Health systems learned how to adapt quickly and embrace change over the last few years to care for patients during the pandemic, and overcome financial challenges that followed. Now, CEOs want to upend the status quo to stay relevant.

George Hernandez Jr. has been the CEO of University Health since 2005, but the job has never grown dull. In fact, he told Becker's it still gives him a "high" and that he would probably do it even if he were not paid. 

Roles in which executives who already lead a region or facility take a second, dual position within the enterprise continue to make their way into hospital and health system C-suites, and these roles vary depending on factors such as the organization's size and the individual's skill set. 

In 2023, Cleveland Clinic saw a record 14 million patients — and took 30,000 weapons from those patients and their visitors. 

On Jan. 23, Rod Hochman, MD, president and CEO of Renton, Wash.-based Providence, released his sixth annual list of healthcare predictions for the year ahead.

The Boston-based Dana-Farber Cancer Institute has notified research journals that it desires to retract six studies and correct 31 papers — including those co-authored by top executives — as part of an ongoing probe, The Wall Street Journal reported Jan. 22. 

Denver Health "is at a critical, critical point," according to its CEO, Donna Lynne, DrPH. 

Baruch Fertel, MD, vice president of quality and patient safety at NewYork-Presbyterian in New York City, is eager for the new year. He spoke with Becker's about what's ahead for the hospital system this year.

Thanks to a scarcity of alternative options, patients with psychiatric conditions often seek help from emergency departments in non-crisis situations when their usual psychiatrist, psychologist or therapist is unavailable. To combat this issue, Edison, N.J.-based Hackensack Meridian Health crafted a new service model, HMH Urgent Care, which blends behavioral health services with walk-in care and telemedicine visits. 

The CEO of Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital — the facility at the center of Netflix's documentary "Take Care of Maya," which drew public attention to a malpractice lawsuit — has spoken out in defense of the providers involved. 

COOs are often tasked with overseeing the daily overall operations at hospitals and health systems. However, their role tends to vary depending on the organization, and they are focused on an array of issues. But one issue appears to be top of mind for a number of leaders in their position: workforce environment. That includes how it relates to safety, recruiting talent and mitigating burnout.

Currently, only 1% of U.S. hospitals utilize minute-by-minute coordination technology.  These highly specialized real-time systems consistently increase the efficiency of operating rooms and other procedural departments. SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University will be the first academic medical center in the State of New York to deploy such a system.

Multiple large health systems in the U.S. underwent a market reorganization in the last year by expanding their reach and formalizing leadership structures for resource optimization.

1. You don't really know what you have until someone has worked with you for some period of time. I can't tell you the amount of times someone has pointed to a hire and thought that person would be just fantastic and was not. In contrast, the same thing happens on the other side. A person is hired, the expectations are fine and they end up being a total leader.

There’s no such thing as an uneventful year for the health care industry, but 2023 nonetheless stood out as particularly eventful. From staffing shortages and Medicaid changes to progress in artificial intelligence and the imperative to advance health equity, hospitals and health systems confronted ongoing upheaval—while continuing to demonstrate a powerful spirit of resilience.

The last few years have been challenging for clinicians and the healthcare workforce.

Hospitals and health systems reported 146 CEO changes last year, marking a 42% increase from 2022. 

Workforce strategies and healthcare disruptors are just a couple things Sarah Poncelet, chair of the strategy and enterprise portfolio management office and strategic consulting services at Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic, is paying attention to in 2024.

Becker's asked C-suite executives from hospitals and health systems across the U.S. to share their organization's areas of growth for the next few years. 

At the top of a recent LinkedIn article is a cartoon: An ominous T-rex in a white coat looms over two physicians. "We're from the C-suite," the title reads, "and we're here to help."