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This is the Becker's Healthcare Podcast,

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created by the team of
Becker's Healthcare,

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a multimedia company devoted to
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Thanks for listening.
Now here's the episode.

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This is the Becker's Healthcare
Podcast. I'm Molly Gamble,

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vice President editorial, and today
I'm spending time with Marty Bonk.

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Marty is president and c e
o of Ardent Health Services,

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a hospital and healthcare network
based in Nashville. Marty,

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welcome to the podcast. Thank you so much
for being my guest today. How are you?

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And where do we find you?

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Thanks, Molly. It's great to be here
with you today, and I am in Nashville,

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Tennessee, where our home office is
located. Uh, great to be with you today.

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Marty, before I continue, we talk some
really important trends in the industry.

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I have to ask, as a Nashville fan myself,
your favorite barbecue restaurant. I,

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I have my own favorite, but I'm
always looking to expand the roster,

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if you will.

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Yeah, that's a great question. And,
um, super competitive these days. Um,

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I would say it, it's, it's a tossup
for me between two, my namesake, um,

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Martin's Barbecue is a, is a really
good shop in town, um, but Ed Lee's, um,

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is, is also really, really strong. So
it's, uh, it's great to have choices, but,

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uh, those are two are my favorites.

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Martin's, uh, is one of my favorites.
Ed Lee's, uh, is new to me,

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so thanks for the, the
recommendation. Marty. Um,

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for listeners who may be less
familiar with Ardent Health Services,

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can we start off by learning from you a
couple key facts or insights that would

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help them better appreciate and
understand your perspective?

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Yeah, so, uh, historically, you
know, you, you mentioned we are a,

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a hospital health
services company. Um, and,

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and statistically we have 30 hospitals
and 200 sites of care across eight

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markets in six states. Um,
we have about 23,000, uh,

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team members in our company, including,
uh, almost 7,000 nurses and, and 1400,

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uh, uh,

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providers that are aligned with us
through employment or other contractual

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arrangements. But, um, really the way
I've been looking at our company is,

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is much more than a hospital
company or a healthcare system, but,

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but really focusing on
becoming a consumer-centric
health services organization.

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That that really is putting the
person, that the patient, the consumer,

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the center of everything
we do, and realize that,

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that we've got a number of facilities
and services, whether those are physical,

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uh,

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bricks and mortar facilities or virtual
services technology to interact and stay

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connected with our patients. And so
really in a transformation from, uh, uh,

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a collection of hospitals and clinics
to an ecosystem focused around the

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consumer and, and all of their
needs around healthcare services.

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Mm-hmm. <affirmative> and
Marty, it seems like, I mean,

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I remember at Becker's
even just a few years ago,

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there were still articles in which
people had conflicting viewpoints about

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whether people who are the customers
in healthcare should be referred to as

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consumers or patients.

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There were some strong opinions that
consumers was not an appropriate term.

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And as you just described,

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you're looking to build a
consumer-centric healthcare organization.

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It seems like there is much broader
acceptance of seeing patients as such.

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Well, there, there is, and I, you know,
I had the, the fortune or misfortune,

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however you like to look at it,
of, of becoming a patient after a,

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a bike accident, uh, about a year and a
half ago. And for the first time in my,

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you know, adult life really became
a, a patient. And, um, um, you know,

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I'd say that we've got great caregivers,
um, that are trying to do their best,

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you know,

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stuck with systems and processes that
don't necessarily meet expectations beyond

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the care, you know, and I'm talking about
how do we interface with care from a,

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um, insurance perspective or billing
perspective, a scheduling perspective,

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you know, all the things that
we do in our day-to-day lives.

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I can control my whole, uh, universe
practically from my iPhone. Um,

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but in healthcare, I mean, it's largely
been a brick. I can call somebody,

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navigate a phone tree, be put on hold,
you know, get disconnected. You know,

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it's, we,

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we've been kind of our
archaic historically in the
way we've approached things,

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and people want convenience
in everything that they do.

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Healthcare is no different.
And, uh, to a certain extent,

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I think we've got reluctant consumers.
Nobody really wants to be a patient. Um,

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you know, something happens and
they, they become a patient.

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But if you go back to a definition, a
patient is somebody who is acted upon.

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And I don't know about you, Molly, but
you know, I think most people were,

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you know, we don't wanna be acted upon.

