Impact Rural Health

At this year’s House of Delegates meeting, MHA recognized 17 new member CEOs.  The turnover we annually experience has not abated over the years.  In fact, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School for Public Health, reported that rural healthcare CEO turnover is 18-20% and as high as 30% in some states.  More striking is the fact that hidden costs of turnover may be four times greater than direct costs and takes three or more years to transition and onboard a new healthcare leader.

Earlier this spring, MHA surveyed the membership on the importance of leadership retention and development.  The response was not surprising, with 97% of the respondents agreeing that there is a need to offer a leadership development program for MHA members.

In response to the survey and member feedback, MHA has developed Impact Rural Health Leadership, Montana-centric leadership development, and executive coaching program for healthcare leaders.

The value proposition is simple, Impact will focus on developing and strengthening our healthcare leaders to ensure the viability and long-term sustainability of our state’s healthcare organizations and reduce the turnover of leadership in our member facilities.

The program consists of in-person group development sessions and individual one-on-one executive coaching.  The coaching is supported by leadership assessment tools designed to empower leaders to work from their creative dimensions.

Impact is supported by Sound Mind Leadership, an executive coaching firm focused on developing leaders committed to creating high-performing cultures.

This week, MHA is launching Impact Rural Health Leadership and is encouraging members to save their spots.  There is no obligation if you decide not to commit to our first cohort that will launch in 2023.  However, if you are interested, please click the link below to save your spot.  MHA is currently working with potential funders to reduce the program’s tuition costs which include leadership assessments, one-on-one executive coaching, peer gatherings, and travel support.

Seats are limited, so please reserve your spot today.  Impact Rural Health Leadership is another example of MHA’s support of our state’s healthcare leaders and our commitment to improving health and healthcare in Montana.

I urge your organization to consider joining the effort to hold commercial payers accountable through the AHA Vitality Index. The AHA Vitality Index is an operational metrics dashboard designed to measure revenue flow and yield key insights into how your organization’s denial and payment rates compare to your peers. This solution can help hospitals uncover how often their organization’s payment claims are denied, determine if those denial rates vary by payer or service line, and compare their organization’s metrics to other providers and peer groups.

The AHA Vitality Index automates data transfer and creates a national, de-identified, normalized database of hospital claims and remittances. Not until now have we had the ability to deploy an “all payor claims database” that gives us the ability to track and measure health plan behavior across our state and the nation.

MHA has partnered with the AHA to bring this effective tool to Montana hospitals. As our state continues to mature in its payor marketplace, the challenge with plans will only grow.  Timely data is our most effective tool, and the Vitality Index gives us the data we are missing in our advocacy.

There are several upcoming opportunities to learn more, including upcoming Region Meetings and a special webinar for the membership scheduled this fall. I also encourage you to use the link below to learn more about the AHA Vitality Index.

MHA serves as a critical advocate for our patients and ensuring their care is covered is central to our role.  The Vitality Index is an effective tool that will help us track payor behavior and use the information to improve health and healthcare in Montana.

Watch the video