Someone once told me you can't go wrong invoking big names to bolster your content. So I'm invoking an old stand-by for this week's article: Aristotle.

Aristotle - and the Greeks, in general - did a lot of what we don't seem to do much of - thinking about their thinking.

Ari also came up with an idea that is foundational to personal success and happiness - a principle that eludes us more and more as we negotiate a helter-skelter, tweet-based culture.

It's another big word - eudaimonia.

Read the Full Article and find out what this twelve-cylinder word means - and then let me know your thoughts.

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With increased calls for healthcare pricing transparency from consumers and government entities alike, hospitals’ chargemasters are moving from proprietary information to public knowledge. However, putting chargemasters under the microscope has not led to the clarity that patients are seeking regarding quality care at a price they can afford.

Nearly two-thirds of physician respondents in a 2019 NEJM Catalyst survey said that patients do not have enough information to affect the cost of their own healthcare–related decisions, and more than three-quarters of respondents say that assessing the total cost of care is extremely challenging for patients.

Rather than increasing understanding and empowering the consumer, hospitals’ efforts to be open with their charges have highlighted a fundamental misunderstanding between hospitals and payers, and the patients they serve: the definitions of the terms “charges,” “payments,” and “costs.”

A difference in terms

In public discussion of healthcare costs, these terms are used interchangeably, but in fact have completely different meanings to hospitals and insurers. A “charge” is the price listing internally for the hospital and the starting place for negotiations with insurance companies.

In public discussion of healthcare costs, these terms are used interchangeably, but in fact have completely different meanings to hospitals and insurers. A “charge” is the price listing internally for the hospital and the starting place for negotiations with insurance companies.

It is almost never the amount that an insured patient is billed—hospitals in the U.S. billed an average of 3-1/2 times what they received in payments for all of the services they provided in 2015, according to True Cost of Healthcare. The term “charge” is just the sticker price. While hospitals are getting better at reducing the actual cost of care-to-charge ratio, it isn’t reimbursed that way by insurance companies, which will be prohibitive in moves toward reducing the “charge” amount.

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With challenges such as the rising cost of healthcare, red tape that can create obstacles to providing quality patient care, or adjustments that come with increased transparency requirements, it can be easy to let discouragement color your outlook on the future of the healthcare industry. But I sincerely believe that this is the best time in history to be part of this field. We have the ability to impact people’s lives and futures like never before. There are countless technological innovations that are truly providing better care for patients at lower cost, creating better patient experiences and thriving communities.

I have had the privilege of working with several developers and inventors who are designing cutting-edge innovations that give me such hope and excitement for the future of healthcare. Here are just a few examples:

Improving patient experience

Wait times in a clinic or hospital ER have long been pain points for patients—and healthcare organizations are feeling the pain too in the form of low patient satisfaction scores that negatively impact reimbursement from insurance companies. Technology is being developed that gives updates on wait times and care directly to the phones of people in the waiting room via Bluetooth connections. Furthermore, hospitals can use this data to track and improve their process flow to reduce wait times, educate their staff, and lower the cost of care by increasing efficiency. Read full article.

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Remember the last time you were "in the zone" where you became so immersed in something you loved that time disappeared and the work just simply flowed without much effort.

Maybe it was at work, or at play or being immersed in a favorite hobby. Regardless, it's one of those infrequent conditions that can contribute to life satisfaction.

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Hungarian-American psychologist formalized the condition with his 1990 book, "Flow", revealing his research on the nature and importance of finding something that can take you "into a zone" or what he called a "flow state".

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I am often asked today if I am a doctor or an administrator, my response is both, always! You might ask, can a physician really be both? The answer is yes, BUT not every physician. If you take the group of all physicians, the first cut is those that are interested, then it is narrowed by those that are prepared: either through formal education, life experience or both, and the final cut is those that have the demonstrated ability to lead by inspiring a diverse team and operationalizing a vision. Today this represents a rather narrow playing field.

It is important to remember that doctors are different; many have dreamed of being a physician since childhood, and rank among the best and brightest, with often only the top 0.5% of high school students eventually being accepted into medical school.