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We want to be involved in the care
that we receive. Um, you know,

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we wanna have our opinions be voiced in
the, in the care that we received. And,

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and historically, I think we
have had this, we have built it,

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and you must come to us
mentality in healthcare. And, um,

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the world is changing and,

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and literally everything else
that we consume as consumers. And,

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and I don't think healthcare's really
that different at the end of the day in

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terms of what people expect. And the
more that, um, people realize this,

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the more, uh,

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new entrants we see coming
into the traditional healthcare
space saying it could

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be different. It should be different. And,

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and they're trying to make
it different. So it's,

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it's really an imperative upon us to
think about our patients as consumers and,

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and not just as somebody that is sort
of subjected to being acted upon by us.

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Mm-hmm.

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<Affirmative>. Well, Marty, it sounds
like from an unfortunate bike accident,

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you know, you, that's
valuable perspective gained,

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especially for someone who
sits in a position like you do.

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But I think you're right. You
know, I think the patient term,

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meaning that you were acted upon is that
cross purposes with the goal of people

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being active participants in their
own health and wellness. Um, let's,

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let's talk about some of the
headwinds you're looking at today.

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You are c e o of one of the country's
largest private health systems.

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What do you see as the biggest
headwinds in the near term and also long

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term that are really
commanding your attention?

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Yeah, that's a great question,
Molly. Um, you know, there,

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there really is no short of challenges,
I think, in, in healthcare today. Um,

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but, but we're really tr choosing to
look at them as, as opportunities. Um,

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obviously we've got, you know,
rising cost, um, you know,

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and inflation that we're still, um,
trying to get under control. Um, you know,

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particularly in the workforce,
uh, in, in labor. But,

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but also the supply chain is still not,
uh, back to where things used to be.

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And, and, you know, we've taken that as a,

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as an imperative to really work smarter
and think differently about how we

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approach the work that
needs to be done. Um,

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the workforce challenges I mentioned
are, are getting better. Um, but,

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but they're not back to, to pre
pandemic levels. Um, and so, you know,

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that's caused us to think about
how can we use technology,

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artificial intelligence, uh,
machine learning, um, how do we,

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how do we really embrace technology
to get that to work for our caregivers

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versus our caregivers having to
work for the technology, which is,

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I think of how things have
been, um, up to this point.

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And so we want to ease the, the workforce
burdens that our, our people have.

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If, if we've got a, a workforce
shortage of, or talent shortage,

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how can we make their jobs easier to
provide better care, more efficient care,

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more effective care? Um, so,

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so that's a challenge that I
know the industry's facing. Um,

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as we talked a little bit about this,
this changing consumer preferences, uh,

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it is, is a headwind and we
see disruptors, quote unquote,

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come into the industry and they're
trying to, to pick part pieces of,

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of what we do as health
systems. But, um, but,

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but I think that's really a wake up
call to our industry and a change that

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really needs to happen. And, um,

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as you said that the bike
accident for me really was a,

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a wake up call and a blessing in a
sense that, uh, uh, one, I'm still here,

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and two, I've got a, a platform now to
do something with that experience and,

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um,

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really challenge our organization to
change the way in which we interact with

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our patients as consumers and, and really
think from their perspective. Um, I,

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I think from a payer perspective, we,
we've got, uh, this, this gradual but,

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but, but meaningful shift away from fee
for service to value-based care. And,

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and I think that's a way for us to, um,

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care for our people across their health
journeys and realize that we need to be

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able to provide care on
their terms where they want,

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not where we want them to be necessarily.
Um, but, but where they need to be,

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uh, to get the right care at the
right, uh, convenience, the right cost,

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location, et cetera. And, um,
you know, so that's, that's, uh,

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certainly a challenge
that we're navigating, uh,
throughout all this, uh, the,

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the headwinds that we
have. And then, and again,

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those disruptors that are trying to,

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to carve out niche offerings or point
solutions that we have provided. But,

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but I think, again, it's,

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it's a wake up call to us in terms
of how we can think differently and,

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and to ultimately disrupt ourselves, um,

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versus just reacting to what's
happening to us. So those are,

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those are some of the, the big things
that I think about that, uh, you know,

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we're, we're dealing with
across the industry and,

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and how we're thinking
about them at Ardent.

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Mm-hmm. <affirmative> and
Marty, I appreciate how you put,

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I think on your first mention
you put disruptors within quotes,

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and I think that's,

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that says something to me because we've
been talking about different forces in

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business, whether it be several
years ago, Airbnb, Netflix,

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how Netflix disrupted Blockbuster. I mean,

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now that's a really
archaic and old example.

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And now Netflix is having its
own challenges, of course,

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but these disruptors have changed.
You've seen some move in, some move out,

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some that perhaps pose some risk,
at least in theory initially,

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and then that never really
played out. So I think it,

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it's a fit to put that in quotes.

