Ken Perez: Trump’s second administration promises a shakeup around health policy
What a difference eight years can make. On Jan. 20, 2017, his first day in office as the nation’s 45th president, Donald Trump issued just one executive order (EO), scaling back parts of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). It set the stage for Congress’ subsequent repeal, via the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017,…
Robin Damschroder: Healthcare finance’s growth gives rise to new leadership roles
Over the years, the role of hospital CFOs has expanded profoundly. Back in 1946, when the HFMA was born as the American Association of Hospital Accountants, the highest titles for healthcare finance leaders were comptroller, controller or business manager.a Not so anymore. New titles have emerged with the increasing complexity of the finance function as…
Jill Geisler: 10 ways to tell if you’re a successful leader
Wouldn’t you like to know — with certainty — that your team truly values the way you lead and manage? It can be hard to determine. Your organization may conduct engagement surveys, but even those might not give you a clear answer. Engagement scores can be affected by economic downturns or corporate changes beyond your…
Marc B. Scher: Embracing strategic leadership in the face of intense pressures
One theme I’m hearing coming out of the J.P. Morgan (JPM) Healthcare Conference and recent HFMA chapter conferences is strategic leadership. It’s a concept that Harvard Business Review describes as understanding yourself, your organization’s goals and the situation at hand, and bringing the appropriate expertise to bear to support success.a For healthcare finance leaders navigating…
Susan Dentzer: Do we need a Department of Healthcare Sanity to eliminate low-value healthcare?
Zoe Chance, who teaches at Yale’s School of Management, tells students that they should ask a “magic question” when they are faced with a difficult situation: “What would it take?” That question can open their thinking “to ditch conventional ideas and consider a new approach,” Chance writes in her book, Influence is your superpower.a I…
Gordon Edwards: Lessons learned from the CFO of a children’s hospital
Gordon Edwards, CFO of Akron Children’s Hospital, has a credo he lives by: “We improve the health of kids.” It’s a credo that reflects his belief that children’s hospitals are among the most rewarding places to work in healthcare. “Children’s hospitals are just happier places, because everyone is dedicated to providing children with the opportunity…
David Johnson: Consumerism introduces itself to U.S. healthcare
Unlike other consumer people-oriented businesses, healthcare essentially operates independently of its end-users (also called patients, consumers and/or customers). Individuals engage providers to diagnose and treat their ailments, while third parties largely pay for any services rendered. This convoluted relationship among providers, patients and payers creates two fundamental anomalies within healthcare business models that distort the…
Let’s reimagine our approach to workforce challenges
Bloomberg Philanthropies is investing in youth to address healthcare's talent shortage, creating "healthcare high schools" in 10 cities across the country, which combine classroom learning with hands-on experience and the opportunity to earn industry certifications and college credit.
Jill Geisler: Does your business etiquette need a tuneup?
Business etiquette is still relevant today, as it refers to how we express and feel respect in the workplace, present ourselves, communicate with each other, and relate to those we serve, with the need for updates to ensure that everyone feels respected and appreciated.
David Johnson: RFK Jr. will focus on ‘Getting America healthy again’ — and maybe it’s possible
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has suspended his campaign for the U.S. presidency and endorsed Republican candidate Donald Trump in exchange for broad inter-departmental authority to address the chronic disease epidemic plaguing the nation.