"Change" and "innovation" were the words given the most airtime in interviews with 58 healthcare CEOs conducted by Harvard Business Review. However, words like "policy" and "organization" littered talk in 26 top graduate healthcare administration programs, according to a Harvard Business Review analysis. "Innovation" and "entrepreneur" were dropped a paltry 27 times during the study of the programs.
Many CEOs feel current academic programs aren't cutting it, according to the report. They need problem solvers, innovators and team builders at a time when academic programs are focusing in on isolated subject matters. The productivity of the healthcare industry dropped 0.8 percent annually from 1999 to 2007 as productivity in other sectors grew, like the computer and semiconductor industry, which increased 7.6 percent annually during the same time period, according to data in the report.
The healthcare CEOs told Harvard Business Review that they believed CEOs and their peers need to take some responsibility. The following techniques were provided to guide CEOs in driving innovation.
- Go to class. Not as a student, but as a guest-lecturer or co-teacher in graduate healthcare administration classes. Healthcare leaders have real-world expertise some professors may not be able to offer.
- Give some advice. Meet one-on-one with students and faculty for mentorship.
- Tell it how it is. Work with academics to appear in classes and talk about both successful and unsuccessful company case studies.
- Invite participation. Provide students with exposure to the challenges in healthcare and how to implement solutions in real life by offering internships, apprenticeships, or field work experiences.
- Change the rules. Medical and health administration programs are not required to emphasize innovation to be accredited. Work with licensing and accreditation firms to establish a new innovation standard and incentivize faculty to reform curriculum.
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