Physician Executives are wired differently; they are decisive, based on an unwavering priority hierarchy:

• Patients
• Mission of the Organization
• Personal Needs

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A hospital’s charge description master (CDM), or chargemaster, is often referred to as the “heart” of the healthcare revenue cycle. It includes codes for every procedure, material used, medication, and service that a healthcare organization provides its patients. It is the structure that drives the hospital, and is the starting point for billing patients and insurers and complying with public reporting. A typical health care system chargemaster may contain 15,000 to 25,000 entries, according to Becker’s Hospital Review.

Neglecting your chargemaster can lead to inaccurate billing, regulatory risks, claim issues with payers, and low patient satisfaction scores, all of which affect your healthcare organization’s revenue. Your hospital can’t afford to overlook this essential piece of its operations. Ongoing evaluation of your chargemaster with an eye toward increased calls for pricing transparency in the healthcare industry is the key to maintaining a chargemaster that will serve your organization, as well as its payers and patients.

Ongoing maintenance

With so many diverse components in a chargemaster, it can be extremely difficult to set up correctly. Failing to update any of the components can result in negative outcomes for your healthcare organization. Often, when hospitals add new items to their chargemaster, they simply copy existing charges. However, this can be problematic because the new charges may not have the same requirements (e.g. CPT codes, modifiers, revenue code, or pricing) as the item being copied. Care should be taken to make sure the new charges are set up correctly.

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I recently had the honor of co-presenting with Mike McBride, Regional President and COO of Ascension St. John, at the American College of Healthcare Executives - Southeast Texas Chapter’s conference in Houston. Our session, “Identify Your Next Career Move,” took the attendees through what makes up a successful career transition -- from self-branding to job interview preparation and all the steps in between.

Key takeaways from our presentation:

Access your mindset

Are you a glass-half-full type of person? Are you in a dark place in your current workplace? Building confidence is a key ingredient to success. To enter a transition without the highest level of confidence is a formula for failure. You must rebuild confidence before you start.

Unpack your baggage

At a certain point in our lives we all acquire baggage. That's a given. It's what you do with that baggage that matters most. Have you shoved it to the back of your closet to deal with later, or is it neatly unpacked and sorted and processed? If it is the former, then you have work to do. You will not make headway in a job search until you have dealt with your baggage.

Speak to your achievements

How are you at speaking to your abilities and achievements? If you cringe at the thought or don't know where to start, you have some work to do before you are ready to make your next career move. Never assume that the person interviewing you will read between the lines just because you have it as a bullet on your resume -- you must verbalize it.

Know your value

What is your superpower? Determine what differentiates you from other people who may be competing for the same job. If you are having trouble determining what makes you different, form an informal advisory board made up of close friends and colleagues. These are the people you can not only trust to tell you what your strengths are, but also areas where you can improve.

Develop your criteria

Create a list -- in priority order -- of factors that matter to you as you seek a new opportunity. Culture and mission should always rank somewhere on the list, but should also include personal factors that are specific to your work/life situation. Use this list as a guide when you determine if an opportunity is right for you.

Identify and research target organizations

Develop a list of companies and organizations that you have a strong interest in. Why are you interested in each of these companies? Be specific, and if they don’t align with your criteria list, then revise. If they do, research them thoroughly. Start connecting with individuals who work at this company on LinkedIn and developing genuine relationships within these organizations.

Build and work your network

Research shows that you will find your next opportunity through someone you know. A good, quality network takes work. You must be intentional and consistent in your outreach efforts to nurture and grow your network. Set aside time each week to focus on cultivating relationships within your industry.

Polish and build your professional brand

You are how others perceive you to be. Your brand includes everything from your resume to what shows up when your name is searched for online. While some perceptions can be outside the realm of your control, many are controllable. You can create the professional image you want to portray. Areas include your:

• Resume
• Verbal self-introduction (Answers “Tell me a little bit about yourself.”)
• LinkedIn profile
• Google search results (Are they positive/negative/neutral?)

Own the interview

Once you have an interview scheduled -- investigate, practice and prepare. Research those interviewing you. Reach out to network connections that may have inside knowledge of the culture of the organization or might provide you with a connecting point that could prove invaluable once in the interview. Practice your talking points out loud or with a trusted friend. Be prepared to explain an awkward exit from a previous position or extended career gaps on your resume.

