Becker's Hospital Review

13 CEO / STRATEGY Providence CEO's 3 predictions for 2025 By Kelly Gooch R enton, Wash.-based Providence is nearing a leadership transition as President and CEO Rod Hochman, MD, plans to retire at the end of the year and COO Erik Wexler takes the helm. As he transitions to CEO emeritus, Dr. Hochman made three healthcare predictions for 2025, which he posted on LinkedIn. He also shared clips from his November conversation with Melissa Tizon, Providence's vice president of national communication, about where the industry is headed. Dr. Hochman's three predictions: 1. Technological integration: Dr. Hochman predicts AI will be transformative in terms of streamlining operations, improving care, addressing workforce challenges and supporting healthcare employees. However, he also noted that it must be used productively. He sees AI serving as a "co-pilot" to physicians and nurses, acting as a partner in decision-making. 2. Integrated delivery networks: Dr. Hochman foresees the end of "old-school M&A," such as merging with another health system to take on its hospitals. Instead, he sees transformation through collaboration with other organizations to create integrated delivery networks ensuring more holistic care for patients without building or owning all services. 3. Equitable care access: Dr. Hochman hopes the U.S. will avoid a two-tiered healthcare system — a publicly funded option and a private pay option — so that all people have equal access to services. He emphasizes the need for health systems to renew their focus on patients and their families as healthcare continues to evolve. n 3 CEOs on what healthcare isn't talking about enough By Kelly Gooch H ospital and health system CEOs have a lot on their minds as their organizations face industry pressures. While various topics are discussed among executives, there are some they point to as primed for greater discussion. As part of an ongoing series of conversations with health system leaders, Becker's asked: What's something the healthcare industry isn't talking about enough? Below are their responses, in alphabetical order. Editor's note: Responses have been lightly edited for length and clarity. Shane Bedward. CEO of AdventHealth Dade City (Fla.): We're not talking about behavioral health enough, and what that means for a community with the epidemic of mental health. And as a health system, we are focused on how we can continue to partner with our community outreach, our law enforcement, emergency medical services and other agencies out there to figure out how we can manage these patients better. How do we provide the services that they need? And then, how do we connect with those outreach programs once they go back into the community, so we can make sure that they're set up for success in their lives. Bob Riney. President and CEO of Henry Ford Health (Detroit): We're not talking about population health at the depth that we need to talk about it. Certainly not in a consistent way around the country. And I think that we need to really step back and look at the adaptable models for unique populations that we serve. Models like CMS' Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly that really ensure holistic approaches to health. I think we've come so far in creating great value and efficiency in the delivery of care and service, but regarding that holistic approach, especially for the populations that are quite vulnerable, I think we have a long way to go, and I don't think we're talking about it enough. Mark Rosenblatt, MD, PhD. CEO of the University of Illinois Hospital and Clinics (Chicago): We are talking about it, but I don't think that we've really considered what the deluge of information that healthcare and health systems are dealing with. In the world nowadays, with the Internet of ings and all sorts of different modalities, the amount of data in the world is doubling every couple of years, and may even be faster than that. It continues to accelerate. And how do health systems help their patients when they're confronted with so much data, and data from all kinds of sources, whether it's from electronic health records, outside sources, or devices that we're placing in people's homes? It's not just about having a lot of data; how do you go from data, which we're rich in, to information, which I think we're also oen very poor in? But more importantly, how do we get to insights? How do we derive meaningful insights from this vast amount of data? More and more, we're leaning on technology like AI and machine learning, but we're not sure how effective those mechanisms are for dealing with so much data. So, that's where I confront the issue: oen, it's not that I don't have enough data; sometimes, I have too much data. How do we really figure out where the critical data is, and how does that data interact with other data that may be on my plate to make the very best decisions for our health system and ultimately for our patients? n

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