Becker's Hospital Review

17 THOUGHT LEADERSHIP workforce. We are experiencing a time of nursing shortage, so I think a critical component going into 2024 is recruitment and retention. Now, I know you probably hear that as a commonality, but from my lens it's also important to highlight what's so unique and different in the healthcare sectors for recruitment and retention. What are the avenues? How are we paving the ways to really recruit and retain these nurses? What makes nursing attractive today? And when we think of recruitment and retention, how does the leadership component play a factor? e nursing workforce has changed. ere is a new generation that's coming in, and it's so exciting to have them, but nursing has a different lens for them. ey look at nursing with a different perspective than we did. Care and compassion at the bedside is different today. We have a lot of social media, a lot of technology — and that makes engagement with the new generation that healthcare leaders …different. We have to highlight what is attractive about working in healthcare today. Do we have career ladders? Do we have career advancements for them? Do we have pathways into leadership if that's what they want to do? Kristin Wolkart, BSN, RN. Executive Vice President and Interim System Chief Operating Officer and System Chief Nursing Officer at Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System (Baton Rouge, La.): Over the past calendar year, we increased our focus on working together as an integrated health system to create standardized practices, policies, and measures. Collaborating to tackle the challenges that exist universally across all our markets has resulted in escalated reductions in supply chain spend, decreased turnover, and improved patient experience and safety measures for our entire ministry. Because of this important work, our health system is positioned for long-term success despite the difficult headwinds the healthcare industry is experiencing. n 'We're all in this together, and we need each other:' says ECU Health CFO By Madeline Ashley A ndy Zukowski, CFO of Greenville, N.C.-based ECU Health is heading into 2024 with a goal to make a big impact on rural healthcare. "We're looking to create the model for rural academic healthcare across the country, and figure out how do we leverage the population health strategy tools data to then improve the health and wellness across eastern North Carolina," Mr. Zukowski told Becker's. ECU Health was created in January 2022 through a joint operating agreement between East Carolina University's Brody School of Medicine and Vidant Health, and serves over 1.4 million people in 29 eastern North Carolina counties. "That [ECU Health partnership] really created hope, inspiration, and really a strategic platform for us all to focus on the future, to focus on how do we then navigate through the pandemic and aftermath of that, and all the change that's in front of us. I would say that relationship is very strong and very successful, something we're quite proud of," said Mr. Zukowski. Most recently, the 1,708-bed academic healthcare system broke ground on a $65 million, 144-bed inpatient treatment facility in a joint venture with Franklin, Tenn.-based Acadia Healthcare to expand behavioral health resources. The facility will also include 24 inpatient beds dedicated to child and adolescent behavioral health needs, and is expected to be open in spring 2025. "We're very excited about that. It's a significantly underserved population," Mr. Zukowski said. In another effort to improve rural healthcare, $420 million of the $30 billion North Carolina 2023-2024 state budget went to a new initiative called NC Care, which is made up of ECU Health and Chapel Hill-based UNC Health. The funds were allocated from the Appropriations Act, a spokesperson for ECU Health told Becker's. Additionally, of the $2.6 billion in state budget provided to 102 North Carolina hospitals under the Medicaid expansion program on Dec. 1, ECU Health received nearly $100 million. Looking to 2024, Mr. Zukowski said the largest industry financial challenge he foresees is the rebuilding of balance sheets. "We need balance sheet strength for general operations, sustainability, and keeping things moving. More importantly though, we need to strengthen our balance sheet because I am certain that there will be additional headwinds that the industry will continue to manage through as we're going through significant change in transition," he said. In an effort to ensure continued sustainability and resilience, Mr. Zukowski said ECU Health will build on the stabilization and framework created in 2023. "Continue to mature those processes, continue to execute our large aspirations and plans that support our financial health and wellbeing. There's nothing more fantastic to it. I think we all have to take on different strategies as it relates to our community. I think we have to think of partnerships with our payer partners as well. Figure out, we're all in this together and we need each other," Mr. Zukowski said. n "is year we are continuing to understand how we best manage in a value-based world, especially when the government payer sector is growing. We believe that we can succeed in a value-based world, but need value- based reimbursement models." — Anthony Aquilina, DO

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