While sometimes it takes seeing a certain job posting to spark your desire for a career change, it’s far more effective to begin working on the areas above well in advance of that moment. That way, when the right opportunity does come along, you are ready to start that journey.

Whether coming from outside your organization or internally within your own hospital or health system, crisis situations have a lasting mark on the healthcare organizations they impact—and the CEOs who run them. Disasters—and how executives respond to them—can cost them their jobs and, more significantly, the public’s trust in their organization.

The fact is, you can have the best health system in the nation, and one crisis can eliminate years of goodwill and good work. Clear, decisive, prompt communication from a healthcare organization’s CEO is the key to navigating disasters while maintaining trust.

As a leader, you must bring calm urgency to communications with:

1. Your employees,
2. Other organizations and stakeholders in the community,
3. And the general public

Employees

When a crisis occurs, many executives focus primarily on their message to the general public, trying to provide accurate, up-to-date info, stay ahead of public opinion, and set the tone for communication about the incident. While this is certainly important, it is also essential to provide care and attention to your employees.

In times of crisis, a lack of stability impacts the workplace culture. Employees at every level of the organization will feel the effects of this. As an executive, it is your responsibility to ensure your hospital’s greatest asset—its people—receive accurate and timely communications regarding the crisis your organization is facing. Make your confidence in your staff clear, and actively seek out ways to be a source of stability.

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When it comes to building a strong leadership team, choosing top talent isn’t the only priority; building a culture of trust is also essential to growth and success. According to a recent PwC survey of more than 1,400 CEOs worldwide, more than half of organizational leaders believe a lack of trust is a serious threat to the success of their teams and their business. However, if you are aware of the importance of trust, and actively working to make it part of your workplace culture, you can use it as an asset to your organizational function, rather than a liability.

Environments where trust is a key component encourage innovation, increase the pace of decision making, and often team members outpace their competition. The Workplace Therapist Brandon Smith insists, “Trust enables teams to not just take risks but also to move more quickly. There’s little second-guessing in high trust environments because team members assume there’s positive intent.”

It’s hard for teams to move forward effectively if they don’t trust each another. Instead of innovating, they are second-guessing each other, unnecessarily reworking tasks, or relying on one or two key team members to get the work done. I have found that when you have trust, things move much more efficiently. You have the ability to take the risk because your team feels comfortable and supported.

Trust is key, and risk, innovation, growth, and expansion can only happen when you have a solid foundation of trust to build upon.

To maximize your organizational potential and lead in your sector and community, you have to create a climate of trust and transparency.

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The question of why some communities and companies grow and prosper, while others shrink or even cease to exist, has intrigued me for decades. Theories exist with no single one applicable to every situation. Two variables stand out to me as “must-haves” to ensure community vitality.

1. Access to high-quality healthcare, and
2. Access to high-quality K-12 education

As a registered nurse I have focused on the delivery of and access to high quality healthcare for the last 28 years. Having cared for patients at critical times in their lives, I have consistently seen how reliable access to affordable, preventive and restorative healthcare services is critical to community health, especially for vulnerable or indigent populations.

My focus on quality and access in healthcare for all populations broadened during my tenure working with large geographies and populations as an experienced healthcare CEO and as a member of numerous boards of directors.

The ability to recruit, develop and retain human talent is essential to the success of any company, and healthcare is no exception. My experience suggests that since 2011, it has become harder to recruit and retain human talent based on each region’s overall access and quality of K-12 education.

In my rural area of Virginia, from a healthcare perspective, recruiting nationally and internationally was challenging for all types of careers, from entry-level professionals, through senior leadership positions. I attributed the recruiting issues to fierce competition over a finite talent pool, but exit interviews and feedback from existing employees and prospective employees indicated that a significant concern was the quality of K-12 education in my area.

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Too much of a good thing can sometimes be a problem; there is a risk that caring too much can result in burnout. Even a profession that is literally and figuratively built on it, as is healthcare, there is not immunity to an overdose of caring.

You might be thinking: “What healthcare leader would ever tell a member of their team to care less?” Self-reflect and visualize your peers and the people you are leading. Do any of these characteristics seem familiar?

