Richard J. Liekweg, group president of BJC HealthCare in St. Louis and president of its flagship, 1,252-bed Barnes-Jewish Hospital, the largest hospital in Missouri, discusses the biggest challenges currently facing Barnes-Jewish.
Healthcare reform. "Our biggest challenge is probably dealing with the uncertainties related to healthcare reform," Mr. Liekweg says. "The law has been passed but we don’t know how the regulations will be written."
New forms of payment. "We seem to be moving from fee-for-service to some type of bundled payments that will require some sort of integrated relationship with our physicians and other providers," he says. "For this to work, we will need to bring in pre-acute and post-acute care."
Covering the spectrum of care. "We want to establish relationships with existing long-term care hospitals, skilled nursing facilities and other institutions," Mr. Liekweg says. "Through BJC HealthCare, we already have a presence here." For example, BJC and HealthSouth jointly operate a rehabilitation center.
Accountable care organizations. "We have had great discussions within the system about ACOs," he says. "It has been an internal dialog asking questions like, 'What does an ACO really mean?'"
Electronic health record. "Through BJC Healthcare, we have rolled out an EHR at Barnes Jewish, including computerized physician order entry," he says. "BJC is starting to deploy the system in its community hospitals."
Payment pressures on hospitals. Mr. Liekweg is especially concerned about the future of Medicare and Medicaid payments.
Learn more about Barnes-Jewish Hospital.
Healthcare reform. "Our biggest challenge is probably dealing with the uncertainties related to healthcare reform," Mr. Liekweg says. "The law has been passed but we don’t know how the regulations will be written."
New forms of payment. "We seem to be moving from fee-for-service to some type of bundled payments that will require some sort of integrated relationship with our physicians and other providers," he says. "For this to work, we will need to bring in pre-acute and post-acute care."
Covering the spectrum of care. "We want to establish relationships with existing long-term care hospitals, skilled nursing facilities and other institutions," Mr. Liekweg says. "Through BJC HealthCare, we already have a presence here." For example, BJC and HealthSouth jointly operate a rehabilitation center.
Accountable care organizations. "We have had great discussions within the system about ACOs," he says. "It has been an internal dialog asking questions like, 'What does an ACO really mean?'"
Electronic health record. "Through BJC Healthcare, we have rolled out an EHR at Barnes Jewish, including computerized physician order entry," he says. "BJC is starting to deploy the system in its community hospitals."
Payment pressures on hospitals. Mr. Liekweg is especially concerned about the future of Medicare and Medicaid payments.
Learn more about Barnes-Jewish Hospital.