Spotlight on Katie Tarr, Shareholder, LBMC
Kate H. (Katie) Tarr, MBA, CVA, FHFMA, CRCR, CSBI is a Shareholder in the Healthcare Valuation practice of the Advisory Services division of LBMC, PC in Nashville, Tennessee. Her practice performs valuation and litigation support services for private and publicly held companies. Katie has more than a decade of experience in both the corporate and consulting aspects of healthcare. She specializes in Compensation Valuation (CV), determining the fair market value of physician compensation arrangements. Katie has extensive experience in valuing clinical, call coverage, administrative or Medical Director services, as well as other professional services arrangements. In addition, she has experience developing commercially reasonable physician compensation models and policies.
How did Leadership Health Care influence your career?
Leadership Health Care influenced my career in several ways. It gave me leadership experience early on in my career when I served on a committee and then the board. It provided me with opportunities to learn from leaders across the healthcare industry through executive briefings and other programming and fellow members through small group coffees and organic conversations at events. It also provided me with meaningful professional relationships that have led to referrals and new clients. However, one of the greatest benefits I received from being a part of Leadership Health Care has been the deep personal friendships I have developed with people I have met through the organization that will last a lifetime. There is something special about connecting with hard-working professionals, in similar roles and life stages, within the same industry. Though our work and companies may be very different, everyone I’ve met has had a deep passion for helping people and driving the industry forward.
Tell us about a professional success story that you’re proud of.
When I was at OhioHealth, I was a Financial Consultant (one step up from an entry level Financial Analyst) in the New Business Development and Acquisitions group within the Finance department of the OhioHealth Physician Group (OPG). I was still doing roughly the same work as when I started (e.g., financial operations and monthly reporting, annual budgeting and long-range financial planning, and physician practice acquisitions), but with larger service lines like cardiology and neuroscience and more complex acquisitions. My leader came to me and said there was a need for someone to help with physician contracting and compensation. The person who had been doing it had left and there was no team and very little in the way of documentation. I stepped up and into the role of Manager of Physician Contracting, managing contracting and compensation for OhioHealth’s then 550 employed physicians. I had to learn the world of provider compensation very quickly. I learned the ins and outs of physician compensation, industry best practices, and related regulations (i.e., the Stark Law and Anti-Kickback Statue, among others). I sat on the compensation committee and interfaced with legal the president of our physician group, operators, and the physicians themselves. I had to develop processes along with forms and templates and hire a team member to work with me. I was in that role for less than a year, but I am incredibly proud of the good work my team member and I accomplished in that time. Saying “yes” to that opportunity set me on my current career path in provider compensation compliance. It was invaluable experience to build that role and function within a large, complex healthcare system. That experience helps me better understand and serve my clients every day. At OhioHealth I was the one developing the compensation model, managing the contracting process, and, when needed, requesting external fair market value opinions in accordance with internal policies. I’ve been able to apply my experience working internally for a health system’s medical group to my external advisory role helping health systems and medical groups throughout the country.
What inspired you to choose your current career path?
I happened to fall into healthcare when I graduated in 2009 amidst the financial crisis. I was newly married, and my husband was pursuing a Ph.D. I desperately needed a job and there were very few open to recent graduates, particularly ones with Bachelor’s of Arts in economics and math. I took the first job that presented itself, grateful it aligned with my skills and was at a great company with an exceptional leader. What inspired me to stay in healthcare was the people. Everyone I encounter in healthcare is extremely passionate about their job and company and strive for excellence.
When I moved to Nashville, I was at a crossroads: stay internal at a health system or go external and advise. I was inspired to make a transition to LBMC to take what I had learned at OhioHealth and combine it with LBMC’s expertise to help healthcare entities across the country. I love getting to work with many different companies in many different areas to help them solve problems and serve their communities. One day I may be helping a hospital in Alaska shore up its Hospital Medicine coverage, another I may be helping a hospital recruit an international thought leader in fetal neurosurgery or a regional hospice and home health company overhaul its medical director arrangements. Every day, every project, and every client is different, but they often have similar challenges and I get to partner with them to help address those challenges.
What has surprised you most about working in the healthcare industry?
How much I love it! My mom was a nurse and I have always been squeamish when she would come home talking about her day. I never thought I would work in healthcare and knew nothing about the business side of healthcare. As I mentioned above, I fell into healthcare when I was 21 years old and took a job as a financial analyst. I had no idea I would spend the rest of my career in healthcare finance. There are many ways you can impact care that are not at the bedside. I’ve always said I can do anything as long as I am able to help people and solve problems. Healthcare has provided me opportunities to do both every single day.
If you could go back in time and give yourself one piece of advice before entering the industry, what would it be?
It’s hard to narrow it down to just one piece of advice. I have quite a few! The primary piece of advice I would give myself is to be curious and ask more questions. I did not realize how much there is to learn in healthcare. Healthcare is complex and understanding the continuum of care helps you be more successful in your specific area. For example, understanding technology and operations, in addition to finance, will make you a better strategic financial leader. Likewise understanding life sciences, ambulatory, acute and post-acute subindustries within healthcare will help you in whatever area you work. You will understand the bigger picture and make different and better decisions when you seek to solve problems and address challenges. That is one of the great advantages to being a part of Leadership Health Care early on in your career. You meet leaders from all areas of the healthcare industry and can organically and informally learn from them as you network, attend events, or serve the organization.
How have you built confidence and/or resiliency over the course of your career?
I have always been somewhat self-assured, even at a young age. I think it is part of my personality and partly how I was raised. I grew up on a farm and my dad was one of the hardest working people I know. He instilled that work ethic in me. I can be confident in my work because I know I gave it my all and persevered. I’ve also literally fallen off a horse many, many times and learned to get back up and back on (I remember when I was 10 and the horse I was riding decided to gallop back to the barn as fast as it could, and I fell off into a very uncomfortable field of corn stubble). I’ve also been blessed to work for a lot of great leaders that helped me build confidence through encouragement, but also feedback on how to do things better or differently next time which gave me confidence as I approached the next project.
My faith also helps me be confident and resilient. I know my identity and worth are not ultimately in my work or what I do. I have an eternal hope that helps me keep going and see beyond current circumstances. I believe God will absolutely give me more than I can handle to remind me to rely on Him and not myself. While I don’t always manage challenging seasons well, I’ve learned to find ways to still prioritize my family, enjoy life, and manage stress. I also have a strong support system and don’t hesitate to ask for help. I lost my father to early Alzheimer’s at the age of 60 when I was 26. I felt deep sadness and anger but was able to move forward relying heavily on my faith and my community who came to be with me and brought meals to my family members they didn’t even know. That experience helped me become more resilient personally and professionally, as well as provide perspective that prevents me from being consumed by my job or crippled by my performance.