• Constantly worries about what people think
• Always feels obligated to fix things
• Has a hard time letting things go
• Starts the day with a list of worries
• Ends the day with a list of worries
• Stresses about staff turnover
• Stresses about staff happiness

I’m sure you can identify with some of these tendencies personally or amongst your team. The answer is not to stop caring about patients, staffing, getting through your “to do” list, or about being liked; the answer is to care just the right amount! Think of care as sugar; in the words of Mary Poppins it takes “Just a spoonful of sugar…!”

Care enough to progress toward your goals, being visible and open, maintaining control while knowing when to let go, and earning respect. Care about being liked, but do not rest your self-worth on it. Sound advice you might say, but easier said than done. Try this CARE PLAN:

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Recently I had the privilege to be a guest on the podcast, “Getting Your Hospital to Act Like a Startup.” My part begins in minute 28, but please enjoy the entire episode.

Summary:

The innovative path is the key to the future of successful healthcare. Innovation and technology are the indispensable components for tomorrow's care; unfortunately, health systems and hospitals often allow the here and now focus to take precedence over the future. The internal daily demands can force a loss of perspective and a diminished capacity for a cultural attitude of innovation. The future positioning of the healthcare organization is always where the CEO and leadership team must be viewing today's decisions for organizational viability and long-term success.

Designing and living a successful innovative culture is possible. The adoption of the "start-up" culture should be the drive of every CEO and leadership team. In this podcast I share my experience in working within health systems and discuss adopting the necessary characteristics to successfully acquire the adventure, joy, focus and discipline of a startup culture. In addition, the obstacles start-ups face when working with health systems is also explored.

Listen here.

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This article published recently in the The Atlantic points out that unexpected, large hospital bills can happen to anyone. This caregiver was hounded by collectors, one even inviting them to connect on LinkedIn! As healthcare administrators, we have a good understanding of our average reimbursement and collection rates, as a percentage of the gross, billed charges. But do we really know what happens when the uncollected charges are turned over to collection agencies? Are we aware when and if they are then turned over or “sold” to other debt buyers? To me, poor treatment by collection agencies and debt buyers is still a reflection on the health system where the patient received their care. Can health systems and doctors afford this type of reputational risk?

I turned to a colleague, a revenue cycle professional and expert - the best I’ve ever worked with in the business. They provided a more balanced perspective:

There are two sides to this dilemma depending whether you are a patient or provider. From the patient perspective, medical debt is increasing and in too many cases crippling, often leading to financial ruin, depression and shattered lives. Statistics show the percent of total bankruptcy, because of medical debt, at over 50% and employers shifting costs through deductibles, now on average over $1,300 and growing, according to the Kaiser Foundation. On top of that, healthcare spending as a percent of GDP is approaching 20%; an unsustainable trajectory. Bottom line, patients and families are harmed by unaffordable medical debt and there is no solution in sight.

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Recently, I had the opportunity to share the joy and intense emotions of giving away my daughter in marriage. At this extraordinary event, I had the fatherly privilege of making the welcome toast. Reflecting on these thoughts in the days that have passed, I realize that these principles and practices that guide us toward happy and healthier relationships are key traits that great leaders exhibit. Please indulge me in the following excerpt from that toast I gave at the wedding of my daughter Francesca to her husband Matthew.

One of the privileges of being the Dad of a little girl is that she sits on your lap and you have little talks from time to time. One I remember in particular is when her mother was out shopping, because that’s what she did when Daddy and daughter spent time together, Francesca looks me in the eyes and says: “Daddy when I grow up I want to marry you” ….. I had to politely explain to her that Mommy wouldn’t like that too much! She then went on to say: “How will I ever find the right person to marry?” I said: “Honey, when you fall in love and if that person treats you as well as I do, then he’s the one.” Matthew you’ve passed that test.

So I can’t leave without a little advice for Francesca and Matthew…..You are starting your life together, what’s the most important thing? The most important thing is LOVE….that’s a great word but there are a lot of things that go into it. For my colleagues in medicine, you know we have to make acronyms out of everything to help us remember….

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How to think critically when solving healthcare operations issues

Within the next five years, technology could be performing as much as 30% of tasks commonly performed by people in today’s workplace, according to Supply Chain 24/7.

