CNOs should implement new technologies with careful consideration.

New technologies are popping up constantly in the healthcare industry, and many health systems are eager to jump in and start using them.

From virtual nursing to smart rooms to AI, there are plenty of new opportunities to enhance patient care and outcomes. In nursing, this technology also has the potential to improve workload, turnover, and retention.

Lisa Stephenson, chief nursing informatics officer at Houston Methodist, spoke with HealthLeaders about new technologies in nursing, and how CNOs and CNIOs can implement smart technology and AI to solve some of the biggest challenges in nursing.

Implementation and messaging

The most important factor to consider when introducing a new technology into workflows is whether it will become a burden to those using it. For CNOs, this means the technology should not hold back nurses from being able to do their jobs efficiently and effectively.

According to Stephenson, it's critical to include nurses and get their input on new technologies before bringing them in. Will the actually solve a problem or help improve a workflow? Communication about these topics is important.

"Really [understand] how it can help the clinician, make sure it is something that will be beneficial," Stephenson said. "You can't communicate enough on technology."

Additionally, everybody involved should be fully informed as early as possible to address hesitancies and avoid confusion. Staff, providers, and patients should all be made aware of things like cameras for virtual nursing, and other technologies that will impact them.

"Having communication available for all levels and even talking points for nurses to talk to patients about it," Stephenson said, "I think will really help with the adoption and acceptance when you get into [the] actual training and implementation mode."

Stephenson emphasized that implementing new technology into healthcare has always been a challenge, and that the first iteration will likely not be perfect.

"Getting that technology out there with some foundational use cases [really] lays the groundwork to be able [to] then build on that, and increase your use cases," Stephenson said, "and optimize processes, and really make [the] technology continue to work for you."

Training

After implementation, nurses need the necessary training to use the new technology. According to Stephenson, the informatics team at Houston Methodist partners closely with the implementation teams to develop training materials and come up with a good support plan.

Stephenson said they follow a super user model, where the nurses who are going to be directly impacted can get in-person classroom training. The majority of nurses will get online training, for efficiency's sake. A support team assists the super users

"If it's something new that they haven't really experienced before," Stephenson said, "it can be challenging until you really get your hands on it."

Houston Methodist also partners with their clinical educators to make sure programs are in place to train new hires. According to Stephenson, they use online training modules and encourage nurses to "touch, see, and do" with the technology.

“We have new technology that they need to be prepared [for], that they may not [have] even seen at other hospitals [up to] this point," Stephenson said.

AI privacy

Privacy is a top concern for CNOs and CNIOs when implementing any new technology, especially AI. Patient safety is always a priority, and that includes keeping data and personal information safe.

 Houston Methodist has updated its policies to state that staff are not allowed to use public-facing AI models like ChatGPT with any sort of patient information.

" You can't use patient information to put into that model to get some kind of note or summary," Stephenson said. "They have to use the models and tools that we have baked into our EHR or other [Houston Methodist] system."

That way, any data given to those models passes security standards and is kept private and secure, Stephenson said. CNOs and CNIOs should consider adopting similar policies to ensure privacy .

Data safety

As healthcare technologies change, nurses need to be aware of their own contribution to keeping data safe. For instance, nurses might want to send a quick text to a provider, or someone they work with, on their personal device, Stephenson said.

"We've made it clear [that] they need to be using secure texting platforms, which are things that we have on our Houston Methodist devices through our applications," Stephenson said. "We want to make sure people aren’t using any kind of private devices to do any of that type of communication or photography of anything."   

Additionally, patients might have concerns about technologies like virtual nursing cameras, and this is where that communication piece is key. Patients must be informed about when the cameras are on and recording.

"The cameras point up and away from patients when they're off, so it's clear that they're off and can't be recording," Stephenson said. "And when they are active, the nurse does kind of a knock to say 'Hey, are you ready?' "

The important factor is transparency and communication, so that patients, staff, and providers are all aware of what is happening with the technology around them.

"Communication, communication, communication," Stephenson said, "to make sure everybody's aware of what's going on and how to best use the technology as well."

