Advancing Health

More than 60% of America's practicing psychiatrists are 55 years of age or older, and likely to retire within the next decade. These specialists provide a significant portion of behavioral health services. So what does the future hold for both the behavioral health workforce and their patients? In this conversation, Dylan Panuska, PsyD, clinical psychologist and manager of behavioral health i...

Creating diverse and equitable research is paramount for any health care organization, but making sure those research teams are equitable themselves is just as critical. That's why national nonprofit AcademyHealth has released a new “Roadmap for Researchers” to help ensure and advance this important work. In this conversation, Margo Edmunds, Ph. D., director of the AcademyHealth Center on Div...

The health care industry does everything possible to mitigate errors, yet mistakes can happen. That's why CommonSpirit Health has worked to adopt an organizational culture of transparency that allows its employees to feel comfortable reporting errors when they occur. In this “Safety Speaks” conversation, CommonSpirit Health's Beth Miller, system director, patient safety-performance improvement, an...

30 years from now, it's projected that nearly one quarter of America's population will be age 65 or older. To mitigate potential care gaps, the Age-Friendly Health Systems Initiative was created to improve health care for older adults. In this conversation, Dave Eaker, geriatric program coordinator at Atrium Health, and Shannon Morton, assistant vice president of patient care services at Atrium He...

Artificial intelligence (AI) in health care isn't an innovation for the distant future; it's already here. But how will it develop across all sectors of the health care field? In this Leadership Dialogue conversation, Amy Perry, president and CEO of Banner Health, discusses how AI and other technologies can relieve caregivers of tedious and time-consuming aspects of their jobs, and help organize c...

Violence in health care settings has grown alarmingly in recent years, and health care leaders are urgently searching for ways to keep their teams safe. In this new "Safety Speaks" conversation, Barbara Griffith, M.D., president of Duke Raleigh Hospital, discusses the successful steps the organization has taken to address the sharp rise in workplace violence, and how reducing violent incidents req...

Dartmouth Health is the most rural academic medical center in the country, and like other rural hospitals and health systems, it faces challenges that affect its ability to attract and recruit top talent.  In this conversation, Joanne M. Conroy, M.D., CEO and president of Dartmouth Health, and 2024 chair of the AHA Board of Trustees, shares how Dartmouth Health has implemented workforce solut...

Hospitals and health systems are committed to the mission of patient safety, and the steady improvement in patient safety across the field has been encouraging. But a lingering question remains – can it be sustained? In this conversation, Oren Guttman, M.D., anesthesiologist and vice president of High Reliability & Patient Safety at Thomas Jefferson University, discusses the mindset of resilie...

Indigenous women are more likely to experience complications from pregnancy and childbirth than non-Indigenous women, leading to higher rates of anxiety and depression within those communities. In this conversation, Jennifer Richards, Ph. D., assistant professor at the Center for Indigenous Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and Jennifer Crawford, Ph. D., clinical psycho...

Approximately nine million military veterans receive their health care through the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), and nearly half of them are 65 and older. In this conversation, Kimberly Wozneak, national lead for Age-Friendly Health Systems, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, discusses how the VHA is weaving four foundational age-friendly principles into its care to support the growing n...

With ongoing workforce challenges, the health care industry is in desperate need of skilled and experienced workers. Military health care veterans, such as medics and corpsmen, are one solution to potentially easing the shortage. In this special Veterans Day conversation, Anne Mork, R.N., vice president/chief nursing officer of ambulatory and nursing support services at UW Health, and Luke St...

Military-Informed Care: What it Means for Veterans and Their Families  The care needs of military-connected families can look different from those of other patients. Higher emotional or mental stress, and longer rehabilitation, are just a few of the challenges that these families can face. In observation of Veterans Day, Steve Schwab, CEO of the Elizabeth Dole Foundation,...

For historically underserved populations, stigma and lack of access to behavioral health services can present huge barriers to treatment.  In this conversation, Matthew Hoag, director of integrated behavioral health at Denver Health, shares how the organization is innovating through integration to meet the behavioral health needs of its communities, including with its state-of-the-art mo...

