Where will community hospitals fit in the future healthcare landscape? Mergers and acquisitions of hospitals continue at record levels, yet many community and rural hospitals wish to remain independent. To position themselves financially and operationally for the future, these hospitals must understand the competitive dynamics of their situation. They must control costs while still offering quality services, attract and retain physicians, find their niche among competitors near and far—and consider the right partner to work with short of a merger. HealthLeaders...
Healthcare operations leaders today must drive operational efficiency and cost management to achieve necessary clinical outcomes. New models of care coordination and accountability require new operational strategies that integrate hospitals’ business functions and medical mission. As reimbursements shift to pay-for-performance, hospitals and healthcare systems increasingly must work with a broad range of partners toward population health management, extending beyond the walls of their institutions. Physician alignment with this changing dynamic is essential, but...
As healthcare transitions to new incentives and requirements, the industry is experiencing a dramatic shift in key competencies. As hospitals' mission morphs from treating the sick and being paid on a fee-for-service basis to keeping patients healthy and being reimbursed on how well they manage that task, hospitals can either buy the talent they need or commit to developing it internally. Regardless, they must cultivate new competencies in areas such as risk management, case management, and medical informatics. Indeed, even senior leaders such as chief medical...
In a period of turmoil and transformation in the healthcare industry, access to capital has become a critical issue. Hospitals and healthcare systems face declining revenues and pressure on margins, while competition and the shift to pay-for-performance are driving executives to seek security for their organizations. The result is a boom in mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures, and new and unusual partnerships. Access to capital, or lack thereof, underlies these strategic concerns and has the potential to create haves and have-nots in the industry. HealthLeaders...
Hospitals and health systems are transitioning from a reimbursement system based on volume to one based on quality of care and outcomes. While these changes are still developing, they are disruptive enough that senior leaders must make preparations for the transition now. That means making investments in population health management. Treating patients in an effort to keep them well takes much more information and data-processing capability than most hospitals and health systems currently possess, and the penalties for poor or uncoordinated care are such that...
Hospital operations are hugely complex. Operational excellence and efficiency affects the patient experience, clinical quality and safety, and the organization’s bottom line. Many executives, along with the federal government, look to information technology for improving operations. Regulatory incentives and requirements for employing IT offer more integrated operations but also create challenges in implementation. The cost of healthcare IT adds to the imperative of operational efficiency. HealthLeaders Media convened a panel of healthcare executives who share...