The health system will be launching a new platform this month to improve care management for patients in cancer treatment

As health systems across the country look for small but significant ways to use AI, Intermountain Health is putting the technology to work improving care management for patients in cancer treatment programs.

The Salt Lake City-based health system is partnering with San Francisco’s Memora Health on a care management platform designed to reduce the workload on nurses and give patients quick and seamless access to the resources they need.

"The moment a person is diagnosed with cancer, their life changes,” Derrick Haslem, MD, Intermountain’s senior medical director for cancer care, said in a March press release announcing the partnership. “Being able to provide consistent communication with patients to address questions and concerns about their care is critical and very important to us, Memora's technology helps our busy care teams with daily tasks and empowers them to focus on what matters most: delivering high-quality care to our patients."

Phil Wood, program director for Intermountain Ventures, says the health system is looking for ways to insert AI into care management pathways that typically take a lot of time and effort. By using the technology to handle messaging, which is primarily and administrative task, Intermountain is freeing up its nurses and clinicians to focus on clinical work.

“It doesn’t change the messaging,” Wood points out. “Clinicians want to have control over the patient’s care. This [creates] a more effective way of communicating … and gives nurses back their time to focus on more acute and urgent cases.”

The platform uses AI to help patients with their care plan once they’ve left the hospital or doctor’s office, answering patient questions and guiding them to online resources. When a question or concern is complex, the system connects the patient with the care team for follow-up.

Wood, noting Intermountain hopes to have the program up and running by the end of this month, says success hinges on whether the patients engage with the platform and feel comfortable with the technology. Early KPIs will focus on engagement surveys and patient satisfaction scores, while other benchmarks will target whether patients follow their care plans, especially in medication adherence, and whether operational workflows are improved.

As health systems look to adopt consumer-facing technology, healthcare leadership will need to focus on those questions. Where can technology replace a clinician and where might it interfere with the relationship between doctor (or nurse) and patient? And can the platform (and the health system) adjust to patients uncomfortable with the technology and preferring more in-person interactions?

Wood says the oncology space is the ideal space to test the platform because of the importance of communicating with patients at home. Once this program is established and the value proven, he expects to expand it to other surgical services, and perhaps eventually into chronic care management. At the same time, Intermountain will be looking for new opportunities for EHR integration as the health system continues its switch from Cerner to Epic.

“Having an easy way for the patient to interact with the health system” is crucial to improving patient engagement and clinical outcomes, he says.  

Nurse wellbeing is critical to positive patient outcomes and the overall success of a health system.

Being a nurse is difficult.

The job entails long hours, substantial workloads, and the heavy emotional burden of guiding patients through some of the toughest moments of their lives.

Nurse wellbeing is essential to the success of a health system, and it is the CNO's job to make sure they are providing programs and support to help keep their staff safe and well.

According to April Prunty, director of nursing professional development at Allina Health, more than half of the healthcare workforce is made up of nurses or nurse-related positions, so the wellbeing and success of nurses affects everyone. If nurses are not in top shape, Prunty explained, that causes a decline in patient outcomes.

"If our nurses and our nursing team members aren't doing well, they are not in a good position to provide that excellent patient care," Prunty said. "There is also some evidence to suggest that if nurses are doing well, the rest of the healthcare team is doing well."

Understanding wellbeing

Wellbeing looks different for each nurse. Some might prioritize flexible scheduling and better work-life balance, while others might want more opportunities to connect with others or time to process events.

" One of the key tenets of nurse wellbeing is really understanding what wellbeing means for the individual nurse," Prunty said. " It does look different for everybody, but there's some key principles that can be woven throughout to support wellbeing."

CNOs need to show their support and learn about their staff to understand what those needs are.

"One of the things that we often hear from nursing staff is that they really appreciate visibility," Prunty said. 

Nurse leaders should take time to informally round on units and connect with staff, Prunty recommended. CNOs can take that opportunity to listen to what the nurses are telling them, so they can provide the correct support and continue to advocate for them.

"Continuing to advocate for staff [at] whatever table they're sitting at to make sure that staff have the resources that they need to continue providing excellent patient care is always important," Prunty said.

