Service-line strategies require reevaluating in light of operational realities
The many operational and financial headwinds that are buffeting health systems should prompt leadership teams to revisit the strategic direction, goals and performance of their service lines and clinical programs. Health systems are facing significant — and likely permanent — structural shifts in operating costs, staffing and options for where many procedures can be delivered.…
10 Vital Responses to Healthcare Disruption
Disruption is reverberating throughout the healthcare industry, and it’s incumbent on legacy organizations to develop strategic responses for the benefit of their consumers, their communities and themselves. With that overarching challenge becoming ever more pressing, HFMA’s 2023 Spring Thought Leadership Retreat brought together leaders from across the industry May 4-5 in Atlanta to consider approaches…
Healthcare News of Note: How Americans and healthcare organizations could benefit from a focus on health span versus life span
Even though the average life span is 77.9 years in the U.S., Deloitte calculated that Americans are living just 65.9 years, or 85% of their years, in good health. Eleven member institutions, organizations and individuals supported the Association of American Medical Colleges’ statement on the SCOTUS decision on race-conscious admissions. Health spending through 2031 is expected…
Annual Conference: How Mayo Clinic establishes the mindset and processes that foster innovation
Hospitals and health systems must adapt their practices using an innovator’s mindset to keep up with the change sweeping the industry, according to a presentation this week at HFMA’s Annual Conference. “Innovation, at this point in our industry’s landscape, is pretty critical,” said Praveen Mekala, enterprise division chair with Mayo Clinic, referring to the problems…
Annual Conference: Healthcare entrepreneur Alex Oshmyansky describes his efforts to disrupt drug pricing
Arguably no segment of the healthcare industry is more susceptible to disruption than the market for prescription drugs, as Alex Oshmyansky, MD, PhD, made clear Wednesday morning during the closing session of HFMA’s Annual Conference. Oshmyansky spoke about his personal efforts to disrupt the pharmaceutical market in his role as co-founder and CEO of Mark…
Annual Conference: Keynote speaker Thomas Fisher tells a disturbing story about denial of care
Thomas Fisher, MD, MPH, author and emergency room physician for University of Chicago Medicine, might have made some members of the audience uncomfortable Tuesday at HFMA’s Annual Conference as he described a scenario that reflects poorly on at least one hospital. The situation boiled down to this: A man with a broken jaw and without…
Annual Conference: HFMA Chair Dennis Dahlen issues a call to action for healthcare finance professionals
The concept of punctuated equilibrium refers to systems that experience isolated episodes of dramatic evolution intermixed with long periods of stasis or something close to it. Dennis Dahlen, who on Tuesday morning was installed as HFMA’s National Chair for FY23-24, thinks the hypothesis applies to healthcare. Speaking to Annual Conference attendees, Dahlen, the CFO of…
Annual Conference: Health system CFO panel reflects on the importance of embracing change
The healthcare industry is enduring tough times, but finance leaders are equipped to guide their organizations through choppy waters, CFOs said Sunday as part of a panel discussion. Speaking onstage during the opening session of HFMA’s Annual Conference in Nashville, five health system CFOs described how they’ve responded during a tumultuous period that began more…
Annual Conference: New HFMA CEO Ann Jordan describes her vision for the Association
Speaking Sunday at Annual Conference, Ann Jordan articulated her vision for how HFMA can support members and positively affect the healthcare industry. Jordan, who succeeded Joe Fifer as president and CEO on June 6, described growing up on a farm in Iowa (“my first career endeavor at the age of 9 was field labor”), then…
HFMA and Hospitals magazine collaborate to bring global healthcare community closer
By Olivia Tader HFMA and Hospitals magazine are working together to promote hospital and health system news around the globe. HFMA and Hospitals magazine, a Middle East healthcare magazine, have entered an agreement that allows both organizations to share more widely their content and expertise in hospital management and healthcare finance. “Hospitals magazine is honored…