Operational issues in access are myriad. So are the tactics to resolve them. But if systems look closer, they’ll find that access isn’t a tactical matter. It’s a strategic one stemming from an uncertain or opaque leadership structure.

A unique rural-academic partnership has enabled a critical access hospital to significantly expand access to services. At the same time, careful financial planning has supported debt issuance for a state-of-the-art facility for the community.

For many health systems, utilization management (UM) has long been a functional necessity, but rarely a strategic priority. Originally designed to ensure clinical appropriateness and support payer requirements, UM often grew up within hospital walls, shaped by local workflows and embedded within broader care management structures.

As advanced practice providers represent a growing percentage of the clinical workforce, health systems must ensure that APPs are being deployed in ways that enable the physicians they work with to operate at the top of their potential.

Hospitals continue to lose significant money on employing physicians, and the original goals of care coordination and efficiency haven't materialized. Rising costs, declining reimbursement advantages, overutilization of low-margin services and administrative burdens are factors behind these unsustainable losses.

The critical link between patient access and loyalty means that even a modest increase in loyal patients can significantly boost revenue. Many health systems, however, capture less than half of a patient’s total healthcare spend due to poor access and scheduling inefficiencies.

The proposed NIH policy to cap indirect costs on research grants at 15% would strain academic medical centers (AMCs) and universities that rely on these funds to support essential infrastructure.

In today’s volatile healthcare landscape, CFOs are being called to step beyond traditional financial management and embrace a transformative leadership role.

Changes in operations and services, coupled with the need to invest more in patient-facing services, require health systems to assess corporate shared services to maximize efficiency and cost-effectiveness.

Not-for-profit hospital and health system leaders are currently monitoring a flurry of rapidly evolving potential changes to state and federal policy with significant, long-term financial ramifications for their organizations.

Emergency department overcrowding has been a problem for decades, but there is evidence that it is getting worse.

As healthcare looks to another period of uncertainty — namely the impact of potential tariffs on its supply chain — it’s important to remain vigilant, keep informed and be purposeful about next steps