Changing the environment

The next step is to make the work environment healthier and safer. Prunty referenced the uptick in workplace violence as one of the key challenges in the healthcare industry, as well as the increased levels of care required by patients.

"We're seeing a lot of changes in some of our healthcare settings," Prunty said, "and we need to make sure that our staff feel safe coming to work, and that they're adequately prepared to care for the complexity of patients that we're seeing."

Prunty recommends that CNOs allow for adequate breaks throughout the day so that nurses can take a breather, while feeling empowered to do so.

Prunty said there are a few different phases to supporting staff who have experienced a traumatic event or high-stress situation.

The first is to provide support in the moment allow the nurse to take a step back, and reassure them that a colleague or a nurse manager has their back. The second is to make sure that the nurse has time to process what happened.

Prunty said Allina Health implemented both employee assistance programs and a spiritual care team that can support staff in real time.

"We need to be attuned to the impact of the experiences that our nurses are feeling," Prunty said. "I think the importance is having the support and resources in the right place at the right time."

Leaders also need to ensure that nurses feel like their tasks are a value add, and that they are giving nurses back time at the bedside.

"It's really important for executive nursing leaders to think about what [our workflows are] and what [our processes are], and how [we can] improve efficiency," Prunty said, "so that we are maximizing the time that we have with our patientsand making sure that we're promoting a healthy work environment."

Supplying resources

Prunty suggested that CNOs try something creative when providing resources to support nurse wellbeing. In addition to the standard employee assistance programs, a few of the sites across the Allina Health system have calming rooms, where nurses can go to take a break.

"It's a space [where] you can listen to calming music [or] meditate and take a deep breath," Prunty said. "A space where you can physically close the door and sort of separate yourself from what's happening on your unity during your clinic."

Allina Health also has robust employee well-being programs through the Penny George Institute for Health and Healing. The programs allow staff to receive coaching on a variety of different topics through online asynchronous learning.

"I think this is really our opportunity to say OK, what's working, [and] what's not working," Prunty said, "and it's OK, we can try something else."

It's critical that CNOs communicate the existence of resources as well, so that nurses can find and use them. Prunty emphasized the difficulty of communicating with nurses, since nurses do not have time to frequently check their e-mails.

Allina Health has tiered huddles that are focused on safety issues, and a communications team that disseminates all the necessary information on a weekly basis to staff. Prunty said they are also looking at ways to integrate resources into the EHR, including a button that can be pressed if nurses need resources during the documentation process.

Prunty also explained that they are leveraging social media and signage to provide even more avenues of communication.

"As our health system continues to grow in complexity and expand in geographic areas," Prunty said, "we really need to think about how [we can] reach all of our staff, because that's part of feeling included . Knowing what’s going on and not feeling left out of messaging."

Preparing new nurses

CNOs need to find innovative ways to build resiliency among new nurses. According to Prunty, the disruption to academic programming by the COVID-19 pandemic caused many new nurses to enter the industry with less clinical experience.

"I think it really is an opportunity for us to think differently about how we bring people in and help them through that transition," Prunty said.

Allina Health has implemented a strong nurse residency program that Prunty says is addressing the needs of the new generation of nurses. The program gives nurses the opportunity to build community with those going through similar experiences.

"We're talking a lot about moral distress, moral injury, processing grief and loss, [and] having crucial conversations," Prunty said. " Things that are really challenging for folks as they enter the nursing workforce."

There is also an opportunity to revamp academic programs and partnerships sto support nurses in their transition to the workforce.

Prunty emphasized the need for leaders to stay flexible.

"I would say the agility and curiosity in approaching the new needs of this workforce are going to be critical," Prunty said, "to make sure that they have what they need to take care of patients."

Leading by example

There are a few things CNOs can do to positively influence the work environment and keep spirits high, and visibility is a key component.

"I think rounding and making sure people see you as a person," Prunty said, "and you [making] that connection with your teams is critically important."

CNOs need to keep advocating for nurses in as many spaces as possible, and to help people outside the nursing realm understand the role of a nurse.

