing problems. She has worked with health care systems, costing, and reimbursement throughout her career. As a CMS subcontractor she assists in validation of costs for new programs and for rate setting and consults on cost report design. She is an Assistant Professor at the University of Rochester School of Nursing and also serves as adjunct faculty at the Case Western Reserve University School of Nursing. Dr. Baker received her B.S. from the University of Missouri, an M.L.S. from the University of Oklahoma, and an M.A. and PhD from the Fielding Institute, Santa Barbara, California. She has published numerous peer-reviewed articles and is Editor Emeritus of the quarterly Journal of Health Care Finance. Among her publications are seven books, including Activity-Based Costing and Activity-Based Management for Health Care; Health Care Cost Accounting; Management Accounting for Health Care Organizations (with Robert Hankins); and Health Care Finance for Non-Financial Managers (with R.W. Baker).

Table of Contents

Contents: COST ACCOUNTING FOUNDATIONS

1.Introduction to Cost Accounting

2.Cost Definitions

3.Product Costing

4.Cost Allocation

5.Costing for Nonroutine Decisions

6.Cost-Volume-Profit Analysis

7.COST ACCOUNTING INFORMATION FOR PLANNING AND CONTROL

8.Predicting Future Costs

9.Budgeting

10.Flexible Budgeting and Variance Analysis

11.Management Control

12.ADDITIONAL COST ACCOUNTING TOOLS TO AID IN DECISION MAKING

13.Cost Accounting Ratios

14.Measuring Productivity

15.Inventory

16.Dealing with Uncertainty

17.Information Systems for Costing

18.Performance Evaluation and Incentive Compensation

19.COST ACCOUNTING FOR THE YEAR 2000 AND BEYOND

20.New Approaches to Cost Accounting

21.Total Cost Management: Measuring the Costs of Quality

22.Summary and Issues for the Future

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Lena L Watson, Dr. RN, MBA/HCM(University of Phoenix)
Description: This is the third edition of a book that provides the fundamental principles of cost accounting across the span of healthcare.
Purpose: It strives to provide healthcare managers with a basic understanding of cost accounting information to aid in critical decision making, an imperative in today's healthcare industry.
Audience: The audience is varied. It is appropriate for healthcare professionals responsible for cost accounting decision making and management, but it is also ideal as a textbook for college level healthcare students and professors. This is an excellent resource for anyone interested in acquiring basic knowledge of healthcare cost accounting. Financial managers, administrators, and marketing and contract managers may benefit from the information covered in this book.
Features: There are several positive features of this book. It covers a vast amount of complex information in a clear and concise manner. Cost accounting is covered in different context including: a) planning and controlling; b) decision making; c) quality; and d) future demands. The book is simply formatted and easy reading. It has useful diagrams, tables, and figures throughout the book. The references at the conclusion of each chapter make it easy to locate resources discussed in each chapter. The end of each chapter contains discussion questions, exercises, and case studies to reinforce learning objectives and enhance critical thinking. The book also has a supplemental instructor's manual that's available online for classroom use. The only shortcoming is the fact that it's a paperback. Because it will get frequent use, it would be better if it were hard cover.
Assessment: As a third edition, this book provides the latest information on the changing demands of cost accounting in healthcare organizations. The three authors are well known in healthcare and give this book instant recognition and credibility. In addition, the content and its unique approach to cost accounting make this a must-have for healthcare educators and managers.

Doody's Review Service

3 Stars from Doody

This book is a revision of the successful first edition. It presents the major topics of cost-accounting as they are, or should be, practiced in healthcare organizations. The purpose is to offer a unified treatment of material that is available only in non-health related texts or scattered throughout the journals of health services administration. The authors intend that the book be used by practicing healthcare managers and by students in university-based programs in health administration. Both audiences will find the text useful and well written. The book covers traditional cost accounting topics, including product costing, cost allocation, cost-volume-profit analysis, budgeting, management control, information systems, and total-cost management. Although the book itself is very traditional, readers have access to cases and problems on a web-site maintained by the author. This is an excellent book by highly competent authors. Used in conjunction with the companion book, it allows the non-accountant reader to develop the necessary expertise to perform and understand basic cost-accounting.

Robert A. McLean

Examines basic tools of cost accounting common to all industries, using health care examples. Material is oriented toward the generation of useful cost information to aid managers in making decisions. Coverage includes foundations of cost accounting, cost accounting for planning and control, cost accounting tools for decision making, and recent trends. Written primarily for those already working in the field of health administration, and also useful for students in university programs in health administration. Finkler is a professor at New York University's Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. Ward is an assistant professor at the Medical University of South Carolina. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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