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'cause there's been a lot of churn to
what and who is a disruptor to health

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systems traditionally. How are you
thinking about this? I mean, this is a,

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a category of of business
strategy and awareness that can,

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you need to be flexible, nimble, but
you also need to be really aware.

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Can you talk about how you
balance the days issues at hand

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and then also kind of this big
category of disruptors or disruption

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that could someday really
come to affect ardent health?

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Yeah, let, let me start with
the disruptor part. Well,

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it's what's fresh in my mind. Uh, I
was listening to another podcast, uh,

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n y u professor, uh, Scott Galloway.
He's got a podcast, the Prop G podcast.

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And, uh, he was just talking about this
in the episode I was listening to and,

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and, and the paraphrasing what
he said, but he says, you know,

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all the attention goes
on these disruptors,

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but it's really much more of a statement
about the disrupted and, you know,

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a reflection on an incumbent
in not meeting their
customer's needs or wants, uh,

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you know, in a relevant way today.
And, and he, he mentioned also Netflix,

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not in the blockbuster day, but uh,

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you know how it kind of disrupted cable
tv and you see all these people cutting

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the cord right now. You know what,

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we don't want to pay $150 a month for a
bunch of channels that we don't really

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want and be subjected to
watching commercial advertising
for products we don't

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want. We just wanna watch the content
we want when we wanna watch it. And so,

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so, you know, Netflix
delivered a different, uh,

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value proposition at a much
cheaper cost point, you know,

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and so you can see how
they gain popularity,

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and now there's much more competition
for Netflix than there used to be,

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which is different challenge.
But, you know, for,

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for us in the healthcare space,
it's the same way. You know, we,

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we have expected people to take time out
of their day or out of their workplace

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to come and sit in a waiting room.

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And even though we give you
a 10 o'clock appointment,

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we don't call you back until 10 40.

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We make you fill out all these paper
forms and, you know, we're disjointed and,

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you know, repetitive in what
we do. And, um, you know,

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the world has worked differently. So it,

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it's no surprise that an Amazon
who's obsessed with customer

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satisfaction sees healthcare
as an opportunity, you
know, to be disrupted. Um,

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but, but I look at Amazon and go, okay,
you're, you've bought a company, uh,

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you know, you can't possibly, you know,
have the geographic coverage in a,

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in a short timeframe at least to provide
physical interaction with every patient

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across America. So you have a telehealth
offering, which is great, and,

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and I think telehealth is, um,
here to stay for our industry,

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something we need to embrace. But,

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but what happens when you need
something beyond that telehealth,

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when you need the x-ray, you
need the lab test, you need, uh,

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something beyond what can be done
virtually. Um, Amazon's, and again,

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struggle with that is my prediction.
And, um, you know, they, they, they're,

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they're a force to be
reckoned with for sure. But,

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but I really look at this as ours to
lose, we provide, you know, primary care,

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same day, walk-in appointments, virtual
care for all of our patients. Um, but,

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but do we think about it in a way
in which, um, you know, it running,

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this is a, a separate business
unit, a company just like Amazon.

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So a little example, my wife
got a, an email from Amazon, uh,

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saying, as a loyal Prime member,

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we'd like to introduce you to one medical
group and come and get, uh, you know,

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your, your on demand 24
7 virtual care option for

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$169 a year, or whatever the, the
number was. And, uh, you know,

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I look at our community and we've got
several big name organizations in,

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in Nashville, uh,
reputable health systems,

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and I'm pretty sure they
all do the same. Um,

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but I haven't gotten an email or she
hasn't gotten an email from them offering

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the same value proposition, you know,
and that's an opportunity. So as,

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as we think about it, as ardent, you know,

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we know what the disruptors
are trying to do,

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and they can really only
operate in a narrow sliver.

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We can provide the full
continuum of whatever we need.

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We just have to think
about it differently.

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And so this can't be something we
do off the side of our desks. Um,

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this can't be something that we're,
we're thinking about part-time.

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We've really gotta think about, you
know, what do our consumers want?

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How do we deliver to that them to that,

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and give them what they want
on their terms. And so to your,

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to the second part of your question
about prioritization, you know,

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how do we distinguish what's, what's
there, what's noise? Um, you know,

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we always start with the question, you
know, how does this support our purpose?

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And our purpose is, is caring for
others, and it's our, it's our patients,

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it's their loved ones, it's, uh, our
communities and it's, it's each other and,

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you know, what do we need to do?

