How healthcare leaders can deal with fear, uncertainty and greed
by Andrea J. Simon
In my last blog post, I urged readers to avoid letting the FUGs--fear, uncertainty and greed--get them down. That's easier said than done, as the FUGs seem to come part and parcel with healthcare reform changes.
Get past the fear of change. A recent Harvard Business Review article explains the fears that get in the way of successful creativity. For example, how people know how to play and create when they are children, but as they get older, they become afraid of four key emotions: the messy unknown, being judged, the first steps and losing controls.
To get past these stalemates and instead, create ne...
Source: hospital impact - October 30, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
Key elements to switch from volume to value
by Kenneth H. Cohn
Autumn in New England seems like a fitting metaphor for healthcare reform, in that it requires us to let go of the past and prepare for an uncertain future.
Recently, I spoke to the Physician CEO Healthcare Roundtable on "Healthcare: What's Next." To deal with my uncertainty, I used Prof. Michael Porter's Framework1, which states that healthcare organizations must meet seven different conditions to move from a volume-based to a more value-based healthcare system.
1. Mandatory measurement and dissemination of healthcare outcomes over the entire cycle of care rather than separately for each interven...
Source: hospital impact - October 25, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
4 ways hospitals can prevent readmissions
by Zack Budryk, FierceHealthcare
Reducing readmissions has long been a key priority for hospitals, and now that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has begun levying penalties for readmissions, it's more important than ever. In the first round of penalties, nearly 300 hospitals were penalized 1 percent of their base Medicare payments, the maximum fine, and two-thirds of U.S. hospitals will see payment reductions in the coming year.
FierceHealthcare talked to experts in the field to get their thoughts on the four best strategies to reduce patient readmission. To hear what they had to say, click here and read...
Source: hospital impact - October 23, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
Key elements to transition from volume to value
by Kenneth H. Cohn
Autumn in New England seems like a fitting metaphor for healthcare reform, in that it requires us to let go of the past and prepare for an uncertain future.
Recently, I spoke to the Physician CEO Healthcare Roundtable on "Healthcare: What's Next." To deal with my uncertainty, I used Prof. Michael Porter's Framework1, which states that healthcare organizations must meet seven different conditions to move from a volume-based to a more value-based healthcare system.
1. Mandatory measurement and dissemination of healthcare outcomes over the entire cycle of care rather than separately for each interven...
Source: hospital impact - October 23, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
The origins of healthcare-aviation comparisons
by Jonathan H. Burroughs
Many people both understand and are frustrated by the seemingly endless comparisons between healthcare and the aviation industry.
Many claim such comparisons are short-sighted, superficial and inappropriate, whereas others feel the changes the airline industry had to make several decades ago are strikingly similar to those healthcare grapples with today.
Like healthcare, aviation was founded upon the cultural ideals of individual autonomy, hierarchy, and the pursuit of perfection by individuals dedicated to personal achievement and service. Airline captains, like military test pilots were consi...
Source: hospital impact - October 23, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
Healthcare can still divide the United States
by Kent Bottles
The shutdown of the government over the Affordable Care Act made me wonder why Medicaid remains such a divisive issue in American politics. Ever since the opening ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games I have been pondering why the healthcare system unites the United Kingdom and divides the United States.
The Olympics media guide in explaining why the British honored the National Health System stated: "The NHS is the institution which more than any other unites our nation. It was founded after World War II on Aneurin Bevan's famous principle, 'No society can legitimately call itself civilised if a s...
Source: hospital impact - October 18, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
Think small for big patient experience results
by Jason A. Wolf
I am inspired. No, not by the great "collaborative" achievements of the United States Congress. Not even by the growing willingness among previously competing healthcare organizations to share ideas for improvement, as now value trumps volume, quality trumps productivity, and experience drives real dollars.
I have found my inspiration in those who are thinking small to make big improvements and have significant impact.
I have seen something happening that may get overlooked in the chaotic healthcare environment. In recognizing that "with experience, what matters most may very well be the littlest thin...
Source: hospital impact - October 18, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
Population health management propels hospitals into insurance market
by Dina Overland, FierceHealthPayer
Competition is inevitably everywhere in the business world. Insurance companies are well aware that their counterparts are always trying to one-up each other, attempting to attract members for themselves while increasing their profits and status in the market.