It's difficult to explain to others the invisible labor that is associated with providing excellent patient care, Prunty stated, and it's important that that's recognized and acknowledged as a critical part of providing care.

"I think any opportunity to just be curious and help people understand," Prunty said, "and tell our story as nurses, I think is really important." 

While disruptors are having a hard time figuring out healthcare, health systems and hospitals are embracing telehealth as a standard of care

As the American Telemedicine Association gathers next week for its annual conference, attendees will find plenty to discuss.

Telehealth had its moment in the spotlight with the pandemic, when both the healthcare industry and consumers found they couldn't live without it. While adoption dropped with the return to in-person care, the general consensus is that telehealth is now a part of the care spectrum. The best evidence of this may be the announcement that both the Joint Commission and the National Committee for Quality Assurance are developing new accreditation standards for virtual care.

That said, telehealth advocates are still waiting for policy and regulations to catch up. Many states have upgraded their telehealth guidelines in the wake of the pandemic, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has made some of its pandemic-era telehealth waivers permanent while extending others to the end of this year. Several bills before Congress aim to make those waivers permanent, but there's no guarantee that any action will be taken on those bills.

Finally, the direct-to-consumer and primary care telehealth marketplace is seeing some upheaval. Walmart's recent announcement that it is shuttering its in-store clinics as well as its telehealth program wasn't entirely unexpected—UnitedHealth is shutting down Optum Virtual Care, CVS Health isn't seeing any growth, and both Amwell and Teladoc have been encountering problems as well. Those companies are finding that telehealth for primary care isn't profitable, while health systems are finding those telehealth services are still in demand, and necessary.

At the ViVE 2024 conference earlier this year in Los Angeles, Sheeza Hussein, Steady MD's chief growth officer, noted that the direct-to-consumer telehealth industry is awash with small companies (and providers) offering virtual care for specific services, like pediatric care, sexual health, and weight loss. This, along with functional medicine, or testing and diagnostic services for chronic care, and pharma companies are driving the growth in DTC telehealth.

These issues and more will dominate the discussion at ATA's Nexus event next week. For a further look at what to expect, listen to this podcast with Nate Lacktman, a partner in the Foley & Lardner law firm, chair of its national Telemedicine & Digital Health Industry Team, and a member of the ATA's Board of Directors.

These new AACN guidelines have the potential to impact how CNOs handle staffing in their health systems.

The American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN) hast published the AACN Standards for Appropriate Staffing in Adult Critical Care, in an effort to help health systems tackle nurse staffing.

The standards

The seven key standards are designed to help leaders "incorporate appropriate staffing into everyday operations and patient care," according to a press release. They are also meant to promote a healthy work environment in line with the AACN's HWE standards.

The new standards recommend the following:

1. Direct care nurses participate in all aspects of staffing, including planning, implementation, and evaluation.
2. Hospital patient care areas establish, evaluate, and refine unit-specific staffing guidelines based upon their impact on patient and nurse outcomes.
3. For every shift, patient assignments are based on an accurate assessment of the current nursing workload generated by each patient's needs and align nurse competency with patient characteristics.
4. Clinical leaders such as charge nurses, educators, and nurse managers are not included in patient assignments, except in rare crisis situations.
5. Staffing plans and patient assignments support the unique needs of nurses who are new to the unit.
6. Organizational staffing plans are designed to prioritize the health of the work environment and thus drive nurse retention and optimal patient outcomes.
7. Organizational staffing plans anticipate that critically ill or injured patients generally require a ratio of one nurse to two patients.

According to Vicky Good, chief clinical officer at AACN, the standards provide a potential solution to multiple issues in the nursing industry.

"The link between healthy work environments and patient safety, nurse recruitment and retention, and an organization's bottom line is irrefutable," Good said in the press release. "These standards, coupled with a deep commitment to collaboration and change, provide an opportunity for evidence-based transformation that can profoundly improve the U.S. healthcare system's ability to meet patients' needs."

CNO impact

What do these standards mean for CNOs?

Though not mandatory, the new AACN guidelines can serve as a potential blueprint or starting point for nurse leaders to reference when looking at staffing policies and making changes that reflect a healthier work environment.

