Accountability

Data-Driven Efforts Help Systems Adapt During the Pandemic

Kevan Mabbutt, senior vice president and chief consumer officer at Intermountain Healthcare

Marketing budgets were already starting to tighten for some health systems at the beginning of last year. But when the coronavirus pandemic hit, some of those budget cuts became even more severe. Other systems saw budgets remain the same, but marketing departments had to be ready to quickly shift their strategy, messaging, tactics, and media Read More

Better Data and Agility Help Marketers Justify Budgets and Measure Results

Jim Samuel, Copywriter and Content Marketer

// By Jim Samuel // Three health care marketing executives share how they use data and agility to justify budgets, achieve their marketing objectives, and measure the results. Marketing budgets were already starting to tighten for some health systems at the start of 2020. But when the coronavirus pandemic hit, some of those budget cuts Read More

The Keys to Successful Care Coordination

Megan Pruce, vice president, business engagement strategies at Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Marketing has played a key role in the growth and success of one of the nation’s largest regional networks focused on population health and value-based care. Vanderbilt Health Affiliate Network (VHAN) is a physician-led clinically integrated network that coordinates care for 300,000 patients across the state of Tennessee and in several bordering states. Launched in Read More

The Future of Health Care Is Happening Today in Tennessee

// By Jane Weber Brubaker // Vanderbilt University Medical Center led the formation of a successful high-performance provider network that has met 100 percent of its quality goals in recent years and returned millions in incentives to network members. Marketing has played a key role in the growth and success of one of the nation’s Read More

Simple Technology Keeps Patients Connected to Care During COVID-19

Matthew Warrens, managing director of innovation at UnityPoint Health

“For the first time, many patients are experiencing what it’s like to be a rural patient where care feels out of reach,” says Blake Marggraff, CEO of CareSignal. “Patients who were once accustomed to frequent health touchpoints now feel the pressure to make do on their own — as providers experience staffing reductions and patients Read More

How Partnerships Help ChristianaCare Keep Delaware Healthy

When Bettina Tweardy Riveros joined ChristianaCare as chief health equity officer in 2016, she assumed responsibility for engaging community stakeholders in partnerships that advance ChristianaCare’s vision for a healthy Delaware. According to Riveros, the guiding principles of building strong community partnerships can be summed up in the phrase “nothing about us, without us.” This method Read More

ChristianaCare Connects with Community Partners to Address Social Determinants of Health in Delaware

Ndome Yvonne Essoka

View from the C-Suite: Bettina Tweardy Riveros, Chief Health Equity Officer at ChristianaCare // By Ndome Yvonne Essoka // When Bettina Tweardy Riveros joined ChristianaCare as chief health equity officer in 2016, she assumed responsibility for engaging community stakeholders in partnerships that advance ChristianaCare’s vision for a healthy Delaware. According to Riveros, the guiding principles Read More

Who’s Looking Out for Consumers’ Health Care Interests These Days?

Lindsay Resnick

“We’ve been exposed!” exclaims Lindsay Resnick, executive vice president at Wunderman Thompson Health. “COVID shined a bright light on American health care — the best and the worst: gaps in its value chain, disparities in communities, advances in technology, changes in consumer behavior, and a culture of collaboration in crisis.” Resnick says health care consumers Read More

Four Challenges Facing Health Care Marketers in COVID Recovery

Lindsay Resnick

// By Lindsay R. Resnick // Consumers want to know, “Who’s going to do the right thing when it comes to my health?” We’ve been exposed! COVID shined a bright light on American health care — the best and the worst: gaps in its value chain, disparities in communities, advances in technology, changes in consumer Read More

Industry Leaders In Specialized Care for Older Adults

Leslie Pelton, senior director of innovation, Institute for Health Improvement (IHI)

Health care spending for older adults is disproportionately higher than for other age groups. According to 2016 research from the Kaiser Family Foundation, the 65 and older group — 16 percent of the population — consumes 36 percent of health spending. The cost of care for older adults is higher, but reimbursements are lower. “It Read More

Is Your Health System Age-Friendly? Join the Movement

Lil Banchero, MSN, RN, senior director, Anne Arundel Medical Center’s Institute on Healthy Aging

