Imagine that a group of physicians who are planning to open a  single-specialty group practice has hired you as a consultant. Your job  is to advise the physicians in creating a business plan that includes  management strategies that will help ensure their success. The  physicians have stipulated that the plan must promote medical excellence  and limit their exposure to risks associated with the practice of  medicine and the operational functions of the practice. In addition,  they are aware that a public health emergency or natural disaster could  have had a significant impact on their practice, and want to include a  strategy for emergency preparedness as part of their plan so that they  will be able to manage their patients and help serve the community as  needed. 

Write a four to six (4-6) page paper in which you:

1. Compare and contrast the two (2) main levels (i.e., internal  comparison and external comparison) of financial benchmarking. Next,  analyze the strategic purpose of each level of benchmarking and specify  the overall importance of benchmarking as a financial planning tool for a  medical practice.
2. Recommend a Health Information Technology (HIT) system that includes  an Electronic Health Record (EHR) for the new practice to implement.  Support your recommendation by determining three (3) main benefits of  having this type of system for the practice.  
3. According to the text (page 368), some of the main areas of risk  exposure for a group practice include: property (general liability and  safety), technology, and financial practices. Determine one (1) specific  hazard associated with one (1) of these risk categories and propose a  strategy to mitigate the impact this risk could have on the practice.  Support your analysis with a real-life example.
4. Determine the main functions of the practice that will need to  remain operational before, during, and / or after a natural disaster or  public health emergency. Next, suggest a strategy that the practice  should take to maintain communication with employees and patients,  secure patient and financial records, and ensure that resources will  available to care for patients during a disaster or emergency. Provide a  rationale for your response. 
5. Use at least three (3) quality academic resources. Note:  Wikipedia does not qualify as an academic resource.

This needs to be done in APA format and original no plagiarism.