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And so that helps us to put a
lens on what we're trying to do.

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Is this gonna help us deliver better
care, achieve safer outcomes? Um,

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is this gonna relieve burdens
to our caregivers? Um, and the,

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the daily challenges that they face, um,

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is it gonna help us better deliver care
outside the four walls of our hospitals

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and clinics to, to, to
develop a, you know, better,

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more consumer friendly experience?

256
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And so those are some of the true
Norths that we look at when we're making

257
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decisions and, and how we're thinking
about things. And, um, you know,

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00:14:23,440 --> 00:14:26,760
we've really got a, a plan that
we're calling essentially Den 360,

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00:14:26,830 --> 00:14:30,600
that that puts the, the person, the
patient, the, the consumer at the center,

260
00:14:30,700 --> 00:14:33,720
and realize that our, our
facilities, our assets,

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our technology are all there to support
that consumer's interaction and,

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and their healthcare, personal
healthcare need versus, uh, you know,

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just statistics of, of patients and
heads and beds or clinic visits or,

264
00:14:45,540 --> 00:14:47,720
you know, throughput metrics
or what have you. So that's,

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00:14:47,720 --> 00:14:51,640
that's how we're thinking about thinking
like a disruptor against ourselves and,

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and, uh,

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00:14:52,520 --> 00:14:55,400
keeping our true north of our purpose
at the center of everything that we're

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00:14:55,400 --> 00:14:56,280
doing. Mm-hmm.

269
00:14:56,320 --> 00:14:59,880
<Affirmative>, a couple reactions
there, Marty. I, I love Scott Galloway.

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00:14:59,980 --> 00:15:03,480
I'm so excited to hear someone
else mention him. Prof g um,

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00:15:03,480 --> 00:15:07,280
if listeners are familiar, a
a brilliant business mind, um,

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for things across numerous
industries. So it's,

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it's great to hear a plug for him,

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but also to your example about your wife
getting that email from Amazon about

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one medical, you know, this was
the first year Amazon, I mean,

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00:15:20,520 --> 00:15:24,360
with the one medical
acquisition now complete, um,

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was able to plug healthcare services
through one medical on its prime day,

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00:15:29,010 --> 00:15:32,840
which is just interesting to think about
healthcare being included in something,

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um, that, that consumer friendly,
that targeted, uh, like you said,

280
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not typically communicated as such from
the traditional brick and mortar health

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systems.

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00:15:42,710 --> 00:15:46,760
Yeah, yeah. And I, I, again, I I
think that's exactly right. And it's,

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it healthcare's mainstream.
You look at politics, I mean,

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this is gonna be another central point
in the next presidential election as it

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00:15:53,020 --> 00:15:54,560
has been. Um, you know,

286
00:15:54,560 --> 00:15:58,760
healthcare is not seen as affordable
or accessible as it needs to be. And,

287
00:15:59,060 --> 00:16:02,240
you know, that's, that's,
uh, an indictment on us.
You know, I mean, there's,

288
00:16:02,240 --> 00:16:05,640
there's lots of moving parts there.
Um, you know, the insurance system is,

289
00:16:05,820 --> 00:16:06,120
you know,

290
00:16:06,120 --> 00:16:09,520
challenge that we have and the entitlement
mentality and all these things. But,

291
00:16:09,940 --> 00:16:13,360
but it's, it's really an opportunity
for us to step up. And as I say, it's,

292
00:16:13,360 --> 00:16:15,960
it's ours to lose. We, we've
had the patient relationships,

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00:16:16,020 --> 00:16:20,480
and I believe as a health system, we
should be the trust broker. Um, I,

294
00:16:20,480 --> 00:16:23,600
you know, as, as I think about
my personal healthcare journey,

295
00:16:24,240 --> 00:16:27,560
I don't think about, uh, my
insurance telling me where I,

296
00:16:27,680 --> 00:16:31,080
I should receive care or an
Amazon or a technology company.

297
00:16:31,280 --> 00:16:33,160
I trust my physician, but,

298
00:16:33,180 --> 00:16:38,000
but if we don't give them the tools
and the technology and the resources to

299
00:16:38,000 --> 00:16:40,160
provide an Amazon-like experience,

300
00:16:40,160 --> 00:16:42,640
it's not gonna be a surprise
if people go and, and,

301
00:16:42,640 --> 00:16:45,080
and shop and test the waters
and see what else is available.

302
00:16:45,220 --> 00:16:47,520
So I agree with you completely. Mm-hmm.