// By Jane Weber Brubaker // Health care spending for older adults is disproportionately higher than for other age groups. According to 2016 research from the Kaiser Family Foundation, the 65 and older group — 16 percent of the population — consumes 36 percent of health spending. The cost of care for older adults is Read More

Why Health Systems Must Tackle Behavioral Health

Howard Gershon, Principal, New Heights Group

With the shift toward value-based care and the assumption of risk, many health care organizations are beginning to understand that they must address behavioral health in conjunction with physical care for patients. In our new story, Howard Gershon, a founding principal of New Heights Group, discusses the business case. Here’s an excerpt. Behavioral health issues Read More

The Business Case for Behavioral Health

Howard Gershon, Principal, New Heights Group

// By Howard Gershon, LFACHE // With the shift toward value-based care and the assumption of risk, many health care organizations are beginning to understand that they must address behavioral health in conjunction with physical care for patients. Behavioral health issues are in the news every day, whether it’s a national sports figure who has Read More

Value-Based Care: A Win-Win Integrated Approach

Jordan Pisarcik is vice president of growth and customer engagement at DocASAP

“Value-based care models are on the rise, and health care providers and payers are increasingly aligning to control costs while providing quality care,” says Jordan Pisarcik, vice president of growth and customer engagement at DocASAP. Here’s an excerpt from Pisarcik’s new article: According to a recent report by Humana, value-based care initiatives are proving to Read More

Looking at Population Health Through a Marketing Lens

Susan Dubuque, principal at NDP Agency

“Population health is a hot topic in our industry,” says Susan Dubuque of ndp. “But let’s be honest. As health care marketing professionals, we may have a difficult time getting our heads around this complex, multifaceted concept. There is lack of clarity about even the most basic issues like: What is population health? Who is Read More

New Research: Exploring the State of Population Health

Susan Dubuque, principal at NDP Agency

Marketers envision playing a leading role in population health activities. // By Susan Dubuque // Population health is a hot topic in our industry. But let’s be honest. As health care marketing professionals, we may have a difficult time getting our heads around this complex, multifaceted concept. There is lack of clarity about even the Read More

Technology, Community are Keys to Solving Opioid Epidemic

“There are about 2.5 million people addicted to opioids, but only 10 to 20 percent of them get help,” says Andrey Ostrovsky, MD, chief medical officer at Solera Health (and former CMO of Medicaid). Solera Health is an “integrated health network” that “connects patients, providers, and physicians to a network of partners who are preventing Read More

5 Key Dynamics for Health Care Marketers in 2019

Linda MacCracken, senior principal at Accenture

“In my ongoing conversations with industry leaders about what’s shifting in health care, five factors rose to the top of the list for 2019, as marketing moves to new dimensions, and closer to health system collaborative scaling of smart pilots.” In our new article, Linda MacCracken, senior principal, customer engagement at Accenture Health, and Strategic Read More

How To Market When Your Specialists Are Booked Out

David Marlowe, author of Marketing Plans That Work

In our new article, David Marlowe, principal, Strategic Marketing Concepts, and Strategic Health Care Marketing Editorial Advisory Board member, shares results from five recent nationwide studies he’s conducted of what consumers consider to be “reasonable” wait times for routine, non-urgent visits. Will this type of information give marketers the hard evidence they need to stand Read More

Health Care Value: Moving Toward Affordable, Sustainable Care Delivery Models

Jane Weber Brubaker

We recently sat down with Priya Bathija, vice president of AHA’s Value Initiative, and Brian Griffin, SHSMD’s senior editorial specialist, to learn about the program, its scope, and its goals. Launched in December 2017, the Value Initiative’s mission is to be a change agent and provide thought leadership to the hospital industry as it moves Read More

Position Your Health System for Success in 2019

Linda MacCracken, senior principal at Accenture

Five Key Market Dynamics for Marketers to Manage  // By Linda MacCracken // “In my ongoing conversations with industry leaders about what’s shifting in health care, five factors rose to the top of the list for 2019, as marketing moves to new dimensions, and closer to health system collaborative scaling of smart pilots.” In this Read More