People tend to react to statistics like this in one of two ways. Some throw their full confidence behind the inevitability of technology, believing it to be the solution to nearly every financial or operational issue. Others view these numbers through the lens of a “doomsday-er,” prophesying that technology will upend business-as-usual—for the worse.

Whether 30% of people-powered tasks will be fueled by technology a few years from now, I can’t say. But here’s what I do know: The future of the workplace and of the healthcare industry will look different than it does today. We just have to make sure it’s going to be better. With the costs of technological solutions playing a role in the skyrocketing cost of healthcare, hospital executives must think critically when considering tech solutions to operational issues.

How can you tell if a tech solution is 1. necessary, and 2. worth the time and money to implement?

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There aren’t too many experiences more overwhelming than being sick and trying to deal with the U.S. health care system. All of us have personal stories of disconnected providers and lousy communication. “It’s like nobody talks to anybody around here!”

As a health leader it is always embarrassing to listen to the stories of friends and family who were left on their own. My response was to put in place clinically trained care navigators whose job was to stand with the patient and help them in every way (even if that help meant sending the patient to another health provider). Many other health providers have taken similar steps. But this idea really needs to be as universal as the coverage we want everyone to have.

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A mentor of mine is often quoted: "Hope is not a strategy!"

Indeed, there is a world of difference between hoping things will improve and implementing a well thought out plan. However, nothing can ever change or improve unless we can imagine it as such. Once it is imagined, there must be some belief or "hope" that this vision can be realized. Now that's where strategy comes in, making the vision a reality.

As leaders, we must start by inspiring hope, not by asking for the action plan. When your team believes they can make a difference, they will. It is very obvious in healthcare: patients would never come to us without the hope that we can make them better. Hope is not just for our patients, it is for every member of our team.

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The human body is the most brilliant machine ever created and the quintessential work of art. The headline above is not referring to your creativity and accomplishments in your clothing optional private abode; it is taking literary license from 19th century Danish author, Hans Christian Andersen.

Reflect on the fairy tale, The Emperor’s New Clothes. The Emperor (leader) was a vain man, concerned more with appearances, accolades, and maintaining his current position than the harsh realities that others faced. His subjects were afraid to express their honest opinions to him, fearing they might be deemed unfit for their position or even stupid. The climax of this tale occurs when he is fooled by some weavers into wearing a “spectacular new suit” that, in fact, doesn’t exist at all. The Emperor is allowed to parade through the town naked. Finally, a mere child blurts out in honesty that the Emperor is wearing nothing at all.

Leaders at all levels of an organization run the risk of being caught naked at work, but this risk increases as one ascends the ranks. People see pleasing their boss as important, essential to keeping their jobs. Most leaders would proclaim they are wise enough to detect blatant deception, but it is often more subtle than that. Very often what happens is filtering; direct reports present the info that makes them look good and their boss is expecting. This filtering of information is equivalent to a slight degree of course variation which becomes obvious 100 miles or more into the journey.

What would Mr. Andersen say to leaders today?

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In recent weeks Democratic candidates seeking the party’s nomination have given their preferences about how to reform U.S. health care. My experience in over 30 years of community hospital leadership led me to agree with the comments of John Delaney that Medicare-For-All would be a financial disaster for the vast majority of American hospitals. Very few U.S. hospitals have costs at or below Medicare payments.

Yet I don’t agree with Congressman Delaney’s statement that we shouldn’t touch the private health coverage market that covers 100 million Americans because those people will want to keep their coverage. I think there are a great number of Americans in the private coverage spectrum who have been saddled with enormous up-front deductibles and large co-payments and ever-narrowing health provider options who are ready to talk.

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In this episode on helping digital startups sell their solutions, I want to focus on the issue of implementation. It is certainly important to have a wiz bang digital solution. Equally important is how to implement the solution and manage the changes it causes. All startups should understand the concerns the hospital C-suite has around the implementation process. Specifically, the startup must be prepared to answer the following:

1. Is the company going to take responsibility for all the administrative hurdles including the IT security approval? Customers want assurance that the company is going to answer all inquiries and assist with completing documentation. Additionally, customers will want the company to track the progress of all approvals and follow up as necessary.
2. Does the company have previous experience with change management? Although the hospital may have a performance improvement team skilled in change management, it is important for the company to have people who also understand this complex process in order to work collaboratively.

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