Good previously told HealthLeaders that the research shows the positive impact of healthy work environments on staff and patient outcomes. Patient outcomes improve, nurse turnover decreases along with burnout and moral distress, and the perception and quality of care improve.  

“The evidence is clear that having a healthy work environment is [a] cornerstone to nurse well-being and retention,” Good said, “but now the research even demonstrates [the impact on] our patients.”

The health system is putting 'Telehealth for Nursing' to the test in one hospital, and getting results that will aid in scaling and sustaining the program

Intermountain Health's new Telehealth for Nursing program may be checking all the boxes for a virtual nursing pilot, with KPIs that focus on improving patient outcomes and cutting down on wasted time. But executives are also keeping an eye on the intangibles.

Becky Fox, chief clinical information officer for the Salt Lake City-based health system, and HealthLeaders Mastermind participant, says an innovative program has to include an "other" box, especially when it deals with front-ling clinical work. That's because nurses can take a new idea developed by health system executives and make it better.

"We kind of leave it as an 'other' field because we know that nurses are the best entrepreneurial, innovative folks, and if anyone's going to figure out another way that anyone can use telehealth and these technologies, then our nursing staff are going to do it," she says. "We always have a KPI that's other things we have learned or other benefits that we have seen along the way."

Intermountain is one of a handful of health systems across the country that are taking part in the HealthLeaders Virtual Nursing Masterminds program, a series of virtual meetings capped off by an in-person event in June. The program is taking a deep dive into virtual nursing strategies with perspectives from some of the top health systems and executives in the country.

Like so many other health systems, Intermountain is just getting started on the journey, with a small pilot program in one hospital. Fox says the concept was launched to address not only the ongoing nursing shortage, but to improve the patient experience. The pilot program uses a virtual nursing station within the hospital and shifts nurses on the unit between in-person and virtual care.

Fox says the program will evolve as Intermountain learn more about the nuances of virtual nursing, but she has been surprised so far in how the nurses are responding. While visiting the hospital a few weeks ago, Fox says she talked with a nurse involved in the pilot.

"She said 'I really wanted to do follow-up,'" Fox recalls. "'This patient told me this amazing story of his life. I really connected with him.' And so she wanted to do a follow-up. So that goes in the 'other' category."

"So now we're looking at, as other healthcare organizations have done, do we have a follow-up telehealth visit with that patient with that nurse, [maybe] two days later, to say 'Hey, Mr. Smith, I just wanted to see how you were doing. You were telling me the other day that you were concerned about this. Have you had your needs met? And having that [extra] touchpoint."

"What I also heard was the value that the nurse felt with [the program]," Fox adds. "That's one of the things that has [resonated], the gratitude. When we see that and hear that and feel that from patients, that's one of the things that we oftentimes hear in [nurse] burnout stories. That they didn't feel that they got to be their best."

Fox says Intermountain executives are learning a lot from this pilot program, and that both nurses and patients are seeing the value.

"They do feel connected regardless of the fact that the nurse is on a laptop, a mobile cart, or whether they are connecting with the clinician on a big monitor in the room," she says. "They feel like they're being supported, educated, and know how to care for themselves when they go home."

Those feelings, Fox says, will help executives as they move from a pilot in one hospital to a program in several hospitals. And that's why the 'other' box is just as important as any of the KPIs.

The HealthLeaders Mastermind series is an exclusive series of calls and events with healthcare executives. This Virtual Nursing Mastermind series features ideas, solutions, and insights on exceling your virtual nursing program. Please join the community at our LinkedIn page.

To inquire about participating in an upcoming Mastermind series or attending a HealthLeaders Exchange event, email us at exchange@healthleadersmedia.com.

With an aggressive innovation strategy, the New Jersey health system wants to be a force of change rather than a passive participant

Healthcare innovation is a popular topic these days as healthcare organizations strive to redefine care delivery in a time of tight margins and increasing competition. But for all the talk of AI, virtual services, and value-based care, how do executives identify what needs to be changed?

