Hospital and health system CEOs are navigating a complex and uncertain economic environment, prompting careful consideration of any strategic investments or operational shifts. Factors such as potential Medicaid and safety-net funding cuts, potential tariffs and rising operational costs are top of mind.
Amid this climate, Becker’s asked CEOs to identify a strategic investment or operational shift hospitals should make today to avoid future regret or disruption.
Capital investments
Matt Dammeyer, PhD, CEO of Memorial Hospital of Converse County in Douglas, Wyo., urged a focus on capital investments, noting timing as a crucial factor.
“Capital may become harder to obtain in the future due to lagging operational strength and higher borrowing costs,” he said.
His remarks come as several health systems make major capital investments. For example, Altamonte Springs, Fla.-based AdventHealth recently launched a more than $1 billion transformation plan at its flagship campus in Orlando. Danville, Pa.-based Geisinger also recently broke ground on an $880 million project to expand and modernize Geisinger Medical Center.
Workforce retention and engagement
Retention and investing in the workforce are also a priority for executives. They must consider their organizations’ ability to address employee well-being and maintain a culture staff want to be part of, all while considering operational and financial pressures.
Michael Goebel, CEO of AdventHealth Parker (Colo.), part of Altamonte Springs, Fla.-based AdventHealth, said “the biggest operational decision this industry is putting off is not figuring out the workload of front-line nurses that will keep them engaged and working in hospital medical/surgical units.”
According to a 2025 NSI Nursing solutions report, the average cost of turnover for a staff RN increased by 8.6% in the past year. And a Press Ganey report said the average turnover rate in the U.S. healthcare industry declined from 20% in 2022-23 to 18% in 2023-24.
Technology and innovation
Then there are investments in technology to consider. Health systems are investing in emerging technologies, ranging from AI for clinical documentation to imaging, to improve care delivery and help providers spend less time on administrative tasks.
Jacqueline Rae Costley-Reviel, MSN, RN, CEO of Allen Parish Community Healthcare in Kinder, La., emphasized the importance of such investments.
“The biggest operation decision that hospitals are putting off today that would be a regret in five years is to not keep investing in capital growth and change,” she said. “Technology is one of those investments that if you do not invest today, you will be so far behind in five years it will be a regret. Often healthcare, especially in rural areas, people want to wait and see how new technology evolves, and in the past it was OK to do so, but now the rate of development is at warp speed.”
Access strategies and competitive positioning
William Kenley, CEO of Anderson, S.C.-based AnMed, said investing in novel and innovative access options is also “a tremendous opportunity in healthcare.”
Although there are headwinds pushing back on accelerating those investments, such as top-line revenue risks, looming Medicaid cuts and rising operational costs, he said health systems “that entrench and do not push forward aggressively will greatly regret that decision in the future.
“Failure to act and implement will allow competitive voids that will likely be filled by more aggressive organizations. Once in place, these offerings will resonate within our markets, making it much more difficult to introduce our services in that space.
“In addition, I know that when our team is focused upon innovating, building and enhancing our value with the communities we serve, we are culturally at our best. In uncertain times, it is easier to be more risk averse. I believe these are times that we must be most bold and build upon our strategy. If we do not, opportunities will pass us by that may never be recoverable.”
