Becker's Spine Review

14 THOUGHT LEADERSHIP Why Dr. Adam Kanter joined Hoag after 15 years at a 40-hospital academic system By Alan Condon A er 15 years at Pittsburgh-based UPMC, Adam Kanter, MD, le the 40-hospital academic health system, where he was chief of spine surgery and a tenured professor, to become associate executive medical director of the Hoag Pickup Family Neurosciences Institute in Orange, Calif. Dr. Kanter is a central figure in several spine societies, including the chair of the spine section for the American Association and College of Neurological Surgeons and immediate past president of the Society for Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery. He is also enrolled in the executive master of business administration program at UCLA. Dr. Kanter spoke with Becker's Spine Review about what prompted this change, the different challenges and opportunities he faces at Hoag and what most excites him about the future of spine surgery. Note: Responses were lightly edited for length and clarity. Question: How are you settling into your new role? Dr. Adam Kanter: It's going very well. I had never worked outside of a university health system before, so there is definitely a learning curve. You do all the research to try and minimize the surprises when you make a switch like this, because it's a completely different way of operating. I do miss training the residents but there is a great camaraderie that exists in the private sector with colleagues, staff and the community that I am very much enjoying. Q: What drew you to your new role at Hoag? AK: Over the last several years, the pandemic made us all take pause and really think about what we wanted for our future. I spent 15 years at a major academic center in Pittsburgh and had to decide if I wanted to spend 15 more dealing with the same administrative and leadership politics and bureaucracy. I put some feelers out and considered a change to another university system but also wanted to consider options that were more empowering for true physician leadership. What drew me to Hoag was not just their earnest desire to listen but their commitment to take action. So many university appointments are filled with commanding titles, chairmanships and directorships, but these titles are oen meaningless if they don't fall in line with the administration's agenda. I came to Hoag because when I asked the CEO pointed questions about hospital care policies and direction, he looked me in the eyes and said, "Let's just do what's right." We shook hands and I've never looked back. Q: How does an academic health system differ from an organization such as Hoag? AK: Hoag represented something different and unique to me. A mentor I trained under at the University of Virginia, John Jane, MD, always said, "Never micromanage your leaders, recruit them and get out of their way." In my academic role as chief of spine services, every initiative required a dozen approvals from non-clinicians or others that knew very little about how to treat patients with spine disease. I felt the leadership at Hoag valued the insights and opinions of its physicians, and the titles weren't just for fancy wall plaques; they were issued to fulfill Hoag's mission to empower our patients, our colleagues and our communities, and change the way healthcare is delivered. Q: What is the biggest challenge in your new role? AK: My greatest challenge is simply corralling the time to listen and learn from this prominent group of visionary neuroscientists I'm surrounded by at Hoag. ere's a tremendous desire for synergy and collaboration that was really inspirational and revitalizing when I was on the interview trail. at's exactly what I needed for this second half of my career and why I landed here at Hoag. Q: What innovative changes is Hoag looking to implement in spine and neurosurgery? What are the two most interesting trends you're following in healthcare today? AK: A couple trends are worth noting, but there are a few I also think are important to scrutinize as we move toward them, and that's this dramatic growth and expansion of virtual healthcare. e silver lining of the pandemic was our impetus to evolve and adapt to provide care through telehealth platforms. Healthcare has thus become more accessible and efficient, but we have to remain conscious as it's getting easier to devalue the benefits of a physical presence in our care pathways. Physicians gain valuable information from being able to see and touch our patients, and we have to be careful not to minimize that, otherwise we are no better than the insurers that approve or deny our requests for treatment based solely upon the latest radiology report. ere's truly no substitute for the physician- patient relationship, especially when it's in person. During COVID, as providers became more reliant on telehealth, it became clear when they were meeting patients that certain things were being missed or not fully understood until the physical appointment. Another hot topic is value-based healthcare. We all aim to provide the best care at the lowest cost. We're developing tools and analysis programs as we evaluate new technologies — such as robotics, augmented reality, bone growth supplements, etc., but the challenge is to be able to do this and still pioneer the innovations that oen come at a cost without clear and immediate return. at's also one of the things that attracted me about Hoag; they recognize the need to support innovative minds and invest in the treatments, people, and ideas that may not initially provide the biggest bang for their buck. To this end, Hoag leadership was supportive of my interest in obtaining an "ere's a tremendous desire for synergy and collaboration that was really inspirational and revitalizing when I was on the interview trail. at's exactly what I needed for this second half of my career and why I landed here at Hoag." — Adam Kanter, MD

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