Health systems looking for an innovation model could check out the Atlantic Health System. The New Jersey-based organization, comprising six hospitals and more than 400 care sites, is fostering new ideas through the Atlantic Health Venture Studio, which not only offers capital investments but also provides mentorship, forges strategic partnerships with new and emerging companies and offers product and service c-development for in-house partners.

"We wanted to take a more proactive and intentional approach," says Doug Hayes, the studio's executive director. "We don't want to just passively receive the innovations that are coming out of the market. We want to actually help play a role."

Hayes, who ran his own New York City-based venture studio for eight years and was a partner and executive director of Blueprint Health, launching close to 50 VC-backed digital health startups, joined Atlantic Health roughly three years ago, when the health system had decided to develop its own venture studio.

The timing was right. Coming out of the pandemic, many health systems were struggling with staff shortages and mandates to improve care, while the innovation landscape was filled with new ideas and technologies aimed to tackle those pain points. At the same time so-called disruptors, such as Amazon, Google, Walmart, and the large pharmacy chains, were jumping into the sandbox with new strategies aimed at addressing healthcare's problems and giving consumers an easier way to access care.

Hayes points out that the disruptors, coming in from more consumer-friendly industries, are "very good at what they do. [And] that's a type of thinking that … we're not accustomed to thinking in healthcare."

But healthcare is different—as proven by Walmart's decision to close its in-store health clinics and telehealth program, UnitedHealth's shuttering of Optum Virtual Care and the continuing problems faced by Teladoc and American Well. Hayes notes that healthcare organizations can embrace new ideas from outside the industry and perhaps even partner with disruptors, but they have to own their innovation strategies.

In other words, they want to be the disruptor.

"We're not going to be looking to them to think about what we've got to do," he says. "We have a growing internal competency and fluency around innovation."

In other words, healthcare organizations like Atlantic Health aren't necessarily interested in the next shiny object. They're focused on creating a comprehensive strategy that identifies new ideas and tools and fosters growth and integration into the enterprise.  

Hayes says the venture studio has developed a few key guidelines along the way:

Don't mix innovation with the operating budget. Atlantic Health separates its investment funds from the operations budget, instead using long-term capital to support innovation. Hayes says it's important to make clear that innovation isn't taking money that would otherwise be used for salaries, new hires, or other operational expenses.

Innovation and technology are also separate. The key to enacting any meaningful change, says Hayes, is change management. Oftentimes the most meaningful changes come in workflow redesign or operational adjustments. New tech is a tool that can be used to achieve better or new results, but there's a lot of groundwork that has to be done first.

"Goals are for people who want to accomplish something once, and systems are for people who want to accomplish something repeatedly," he points out. "We're trying to set up a system."

Good ideas can come from anywhere. Ditch the thinking that the only good ideas come from the management level. Clinicians and nurses have the front-line knowledge to come up with the most effective workarounds, or new ideas to address pain points. Likewise, a small start-up might see things differently than a tech giant and come up with a better solution. Hayes says the key is to create an atmosphere that welcomes ideas from any and all sources and gives them the right support and resources to develop.

An example of this, he says, is Atlantic Health Advancements (AHA), a $500,000 fund set up to catalyze ideas from within the health system. The program targets small projects, often process innovations typically generated from front-line staff like nurses. A program like this, Hayes says, instills an interest in employees to be creative and come up with new ways of doing things, while giving management a forum for letting those ideas gain traction.

Be nimble, and ready to act quickly. "Anyone or any health system that thinks they can predict where the future of technology is going to lie in 18 months is lying to you or themselves or both," says Hayes. Healthcare organizations have to diversify their approach to innovation, pivoting when something doesn't work out and being willing to "look under the hood" just to see where a new idea or tech might go.

And at a time when healthcare organizations are struggling to make ends meet, an important benchmark for any innovation is ROI. Hayes says Atlantic Health treats this business line as any venture studio would.

"We want outsized and uncorrelated returns," he says. "And we don't just want the return. We want these partners to make us smarter."

That's what health systems across the country are pursuing. And while the so-called disruptors are taking a hit at present, it's imperative that healthcare executives understand the need for change, and the value of affecting that change rather than waiting for change to happen.

