The New Year brings a range of opportunities for healthcare leaders, whether that is revamping current efforts to meet a goal or implementing a new strategy moving forward.
The following hospital and health system leaders spanning the United States share their New Year's resolutions for 2017.
Peter Adamo, CEO of Roxborough Memorial Hospital and Suburban Community Hospital (Philadelphia): "One of our resolutions for 2017 is to establish a reliable transportation process for non-emergent runs for our patients. One such option that is showing tremendous promise is an Uber-like service that was recently introduced to us by RoundTrip."
Phil Cormier, CEO of Beverly (Mass.) Hospital and Addison Gilbert Hospital (Gloucester, Mass.): "The national addiction epidemic, including opioids, has been particularly devastating in our communities north of Boston, and while we've seen some success through our teaming with local police departments and area first responders, there's still so much more work to be done. My resolution is to ensure our hospitals take a leadership role to help stem the tide; we will offer even more opioid education to the public and expand the resources and support for not only patients and their families, but also our caregivers. Our hospitals have always been pillars of the communities we serve, and we are committed to helping end this public health crisis."
Joanne Conroy, MD, CEO of Lahey Hospital and Medical Center (Burlington, Mass.): "As federal health policy evolves in 2017, it's critical that we remain focused on innovations in patient care both locally and regionally, committed to delivering outstanding care in our communities and ensure both access and affordability. My New Year's resolution is to create an atmosphere across the Lahey Hospital & Medical Center staff in which we ask 'why not?' rather than saying 'why?' when faced with new challenges. Adjusting to this way of thinking will not only spur new ideas and creative solutions, but also improve outcomes for all our patients."
Kimberly Chavalas Cripe, President and CEO of Children's Hospital of Orange County (Orange, Calif.): "Despite the fact that one out of five children suffers from a mental health condition, there is a national shortage of psychiatric inpatient beds. For too long, the need for pediatric mental health services has been great, but the resources limited. My New Year's resolution is to advocate for more pediatric hospitals to address this need by partnering with their local communities to develop a comprehensive plan that ensures children with mental illnesses and their families get the help and support they need."
Billy Hayes, CEO of Northside Hospital – Cherokee (Ga.): "2017 is a very exciting year for Northside Hospital-Cherokee as we will be moving into our new replacement hospital sometime in the middle of the year. My focus will be to ensure that patients, staff and local residents are informed to provide a smooth transition to the new hospital. I will also be looking to expand service lines to better meet the needs of our community."
Ira Kirschenbaum, MD, Chairman of the Orthopedic Surgery Department and Director of Surgical Operations at Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center (New York City), and Chrissy Manning, Practice Administrator of the Orthopedic Surgery Department at the hospital: "2017 will be the year of execution and operational effectiveness. Our goals are to spend less time in meetings discussing things we're going to do, and more time doing things that we learned in meetings in 2016. We want to be better managers and utilize our resources more efficiently. Above all, we want to attack the issues that patients really care about this year and continue to be patient-focused."
Lee Ann Liska, CEO of Augusta (Ga.) University Medical Center: "To round on patients and employees everyday!"
Marcia Manker, CEO of Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center (Fountain Valley, Calif.) and Saddleback Memorial Medical Center (Laguna Hills, Calif.): "In a time of uncertainty of what the future holds, we often forget why we pursued this career. For myself and countless others it will continue to be the passion to make a difference in the health, wellness and lives of the communities we serve; team with our magnificent physicians, nurses, other clinicians, support staff, volunteers, businesses, policy makers and community groups to use our combined talents, skills and innovation to pursue excellence in all we do; and use phenomenal life-changing technologies and digital space to save and improve lives while providing the right care at the right time at the right place."
Brian McIndoe, President and CEO of the William F. Ryan Community Health Network (New York City): "In 2017, the 18-site William F. Ryan Community Health Network will continue its commitment to providing healthcare with integrity and respect to all patients, regardless of their circumstances or ability to pay. We will work closely with our primary care associations and elected leaders to advocate for medically underserved individuals, to retain the expansion of Medicaid and access to health insurance in New York State, and to achieve health equity across our great nation."
Wendy Rebmann, VP of Communications for Easter Seals Bay Area (San Francisco): "In the year ahead, Easter Seals Bay Area plans to renew its focus on changing the way the world defines and views disability. Through taking on disability together with industry innovators, like Salesforce, we are dedicated to continually enhancing our operations and care, education and advocacy for those living with autism and other disabilities. Across the healthcare industry we continue to see siloed departments struggling to piece together patient data — we'd like to challenge the status quo by consolidating data from the many sources for a more holistic patient profile. Our goal is ambitious, but it will deliver better understanding for the patient, deeper patient-provider relationships and an ability for healthcare and behavioral health providers to have all of the critical data at their fingertips."
Jon Utech, Senior Director for Cleveland Clinic's Office for a Healthy Environment: "In 2017, Cleveland Clinic will put patients first by achieving our energy conservation goals. By installing the largest LED lighting retrofit in healthcare, using energy more efficiently, installing Energy Star appliances and engaging all our caregivers, we can reduce our spending. This makes the environment cleaner, our patients healthier and our care more affordable."