Patricia Plair serves as Chief Financial Officer at Orlando Regional Medical Center.
On April 8th, Patricia will serve on the panel "Connecting Quality, Finance and Analytics to Deliver Value Across the Continuum" at Becker's Hospital Review 11th Annual Meeting. As part of an ongoing series, Becker's is talking to healthcare leaders who plan to speak at the conference, which will take place on April 6-9, 2020 in Chicago.
To learn more about the conference and Patricia's session, click here.
Question: What, from your perspective, is the biggest challenge about the future of work for hospitals, and what can they do about it? ( i.e. automation, desire for more flexibility, clinician shortages, etc.)
Patricia Plair: I think one of the biggest challenges will be for hospitals to deliver care when and where the patient wants in a low cost and convenient manner. As an example, millennials and generation Z patients have grown up in an environment where almost everything they purchase is delivered on-demand and catered to their specific needs ( i.e. Remote working, non-traditional work schedules and environments, individualized entertainment choices on smart devices on their schedules, and food, clothes, transportation, etc. delivered to them on their timetable, in their preferred manner). Health care winners of the future will use technology to find creative options and delivery mechanisms to meet the needs of this group.
Q: What, if anything, should hospitals be doing now given economists' projections of a forthcoming economic downturn?
PP: Hospitals should be hyper-focused on reducing their care delivery processes and the related costs to support profitability on a lower patient base. Also, hospitals should explore flexible staffing models and reduce fixed costs as much as possible.
Q: How can hospitals reconcile the need to maintain inpatient volumes with the mission to keep people healthier and out of the hospital?
PP: Hospitals or Health systems will need to be efficient at delivering care across the spectrum of Health. As we look at the population changes – i.e. Baby boomers represent roughly 25% of the population and are aging and living longer. The elderly make up a significant percentage of conditions requiring hospitalization ( i.e. Heart Disease, Stroke, Trauma-related injuries, etc.). Therefore there will continue to be a need to care for these patients in an Inpatient setting for critical events. Simultaneously, millennials and Generation X individuals are more focused on healthy lifestyles utilizing low-cost technology-based solutions. Therefore, hospitals will need to develop creative delivery mechanisms of preventive health and wellness solutions in a manner that fits with their lifestyle. Additionally, there will also remain the need for Inpatient stays for trauma and serious conditions. The key is to modify existing infrastructure to support a diverse population with diverse needs at a lower cost than currently exists.
Q: Healthcare has had calls for disruption, innovation and transformation for years now. Do you feel we are seeing that change? Why or why not?
PP: To some degree. At this point, I don’t think we have seen as much demise of Inpatient care as was estimated 10 years ago.