At the board meeting, you give your financial report. You actually have a small profit to show for the month on the income statement, but as you are going over that report in the board packet, you notice that all six board members have already turned past the income statement to the accounts receivable report. One board member actually has his mouth open, jaw dropped, and another is looking at you over his glasses. This is not good.

Your board members are community representatives; they care about the hospital, and they know how important the hospital is to the town of 35,000 people. They are all very worried. They know what has happened to other communities when their hospitals have failed financially. Everyone in this room has a tremendous stake in the survival and success of the hospital.

After you give the accounts receivable report, there is a prolonged silence. You wish somebody would just yell at you and get it over with, but that does not happen.