Health systems everywhere have been dealing with ongoing rising costs and new solutions are needed. What are CFOs doing to stay ahead of the price tags?
The upcoming HealthLeaders CFO Exchange is gearing up to get into today's toughest CFO challenges.
Health systems everywhere have been dealing with ongoing rising costs and new solutions are needed. What are CFOs doing to stay ahead of the price tags?
One strategy CFOs can jump on is taking a closer look at non-clinical spend. Where are the costs adding up while flying under the radar? CFOs should look at the not-so-obvious expenses that can often seem irrelevant to big picture spending. From landscaping to signage, examine where your health system can cut back.
Private equity is coming under a bigger microscope as the Steward Health fiasco continues, and one particular area CFOs are concerned with is ambulatory care. In the last few years, private equity interest in the ambulatory care space has increased. Both Surgery Partners and Amsurg, two of the biggest ambulatory care chains, have private equity ownership. How will CFOs strategize competition in this area to protect their system’s finances?
Lastly, there are some challenges that may not seem CFO related, like physician burnout. CFOs must take a closer look at burnout in their organization to recoup lost dollars and build a sustainable, comfortable work ethic for their physicians. One study concluded that physician turnover due to burnout costs health systems an extra $260 million each year. CFOs will need to collaborate with CMOs to implement physician programs to mitigate burnout as much as possible.
Marie DeFreitas is the CFO editor for HealthLeaders.