As Jeffrey Flaks marks his fifth year as CEO of Hartford HealthCare, he reflects on the transformative changes during his tenure and his broader 20-year journey with the organization.
Though Mr. Flaks stepped into the role of president and CEO in September 2019, his connection to the Hartford, Conn.-based system dates back much further. He began in 2004 and served as COO of two hospitals, including the flagship 867-bed Hartford Hospital where, in 2011, he advanced to become president. By 2013, he had ascended to system COO and later took on the role of president in 2016, working closely with his predecessor, longstanding CEO Elliot Joseph.
"When I look at the origins of our health system, we really started building Hartford HealthCare in earnest close to 20 years ago," Mr. Flaks said. "Everything we've done over these two decades has been about building a health system that could focus and deliver on the promise around quality and safety."
Today, Hartford HealthCare touches thousands of lives daily. The system encompasses seven acute-care hospitals, a behavioral health network, a multispecialty physician group, an integrated clinical care organization, a regional home care system, senior care services, a mobile health program, and a physical therapy and rehabilitation network. It has more than 41,000 colleagues across nearly 500 access points.
"Our health system is urban, it's rural, it's academic, it's teaching, it's community, it's suburban," Mr. Flaks said. "We have a range of complexities across our health system, and we've been able to deliver on one standard of care, one level of excellence across each one of our institutions."
This commitment to excellence is evident in the accolades Hartford HealthCare has received, including A grades for safety from The Leapfrog Group for all seven of its hospitals in 2023.
Under Mr. Flaks' leadership, the organization is driven by the principle of being "the best at getting better," a philosophy that permeates every strategic decision. This commitment to continuous improvement shines through in the system's work to ensure healthcare accessibility within 10 miles of every Connecticut resident, position itself as a leader in the adoption of artificial intelligence safely and securely in healthcare, and invest in a new downtown Hartford headquarters. While other businesses retreated from the area, the health system's decision to strengthen its presence downtown reflects its belief that being the best requires investing in the very heart of the communities it serves.
"We have to be an organization that thinks differently," Mr. Flaks said.
This forward-thinking approach was crystallized during the COVID-19 pandemic when Mr. Flaks assumed the top role. As many longed for a return to normal, he challenged that notion.
"We said in healthcare, we can't go back to normal. We have to be better than normal. And that was a guiding principle for us throughout COVID," Mr. Flaks said. "It was critical because it became the mindset this way. We weren't viewing the circumstances and trying to keep things the way they were."
Hartford HealthCare was among the first in the nation to establish drive-through COVID-19 testing centers. Its vaccination program prioritized health equity, mobilizing to reach people in churches, barbershops and community centers. "We recognized that we couldn't expect people to come to us. We had to meet them where they were," Mr. Flaks said.
This commitment to community care led to the creation of the Neighborhood Health division in 2021, formalizing a new model of care delivery. The division deploys diverse teams via its CareVans clinics to communities across Connecticut. Teammates provide community services and preventive healthcare, screenings, vaccinations and basic necessities like clothing, food and energy assistance. The division has facilitated thousands of patient visits.
"I learned firsthand in these five years that we had to change the healthcare system," Mr. Flaks said. "We had to move from expecting people to come to where we are, where we had extraordinary capabilities, to taking those extraordinary capabilities to where people were and where we can build trust in collaboration with community leaders. The impact has been quite significant for us."
In addition to partnerships with community leaders, Hartford HealthCare has numerous affiliations with consumer-facing health companies, such as GoHealth for urgent care, Amazon's One Medical for subscription-based care and Walgreens for in-store clinics. The health system has created a risk-bearing program with Optum to accelerate Hartford HealthCare's path to value-based care —lowering cost while improving quality, care coordination and access for patients. The system's revenue from inpatient care stands at under 45%, reflecting its strategic focus on moving care to lower-cost settings. The health system saw a 1.6% operating margin in fiscal year 2023, driven by its commitment to cost-effective outpatient care.
"Our institution is 202 years old," Mr. Flaks said. "Our job as leaders today is to ensure that the institution continues to prosper and be here for the community for the next 200 years."
Looking ahead, Mr. Flaks stressed that tomorrow's innovation depends on achieving excellence today.
"One of the things that we've put in place is the notion of 'transforming and performing,'" he said. "We oversee the organization by ensuring that we are moving fast enough and that we are able to demonstrate outcomes around how we have to transform the health system. But correspondingly, we're looking at the balance of our performance to ensure that we're performing at a level that allows us to keep transforming."
A key example of this dual focus is Hartford HealthCare's enhanced partnership with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, finalized this past summer. Building on a decade of collaboration, the Hartford HealthCare Cancer Institute became the first member of the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Alliance. Now, the system is set to become Memorial Sloan Kettering's first Care Partner, with a new cancer center currently under construction.
"It was an incredibly intensive effort and it's extremely substantive," Mr. Flaks said of the partnership. Today, Hartford HealthCare is working to achieve validation that each cancer center within Hartford HealthCare performs at the same level as the MSK cancer centers in New York City. This is what Mr. Flaks means when he talks about high-quality care close to home for Connecticut residents. "This is going to be something that can revolutionize cancer care here in our communities."
The system is also moving intentionally when it comes to artificial intelligence with its Center for AI Innovation in Healthcare, launched in 2024 in partnership with MIT and the University of Oxford. The center — the first of its kind in New England — focuses on AI research, algorithm development, education for clinical and operational staff and rigorous governance to ensure safe real-world implementation in healthcare.
As Hartford HealthCare continues to grow and evolve under Mr. Flaks' leadership, one thing remains constant: the commitment to improvement on a daily basis. "I can't stress that enough," he said. "When you're working to be the best at getting better, our goal isn't about a singular ambition or a singular accomplishment. It's about getting better every day."