"The things that got us here won't get us there," says Hayes of the push to redefine care. "Our patients don't ow us a lifetime of committed usage … so we need to earn their business over time."

CFOs need to fight back on excessive labor costs, manual processes, and declining reimbursement, but how?

CFOs have been getting the short end of the stick in 2024. What has pushed health system margins to the breaking point has been an unprecedented rise in the cost of labor, coupled with narrow operating margins.

But what can CFOs do about it?

Well, there are four main challenges that CFOs are facing head on, and next week at our HealthLeaders CFO Exchange, dozens of finance leaders from across the country will meet to talk strategy, workarounds, and solutions all four of them (and more):

Financial stewardship

Ensuring daily management of labor productivity and staffing to demand is crucial for cost control and efficiency, but CFOs have struggled with excessive labor costs due to inefficiencies in scheduling and staffing, and it’s only getting harder.

How can these costs be controlled?

Well, holding leaders accountable for their department performance is essential for driving a culture of continuous improvement. In the past, lack of accountability has led to stagnant performance and missed opportunities for labor cost savings.

On top of labor costs, we can’t forget about those other expenses. Streamlining supply expenses and purchased services, particularly physician preference items, is a common pain point for healthcare organizations looking to reduce costs without sacrificing quality of care.

Pictured: Attendees of the 2023 CFO Exchange in Napa California talk shop.

Achieving efficiencies in portfolio management, service line assessment, and conducting P&L analysis for programs and service lines can help identify areas for optimization and cost savings.

Historically, healthcare organizations have struggled with outdated financial management practices that hindered effective portfolio management, so CFOs need to optimize to save.

Revenue Cycle

CFOs are well aware that implementing technology in the revenue cycle space can lead to streamlined processes and improved efficiency since manual processes and outdated systems are hindering performance.

But, it’s not as easy as it sounds, so how are other CFOs getting this done?

Another area in the revenue cycle that CFOs need to be tackling are payers.

Using statistical data to tackle cost control and combat payers is a strategic approach to managing revenue. Historically, CFOs have struggled with mounting costs and shrinking reimbursements from payers, so fighting back is necessary but not easy.

Marketplace

Identifying growth opportunities in the market and reinvesting resources strategically is key to helping healthcare organizations stay competitive.

As CFOs know, market expansion has been a driver of growth for healthcare organizations, but how can it be done at a time when margins are already so thin?

On the same hand, healthcare organizations have faced challenges with leakage of referrals to external providers, so CFOs are challenged with keeping referrals for specialty care within the system as it’s an essential step for capturing revenue and maintaining patient volume.

Another marketplace challenge for CFOs has been addressing resource-intensive services with low reimbursement rates. Healthcare organizations have struggled to balance the financial viability of certain services with quality of care, so how do CFOs combat this?

Technology

Leveraging legacy technology with new-age technology can help drive innovation and efficiency in healthcare organizations, but a lot of CFOs are still struggling with outdated systems and siloed technology platforms.

So, how do you update and streamline on a budget?

Speaking of budget, accounting for automation and the impact on future work demands is crucial for preparing for technological advancements but not as easy as it sounds. And since using AI to automate workflow in clinical and non-clinical departments can lead to improved efficiency and accuracy, CFOs need to prioritize this cost.

But how? CFOs at the event will find out next week. Stay tuned for more coverage

Our Spring 2024 CFO Exchange is May 8-10 at the Fairmont Grand Del Mar in San Diego.

Are you a CFO or finance leader interested in attending an upcoming event? To inquire about attending the HealthLeaders Exchange event, email us at exchange@healthleadersmedia.com.

The HealthLeaders Exchange is an executive community for sharing ideas, solutions, and insights. Please join the community at our LinkedIn page.

Nurses are being recognized for the work they do during this long-standing week of observance.

Amidst the chaos of the healthcare industry, it's important to honor the nurses serving on the front lines who provide patients with compassionate care, as well as the nurse leaders who support them. 

The annual celebration of National Nurses Week takes place on May 6-12, and HealthLeaders is taking part. Join us for our very own Nursing Week, where we'll recognize the important role that nurse leaders play in the success of their organizations and community.