303
00:16:48,020 --> 00:16:52,040
You had mentioned in your introductory
remarks that ar I is aligned with 1400

304
00:16:52,360 --> 00:16:54,600
providers, whether that's
through affiliation, employment,

305
00:16:55,080 --> 00:16:58,920
I wanted to carve out a moment with you
to talk about physicians. Right Now. I,

306
00:16:58,960 --> 00:17:01,280
I, in talking with other
health systems CEOs,

307
00:17:01,480 --> 00:17:05,520
I really appreciate the
thought they raised to me,
which is that, you know, yes,

308
00:17:05,570 --> 00:17:08,840
let's talk about shortages, let's talk
about deficits, but at the same time,

309
00:17:08,890 --> 00:17:13,240
let's make sure we are really appreciating
the physicians who are with us and

310
00:17:13,240 --> 00:17:16,440
making sure that we are doing things
and accommodating them in a way that

311
00:17:16,440 --> 00:17:20,800
empowers them. So I'm curious what
that looks like at Ardent. You know,

312
00:17:21,580 --> 00:17:23,280
you mentioned you trust your physician.

313
00:17:23,580 --> 00:17:28,280
How are you really putting
physicians in place to be

314
00:17:28,280 --> 00:17:31,680
partners and the primary point
of contact for consumers?

315
00:17:33,220 --> 00:17:37,110
Yeah, so, so let's start with the
statistics, uh, for a second. We, we,

316
00:17:37,530 --> 00:17:40,230
our physicians, uh, and, and, uh,

317
00:17:40,850 --> 00:17:45,470
allied providers see about 3
million patient visits a year, uh,

318
00:17:45,470 --> 00:17:48,950
which is probably more than 20 x. The
number of inpatient admissions we have,

319
00:17:48,960 --> 00:17:52,720
we have as a, as a comparator. So, so
we've got a lot of touch points with our,

320
00:17:52,820 --> 00:17:56,160
uh, with our communities, with the
people that lives in our communities,

321
00:17:56,550 --> 00:17:59,480
many of which don't ever
need to step in inside the,

322
00:17:59,480 --> 00:18:03,480
the four walls of a hospital in a,
in a given year. Um, but, but, um,

323
00:18:03,820 --> 00:18:07,640
but have a lot of healthcare needs
nonetheless. And so, so historically,

324
00:18:07,880 --> 00:18:11,840
I think where health systems
have, have, have maybe lost, uh,

325
00:18:11,950 --> 00:18:13,400
lost their focus is we've,

326
00:18:13,400 --> 00:18:17,080
we've thought of physicians as a
mean to putting people in bed to, to,

327
00:18:17,140 --> 00:18:20,640
to putting people in the OR and, and,
uh, you know, creating these, uh,

328
00:18:20,640 --> 00:18:25,120
opportunities for facility-based,
uh, statistics. But, but really, uh,

329
00:18:25,120 --> 00:18:28,040
it's that patient relationship
that's so important. And, you know,

330
00:18:28,040 --> 00:18:32,160
do we have the ecosystem to provide the
health services that patients need in

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00:18:32,160 --> 00:18:36,840
their everyday lives beyond the four walls
of the hospital? So for us, you know,

332
00:18:36,840 --> 00:18:41,680
we really see the physicians as the is
is the front door to our community, um,

333
00:18:41,740 --> 00:18:45,240
to create those trusted
relationships. And, um, you know,

334
00:18:45,310 --> 00:18:46,520
some of those patients will,

335
00:18:46,590 --> 00:18:49,720
will end up in the hospital and need
those services, but, but many will not.

336
00:18:49,740 --> 00:18:53,000
And so, um, we're, we're
thinking about, um, you know,

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00:18:53,000 --> 00:18:57,600
our physician platform as the, is the
catalyst for our value-based care, um,

338
00:18:57,820 --> 00:19:00,560
for providing the right level of
services in the right place and the right

339
00:19:01,400 --> 00:19:05,200
location and the right fee structure.
Um, and, and really, you know,

340
00:19:05,390 --> 00:19:09,080
that being the, the driver for our,
our company going forward. And if you,

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00:19:09,080 --> 00:19:13,800
if you go back to the disruptor
comment, um, what, what does c v s,

342
00:19:14,030 --> 00:19:18,640
Walgreens, Optum, uh, Amazon all
have in common recently? You know,

343
00:19:18,670 --> 00:19:22,840
they've, they've purchased large platform
position groups or are expanding their

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00:19:22,840 --> 00:19:27,440
physician private presence. Why, to get
closer to that, that personal patient,