But insurers might see some new competition from providers that are launching their own health plans. MedStar Health, the largest health system in the Baltimore-Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, is doing just that with its latest health plan offering called MedStar Select. The provider began coverage earlier this year and, alr...
Source: hospital impact - October 16, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
3 factors for an optimal healing environment
by Scott Kashman
When asked about the ROI (return on investment) for intentionally creating an optimal healing environment, I say it comes down to the impact on employee engagement. Year over year our organization realized an improvement in all 32 measured employee engagement categories--statistically significant results.
Those results don't include the pride and ownership people sense when you walk around our place. This does not mean every day is perfect. It does mean that even on the rougher days you know you can count on your team--employees, physicians, volunteers and auxiliary. We even have a patient and family co...
Source: hospital impact - October 16, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
Tweet chats can be good for your hospital brand
by Nancy Cawley Jean
If you're on Twitter, you've probably heard of chats--they're live discussions on certain topics using a specified hashtag. It's a great, easy way for people to get together for discussions and share information.
This year, we started monthly tweet chats with two of our hospitals. For brands, it's a meaningful way to showcase priority services within the hospital and position our clinicians as experts in their respective fields.
The first chat is for The Miriam Hospital (@MiriamHospital), which specializes in weight management programs, behavioral medicine and research, and bariatric surgery. Wei...
Source: hospital impact - October 11, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
4 lessons healthcare leaders can learn from military deployment
by Jacqueline Thompson
When you think of a military commander, you likely picture someone in a uniform ready to take action. When you think of a physician, you might envision someone wearing a white lab jacket--completely calm.
Outwardly, the two roles seem to be opposites of one another, but you might be surprised to discover that military and medical leaders have many skills and values in common. During my deployment to Iraq with the U.S. Army Reserve Medical Corps (ARMC), I learned several important lessons that civilian medical leaders can apply within their hospital or practice.
1. Team is key: A cohesive team i...
Source: hospital impact - October 11, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
Prevent a 'triple fail' with true patient-centered care
by Thomas Dahlborg
During the recent New England Healthcare Institute (NEHI) 2013 Innovation Conference: Patient Engagement 360, two questions kept coming to mind:
How can the healthcare system be patient-centered and engage patients without truly knowing the patient? How can we provide the care the patient desires without understanding who they are, how they live, their culture, fears, hopes, goals, and so much more?
The questions reminded me of a story about how ignoring time, relationship, trust, empathy and not hearing the patient's whole story can harm those we our blessed to serve.
My friend's 87-year-old mothe...
Source: hospital impact - October 8, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
4 core behaviors for patient experience success
by Anthony Cirillo
In September, I attended a local American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) event around customer service. The two-behemoth health systems were represented as well as one other local competitor. However, the person who stole the show was the local franchise owner from Chick-fil-a, Rob Rogers. While others droned on about evidence-based patient experience and role-playing, he got to the fundamentals.
Rogers definitely impressed me because he boiled employee and customer experience down to basic human values. (Although you may not agree with the corporation's values, keep in mind he was speaking a...
Source: hospital impact - October 4, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
Telehealth: Money and mission in one sustainable package
by Gienna Shaw, FierceHealthIT
Whenever I write about telehealth, I still picture the first remote technology I ever saw at a trade show. The computer had a large monitor with a camera and microphone practically duct taped atop it, the whole ungainly contraption perched upon a spindly metal cart. I guess you could call it mobile health ... in that a nurse could wheel the cart into the patient's room.
Not so long ago, healthcare leaders were still unsure about the financial ROI or the clinical benefits of such technologies. In what seems like a very short time, though, telehealth programs have become established service...
Source: hospital impact - October 4, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
A Pioneer ACO success story: Planning, infrastructure and compassion
by Stephen Rosenthal
It is widely recognized in the healthcare field that a small percentage of complex patients drive the majority of expenses. This is true nationally as well as in the Bronx, New York, one of the nation's poorest and sickest counties, where Montefiore Medical Center is located.
With more than 15 years of experience taking accountability for the health of patients through targeted, customized care, Montefiore was an accountable care organization before there were ACOs. We have spent years implementing and fine-tuning a system that addresses the complex and challenging needs of a population facing sever...
Source: hospital impact - October 4, 2013 Category: Health Managers Authors: Wendy Johnson Source Type: blogs
