HFMA VIEWS

MarieAnn North, MBA, FACMPE
Director, Navigant Consulting, Inc.

There are some definite signs that the holidays are over. It’s not the dreary weather or the lack of daylight—it’s the time of year when we once again start focusing on filling all those open positions in our organizations. Labor shortages exist at all levels of health care—from entry level staff to academic physicians—it seems that overwhelmingly our labor force is finding more lucrative and less demanding positions, or early retirements!

I worry about the future of the health care labor force, and wonder if the work environment really has to be so unattractive and challenging. It’s then that I think of Mike. Mike was my first “real boss.” It was under his watch that I entered management and progressed to my first VP title. Mike shaped who I would become as an executive, and how I would view my healthcare career. A really great boss can do that!