345
00:19:27,620 --> 00:19:30,040
you know, consumer
relationship, uh, where,

346
00:19:30,040 --> 00:19:33,640
where I think we have the opportunity as
health systems is to embrace that same

347
00:19:33,640 --> 00:19:36,800
mentality and, and physicians aren't
there just to put people in the hospital,

348
00:19:37,070 --> 00:19:40,840
they're there to lead the relationship.
And if we do that, we have that,

349
00:19:40,910 --> 00:19:44,800
that ecosystem around to provide care
when they need more than what can happen

350
00:19:44,800 --> 00:19:45,720
in that office. And,

351
00:19:45,940 --> 00:19:49,920
and where I think ultimately we have
the upside still on an Amazon or, uh,

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00:19:49,940 --> 00:19:52,480
an Optum or c v s, et cetera. So,

353
00:19:52,500 --> 00:19:54,880
so that's how we're thinking
about the physicians and how we,

354
00:19:54,880 --> 00:19:55,620
how we work with them.

355
00:19:55,620 --> 00:19:59,640
And so how do we give them the tools
that they need to be successful? Um,

356
00:19:59,860 --> 00:20:03,320
how do we help grow that pipeline
that you alluded to? Um, you know, we,

357
00:20:03,330 --> 00:20:04,840
we've invested even in technology,

358
00:20:04,890 --> 00:20:08,880
we've got a company called Winnow
that we created to help us to recruit

359
00:20:08,880 --> 00:20:12,800
physicians into our network. And, uh,
the way I look at winnow is it's, uh, we,

360
00:20:12,800 --> 00:20:16,560
we kind of created the
LinkedIn for physicians without
them knowing they joined,

361
00:20:16,780 --> 00:20:21,040
you know, so we know every physician
across the country where they trained, uh,

362
00:20:21,040 --> 00:20:24,960
where they live, where their
spouses, uh, or partners, uh, um,

363
00:20:25,660 --> 00:20:27,160
reside where their families grew up.

364
00:20:27,160 --> 00:20:31,680
And so we can try to triangulate and
find warm candidates that would be, um,

365
00:20:31,780 --> 00:20:34,760
you know, good candidates to,
to go and try to recruit, um,

366
00:20:34,760 --> 00:20:38,280
bring people into our markets that we,
we operate. And so, you know, we're,

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00:20:38,280 --> 00:20:40,120
we're just trying to think
about, you know, again,

368
00:20:40,120 --> 00:20:42,040
how do we put the physicians and,

369
00:20:42,100 --> 00:20:45,760
and our patients as consumers at the
center of what we're doing to be able to,

370
00:20:45,760 --> 00:20:49,480
to drive that, those interactions and
trust, trust relationships. Mm-hmm.

371
00:20:49,520 --> 00:20:50,260
<affirmative>.

372
00:20:50,260 --> 00:20:53,440
And, and just to kind of loop back
on the disruption piece, you know,

373
00:20:53,440 --> 00:20:56,360
when you talk about C V S Health, Amazon,

374
00:20:56,360 --> 00:21:00,920
these big companies buying these
phys physician groups and platforms,

375
00:21:01,260 --> 00:21:04,440
you know, do you see any, I
I guess my question is this,

376
00:21:04,470 --> 00:21:08,480
it's that like primary care physicians
especially are in such a powerful,

377
00:21:08,480 --> 00:21:11,200
they hold such a powerful
seat, but they typically,

378
00:21:11,200 --> 00:21:13,440
it's not a lucrative specialty
compared to some others.

379
00:21:13,850 --> 00:21:15,880
There was just an article
in Harvard Business Review,

380
00:21:15,960 --> 00:21:20,480
I believe a couple weeks ago about how
PCPs more than some other specialties,

381
00:21:20,590 --> 00:21:23,320
need a lot of encouragement
to take on leadership roles.

382
00:21:23,320 --> 00:21:25,000
They're often reluctant to do so,

383
00:21:25,420 --> 00:21:29,560
but when you see these big companies
looking to add more physicians to their

384
00:21:29,690 --> 00:21:32,720
ranks, Marty, do you think that kind of

385
00:21:34,220 --> 00:21:38,720
renews the importance or power
that these healthcare players

386
00:21:39,030 --> 00:21:39,960
hold, um,

387
00:21:39,980 --> 00:21:44,760
and what can often seem like a
very system to system landscape

388
00:21:45,020 --> 00:21:45,853
of healthcare?

