Earlier this week I attended the Hospital of Tomorrow leadership forum in Washington D.C. During one of the sessions, Gregory Sorensen, MD, CEO of Siemens Healthcare North America said something that really caught my attention: “I never wonder if I have a top 10 pilot.”
He was speaking, of course, in reference to the emphasis healthcare puts on rating hospitals and, increasingly, physicians. After all, the forum was hosted by U.S. News & World Report, whose hospital rankings are the most consumer-facing of any.
Dr. Sorensen’s comment rang true, because it seems pretty preposterous to think about someone checking to see if a pilot is a “top pilot” before boarding a flight. And while there is information on airline safety, I’ve yet to meet anyone that refers to it when selecting what airline to book a flight on.
Why are airlines so different from health systems? Airlines have, in the last 40-50 years, drastically improved safety and reliability by creating and sustaining institutional processes that essentially eliminate human error and catch and fix mechanical error that could jeopardize the safety of the passengers. (I’ve written about the success of aviation in eliminating errors here before).
So while our industry works to create more systemic processes to eliminate error, we will continue to rely on rankings and ratings like U.S. News & World Report to select where to receive care. I, however, look forward to the day where I don’t need to spend an hour on Healthcare.gov, Yelp and Healthgrades comparing hospitals in my city before stepping foot in one. Instead, I’ll simply go to the closest one, confident that I’ll receive high quality, consistent care wherever I go.
At the Becker's 11th Annual IT + Revenue Cycle Conference: The Future of AI & Digital Health, taking place September 14–17 in Chicago, healthcare executives and digital leaders from across the country will come together to explore how AI, interoperability, cybersecurity, and revenue cycle innovation are transforming care delivery, strengthening financial performance, and driving the next era of digital health. Apply for complimentary registration now.
