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Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Essay

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Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Stephanie R. Stewart HCS/571 September 24, 2012 Anne Harney Finlon Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) are important ideas to understand when discussing finances of any kind. It is important for all nurses, especially those in management roles, to understand financial concepts and be involved in the budgetary process. This paper will help to create an understanding of GAAP, the purpose of the principles, and how they relate to the health care industry today. Every profession tends to have a language specific to the profession or occupation. The financial world is not immune to this language subset. The term Generally Accepted …show more content…

This specific concept examines the likelihood of whether the entity will still be operating tomorrow, next month, or next year. The reason for examining this information is due to the value of organizational assets (Finkler, Kovner, & Jones, 2007). Assets of a company that is not expected to be in business next month will have a different value than the assets of a company expected to be in business for many years to come. For example, the value of the building where Shady Acres Nursing Home operates may be worth far less if it is known the facility will be ceasing operation in a few weeks. The next tenet of GAAP is the matching principle and cash vs. accrual accounting. As discussed by Finkler, Kovner, and Jones (2007), payment for services rendered is not always received in the same year. Additionally, the cost of providing those services may also not be noted as paid in that same year. Inconsistencies can occur as a result of the timing of income and expenses towards the end of a financial year. This GAAP rule helps to create consistency by requiring income and expenses to be reported in the same year. An instance of this rule is when Shady Acres provides skilled nursing care to Mrs. Smith for the month of December 2012. Though it is unlikely that Mrs. Smith's insurance will pay Shady Acres any sooner than January 2013, the accountants at the nursing home must show that the income was received in 2012. Additionally, the

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