389
00:21:45,940 --> 00:21:50,320
Do you think it renews any empowerment
or interest in the individual physician

390
00:21:50,340 --> 00:21:54,680
and the influence they can yield and
kind of, and where patients are going,

391
00:21:55,060 --> 00:21:56,160
how care is delivered?

392
00:21:56,380 --> 00:21:59,440
I'm just curious at a high level
what your thoughts are on that. Yeah.

393
00:22:00,070 --> 00:22:04,470
I, I completely agree and I, uh, I missed
that particular, uh, H B R article,

394
00:22:04,690 --> 00:22:08,910
but, um, but it, but it makes complete
sense. And, you know, if you step back,

395
00:22:09,230 --> 00:22:10,063
I think you,

396
00:22:10,170 --> 00:22:14,630
you can understand maybe how the
primary care role got diminished, um,

397
00:22:14,630 --> 00:22:18,750
in a sense when you, when you put that
hospital lens on top of it, you know,

398
00:22:18,750 --> 00:22:23,550
primary care, um, largely exists
outside the four walls of the hospital.

399
00:22:23,610 --> 00:22:26,910
And as, as the rise of hospitalists
came about, you saw, you know,

400
00:22:27,070 --> 00:22:30,470
a lot of primary care physicians
even giving up some of their hospital

401
00:22:30,790 --> 00:22:34,710
privileges because they weren't following
and rounding on their own patients

402
00:22:34,710 --> 00:22:35,470
anymore. You know?

403
00:22:35,470 --> 00:22:38,550
And so there's been an evolution
over the last couple decades, um,

404
00:22:38,550 --> 00:22:41,710
that has taken primary care further and
further away from the hospital, which,

405
00:22:41,890 --> 00:22:45,190
you know, if you're a hospital, if
you're, if you're a hospital c e o,

406
00:22:45,190 --> 00:22:47,230
and just looking at that lens, you're,

407
00:22:47,230 --> 00:22:49,550
you're completely dependent
upon that referral strain,

408
00:22:49,550 --> 00:22:51,470
but yet they don't
practice in your hospital,

409
00:22:51,570 --> 00:22:54,910
and you don't see them every day in
the doctor's lounge or cafeteria. And,

410
00:22:54,930 --> 00:22:59,350
and so it, it's easy to see perhaps
how, how things have evolved.

411
00:22:59,890 --> 00:23:04,430
But I think it's also indicative if as
you look at an Optum or you look at a,

412
00:23:04,490 --> 00:23:06,270
you know, an Oak Street
or one medical group,

413
00:23:06,770 --> 00:23:09,350
how the rise of primary care
has come back and, you know,

414
00:23:09,470 --> 00:23:14,070
I think primary care is central to a
successful value-based population health

415
00:23:14,430 --> 00:23:16,270
strategy, and they're going to be the,

416
00:23:16,270 --> 00:23:19,150
the quarterbacks and at the center
of that, and the rest of us are,

417
00:23:19,210 --> 00:23:23,550
are going to be, um, um, living
off of, of that. So, um, I,

418
00:23:23,630 --> 00:23:26,470
I completely agree that there's
an opportunity here that,

419
00:23:26,470 --> 00:23:29,750
that needs to be taken
advantage of. And, um, you know,

420
00:23:29,750 --> 00:23:34,550
and we need primary care to reengage
in this holist holistic healthcare,

421
00:23:35,210 --> 00:23:40,030
uh, mindset about how do we care for a
community, a population, and, um, they,

422
00:23:40,060 --> 00:23:42,790
they have to be tip of the spear
because they're the ones having those

423
00:23:42,790 --> 00:23:45,600
conversations and making the decisions
of where patients are ultimately,

424
00:23:45,880 --> 00:23:47,360
ultimately gonna be. Mm-hmm.

425
00:23:47,400 --> 00:23:50,960
<Affirmative>, as we down
wind down here this year,

426
00:23:51,320 --> 00:23:54,880
RNA introduced the role of C
M I O to its executive ranks.

427
00:23:55,260 --> 00:23:56,840
Can you tell us more about that, Marty,

428
00:23:56,860 --> 00:23:58,640
and what the impetus
was for that addition?

429
00:24:00,320 --> 00:24:02,690
Yeah. So, uh, Dr. Brad Hoyt, uh,

430
00:24:02,690 --> 00:24:05,770
stepped into our chief medical
Information Officer role and, uh,

431
00:24:05,860 --> 00:24:07,370
great addition to the team. He,

432
00:24:07,440 --> 00:24:11,650
he's been a practicing physician
with us in our Tulsa market, um, for,

433
00:24:11,710 --> 00:24:13,410
for a number of years, but, uh,

434
00:24:13,510 --> 00:24:18,290
has always had a bend for technology
and, and what do the physicians need?

