Becker's Hospital Review

35 WOMEN'S LEADERSHIP 35 CEO / STRATEGY 17 best health systems for leadership development By Morgan Haefner T he National Center for Healthcare Leadership awarded 10 health systems its 2020 "Bold" or "Best Organizations for Leadership Development" designation, and honored another seven for their ability to develop leaders. Every two years, researchers with the NCHL update the organization's national leadership survey. To be considered for the 2020 Bold award, health systems were measured against an NCHL scorecard that tracks leadership excellence across 12 areas and compares them with systems across the nation. Here are the 10 health systems that took home Bold awards this year, and seven oth- ers that were honored with program distinc- tions: Bold awardees Centura Health (Centennial, Colo.) Children's Hospital Los Angeles Children's Health System of Texas (Dallas) Cleveland Clinic Cone Health (Greensboro, N.C.) Henry Ford Health System (Detroit) Intermountain Healthcare (Salt Lake City) Tampa (Fla.) General Hospital University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (Houston) UPMC (Pittsburgh) Programs of distinction Akron (Ohio) Children's Hospital Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago Atrium Health (Charlotte, N.C.) Hartford (Conn.) HealthCare Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stan- ford (Palo Alto, Calif.) Mount Sinai Health System (New York City) Rush University Medical Center (Chicago) n Viewpoint: Plan on an unusual 2021, too By Molly Gamble T here is a slim probability of pre-pandemic normalcy returning in 2021, Aar- on Carroll, MD, writes in an op-ed for The New York Times. Dr. Carroll, professor of pediatrics and associate dean for research mentoring at the Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis, said many people are pin- ning their hopes on a medical breakthrough and overestimating the efficacy of a vac- cine to fuel expectations of a 2021 with ordinary sports seasons, in-person classrooms, travel, parties and gatherings. The approval of a vaccine may mark the beginning of a real response to this virus, rather than the end, he noted. Furthermore, such unfounded optimism or hope for a solution in the near-term can fuel the urge to relax personal safety measures that curb the spread of COVID-19. "It is much more likely that life in 2021, especially in the first half of the year, will need to look much like life does now," wrote Dr. Carroll. "Those who think that we have just a few more months of pain to endure will need to adjust their expectations." He advised that it is better to prepare for a difficult 2021 and be surprised by it being easier, or more normal, than to assume 2021 will be easier and be sur- prised when life is still hard. He also said it's time to tap all the safety measures to fight COVID-19 that many have resisted, including widespread testing for both as- ymptomatic and symptomatic people with ubiquitous, cheap, fast tests; practicing proper isolation and quarantine practices after exposure to the virus; normalizing face masks; and reopening plans for businesses and schools that are informed by science. "None of these ideas is a complete solution, but just because they're individually insufficient alone doesn't mean they aren't necessary," he writes. n Bankruptcy trustee fires Missouri hospital's chief strategy officer By Ayla Ellison S onny Saggar, MD, the emergency room chief and chief strategy officer at St. Louis-based St. Alexius Hospital, was fired Sept. 11, according to the St. Louis Business Journal. Dr. Saggar was fired by a bankruptcy trustee, according to the report. St. Alexius Hospital entered the bankruptcy process in December 2019 when its owner Amer- icore Holdings filed for Chapter 11 protection. The bankruptcy trustee, Carol Fox, said Dr. Saggar was fired because the hospital's need for a chief strategy officer "has diminished," according to the St. Louis Busi- ness Journal. However, Dr. Saggar claims he was let go because he alerted state health regulators to "two preventable deaths" that occurred at the hospital in July. This isn't the first time Dr. Saggar has been terminated. He previously served as CEO of St. Alexius Hospital. In March, after being at the helm for roughly one month, the bank- ruptcy trustee suspended the CEO position. Dr. Saggar returned to the hospital March 30 as its chief strategy officer and emergency room chief. Dr. Saggar's most recent departure comes as St. Alexius is working its way through the bankruptcy process. The bankruptcy court approved the sale of the hospital in July, but closing the deal has been delayed due to an investigation into quality of care issues. n

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