NEW YORK, Sept. 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- As the US health care industry continues its transformation to a patient-centric system, health care providers face a new imperative to collaborate with other entities to deliver quality care and improved outcomes with greater efficiency at lower costs. Whether driven by financial pressures, demands to improve quality of care or new payment and delivery models focused on quality outcomes, health care organizations are faced with challenges that require collaboration with others. These and other observations were released today in New horizons: collaboration, Ernst & Young LLP's annual publication for the US health care provider industry.

"The forces at work today are unprecedented," said Jon Weaver, Provider Care Sector Leader, Ernst & Young LLP. "Collaboration with stakeholders to share knowledge, pool resources and synergistically enhance patient care has become a common theme. We are in a time when silos are being razed, connections made, and shared purposes linked."

New horizons builds upon Ernst & Young's industry knowledge by featuring insights from in-depth interviews with the following industry leaders:

The report explores new forms of collaboration taking place in the health care sector and examines areas where stakeholders can focus their energies, including:

"As we enter a new era of health care delivery, boundaries between industry stakeholders are continuing to dissolve, leading to exciting improvements in the delivery of patient care," said Jim Costanzo, National Practice Leader, Health Care Advisory Services, Ernst & Young LLP. "With the market and regulatory forces driving the industry toward an outcome-based care delivery model, the highly fragmented majority of health care providers and insurers are seeking ways to work collaboratively."

About Ernst & Young's Provider Care practiceErnst & Young's provider care practice is helping the nation's leading health care providers (including hospitals, health systems, managed care organizations, home health companies and post-acute care facilities) navigate market changes, government activities and care delivery innovations. For more information, please visit http://www.ey.com/US/en/Industries/United-States-sectors/Health-Care.

About Ernst & YoungErnst & Young is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. Worldwide, our 152,000 people are united by our shared values and an unwavering commitment to quality. We make a difference by helping our people, our clients and our wider communities achieve their potential.

Ernst & Young refers to the global organization of member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. For more information about our organization, please visit http://www.ey.com.

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Ernst & Young LLP health care report explores collaboration as key to a patient-centric system