435
00:24:18,310 --> 00:24:20,610
And so this was a role
that we brought on, uh,

436
00:24:20,610 --> 00:24:24,050
as part of our growing
focus around, uh, again,

437
00:24:24,440 --> 00:24:26,650
embracing technology
to improve what we do,

438
00:24:26,670 --> 00:24:31,490
how we do it to make our
hospitals smarter, to interface
with our patients, uh,

439
00:24:31,490 --> 00:24:33,960
more effectively. Uh, you know,

440
00:24:33,960 --> 00:24:37,840
everything that we do has a technology
component. And so, so Brad's role is,

441
00:24:37,840 --> 00:24:42,240
is central to understanding what do our
providers need to be successful, um,

442
00:24:42,500 --> 00:24:42,820
and,

443
00:24:42,820 --> 00:24:46,640
and embrace everything we've been talking
about from being the trust broker with

444
00:24:46,640 --> 00:24:50,800
our patients to managing their,
their care, um, as a population, uh,

445
00:24:50,800 --> 00:24:54,200
working with our payers. Uh, so it's,
it's really central to that. But,

446
00:24:54,200 --> 00:24:56,040
but Brett also plays a role in, um,

447
00:24:56,100 --> 00:25:00,600
our innovation and transformation
committee that is focusing on, you know,

448
00:25:00,630 --> 00:25:04,560
what other technologies do we need to
bring into our organization and do we

449
00:25:04,560 --> 00:25:07,640
build those? Uh, we, we
recently announced, uh,

450
00:25:07,800 --> 00:25:10,840
a launch of a venture studio with
a company called Switch Point, uh,

451
00:25:10,840 --> 00:25:13,040
here in Nashville. And, uh, you know,

452
00:25:13,040 --> 00:25:15,960
there's gonna be solutions that we
need that don't really exist out in the

453
00:25:15,960 --> 00:25:19,000
market. We're gonna go build our
own. And kind of like winow, uh,

454
00:25:19,060 --> 00:25:21,520
or Polaris is another
example, uh, around, uh,

455
00:25:21,540 --> 00:25:25,680
demand prediction and staffing and
scheduling, uh, that we created. And, uh,

456
00:25:26,310 --> 00:25:29,360
what are the things that we need to
go buy or partner with other, uh,

457
00:25:29,360 --> 00:25:32,520
organizations. And so we
need to have that, um,

458
00:25:32,630 --> 00:25:35,440
that physician clinician
mindset, uh, as a part of,

459
00:25:35,540 --> 00:25:39,120
of making sure we're making
good investments in technology
that really are gonna

460
00:25:39,120 --> 00:25:42,480
solve our problems and advance
our organization. Mm-hmm.

461
00:25:42,520 --> 00:25:47,000
<Affirmative>, I wanna wish Brad continued
luck and success in his new role.

462
00:25:47,180 --> 00:25:51,240
And Marty, I wanna thank you for being
my guest for this dynamic conversation.

463
00:25:51,240 --> 00:25:55,530
You touched on a number of really
important issues right now and interesting

464
00:25:55,530 --> 00:25:56,280
issues, uh,

465
00:25:56,280 --> 00:26:00,170
that are in play right now for big health
systems and smaller organizations too.

466
00:26:00,430 --> 00:26:03,530
So, wanna thank you for
being my guest, Marty Bick,

467
00:26:03,530 --> 00:26:07,090
president and c e o of Ardent Health
Services. Wish you a great and,

468
00:26:07,090 --> 00:26:10,130
and continued success in the year
ahead. Marty, thanks for joining us.

469
00:26:11,350 --> 00:26:13,260
Thank you so much, Molly. It
was great to be with you today.

470
00:26:14,330 --> 00:26:15,163
<Silence>.

471
00:26:17,990 --> 00:26:21,250
It is so important for leaders at the
top of organizations to keep learning,

472
00:26:21,400 --> 00:26:22,160
stay sharp,

473
00:26:22,160 --> 00:26:25,970
grow their networks to help our audience
better do this in a more simplified,

474
00:26:25,970 --> 00:26:30,410
personalized, and meaningful way.
Becker's Healthcare has launched my B h c,

475
00:26:30,840 --> 00:26:34,930
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476
00:26:34,950 --> 00:26:38,970
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join the community free of charge at

477
00:26:39,710 --> 00:26:43,970
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