Houston Methodist’s Utilization Management Program Houston Methodist embraces various models and health terminologies in order to remain a leader in healthcare delivery. Comprised of six different hospitals, the institution focuses on the best health practices in an attempt to deliver quality care to more citizens in Houston. The hospital has implemented a powerful utilization management program to address the needs of more patients and deliver quality care to them ( Houston Methodist , 2016). The institution utilization management (UM) program is implemented as a powerful initiative capable of supporting the needs of every patient. The UM program is characterized by a number of functions (Plebani, Zaninotto, & Faggian, 2014). The first function is known as preadmission review and management. During this function, different physicians analyze and understand the health needs of every new patient. Admissions for inpatients are done depending on their needs and the availability of resources. Such resources are used to ensure the targeted individuals receive quality medical support. The admission process is managed by competent healthcare professionals in order to present the most desirable proposals ( Houston Methodist , 2016). The second function of the program is “the admission, continued to stay, and readmission review” ( Houston Methodist , 2016, para. 3). This function treats healthcare delivery as a continuum especially for patients who have been admitted to different hospitals. During this stage, patients are monitored in order to ensure they receive quality medical support. The relevant decisions and medications are considered during this phase. The ultimate goal is to ensure the admitted patients get exemplary health support. The UM team embraces the most appropriate practices to prevent never events and support the diverse needs of different patients. The next stage is “the management of observation status of patients” ( Houston Methodist , 2016, para. 5). The hospital has hired utilization specialists and case managers (CMs) to manage the experiences of newly-admitted patients. These professionals monitor the health conditions and outcomes of the targeted patients. The status of every patient is analyzed in order to ensure the available resources are used to address his or her needs. Whenever necessary, referrals are made thus ensuring the best health services are available to the targeted patients. Precertification of managed care for patients is another critical aspect of the UM program ( Houston Methodist , 2016). This practice is aimed at analyzing the quality of care provided to different patients. Recertification is done to minimize delays or inadequacies of care. Any form of delay is addressed by the relevant professionals. The hospital’s UM program supports more physicians embrace evidence-based practices that can benefit different patients. The program has been observed to reconcile patient-specific needs with the services available at the hospital. Another “unique function of the UM is the medical necessity denial management” ( Houston Methodist , 2016, para. 8). The purpose of this function is to monitor when services might not be able to meet the needs of the patients. Denials are appealed in a timely manner in order