The increase in telehealth services has transformed care delivery in America by expanding access for millions. In this conversation, Johnna Nynas, M.D., OB/GYN at Sanford Health Bemidji, discusses the dramatic expansion of maternal telehealth capabilities in Minnesota, as well as an inspiring telehealth program that reaches families in rural areas of the state.

Even a few decades ago, non-physician practitioners, also called advanced practice providers (APPs), barely existed in the health care industry. Today, APPs are found practically everywhere.  In this conversation, Michelle Schweitzer, NP, executive director of advanced practice providers at WakeMed, discusses the growing role her APP colleagues play in health care delivery, and how the rise o...

Health system integration is one of the many ways hospitals can meet the mission of advancing health, and there can be wide-ranging benefits – from enhanced economies of scale to pooled capabilities. In this Leadership Dialogue conversation, Tom Priselac, president and CEO emeritus of Cedars-Sinai, discusses overseeing 30 years of growth and integration at the health system, and the...

As Baxter strives to restart its production of critical IV fluids in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, hospitals and health systems nationwide are reviewing and reevaluating their responses to current and future supply chain disruptions. In this conversation, Mark Taylor, M.D., surgical director for surgical operations at Cleveland Clinic, discusses the health system's ongoing IV fluid conservati...

With numerous care locations across Florida, Lee Health has endured three major hurricanes over the past two years: Hurricane Ian in the fall of 2022, and more recently, Hurricanes Helene and Milton. In this conversation, Scott Nygaard, M.D., chief operating officer at Lee Health, discusses the impact these natural disasters have had on the organization, and how their emergency...

Hospital and health system boards are always looking to solve the most pressing challenges in health care. Asking the right questions and providing proper guidance can help establish plans to combat these issues. In this conversation, James Liggins, Jr., senior counsel at Warner Norcross + Judd, and vice chair of the board of directors at Bronson Healthcare, discusses his work developing a tool fo...

Jefferson Health was a finalist for the AHA's 2024 Quest for Quality Prize, which celebrates hospitals and health systems that are committed to providing exceptional safe, and patient- and family-centered care. In this conversation, Jefferson Health's Cara Martino, DNP, R.N., enterprise vice president of clinical improvement and transformation, and Trish Henwood, M.D., executive vice president and...

For health care organizations, recruitment and diversity for the board of trustees is vitally important. In this conversation, Schonay Barnett-Jones, trustee at Children’s National Hospital and AHA board member, discusses strategies for recruiting a diverse board of trustees to any health care organization, and how to engage and retain the next generation of future board members. To learn mor...

The recent Hurricane Helene disrupted the production and supply of IV fluids — a reminder of our nation’s fragile health care supply chain. In this conversation, Michael Schiller, executive director of the Association for Health Care Resource & Materials Management (AHRMM), and Michael Ganio ,  senior director of pharmacy practice and quality with the American Society of Health-Syste...

Customers at All in the Wrists barbershop in Indianapolis don't just get a haircut and beard trim at their appointment — they also receive blood pressure checks for hypertension, diabetes education, and important resources to assist with health care barriers. In this conversation, Marvin Taylor, owner of All in the Wrists, and Brownsyne Tucker Edmonds, M.D., vice president and chief health equity...

Englewood Health and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital were both finalists of the AHA's 2024 Foster G. McGaw Prize, which recognizes the efforts of hospitals and health systems to improve the health and well-being of their communities. In this conversation, Andres Nieto, director of community health outreach and marketing with NewYork-Presbyterian, and Jamie Ketas, vice president of population health...

Creating mental health resources is an important "step one" in broadening patient access. Step two? Getting people to take advantage of that access. In this conversation, Gaurava Agarwal, M.D., chief wellness executive at Northwestern Medicine, shares how the health system approached access awareness within its communities, and the steps needed to ensure that mental health support services ar...