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Every year, Becker's annual meeting brings healthcare leaders

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together to unpack the most pressing issues facing

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the industry.

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And every year, those conversations shift in profound

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and unexpected ways.

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This April, more than 3,500

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health care executives will return to Chicago for

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Becker's sixteenth Annual Meeting.

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Seven ninety five elite speakers will offer new

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lessons, new case studies, and predictions about what

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comes next. Join us April 13 through the

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sixteenth.

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For the agenda and event details, visit beckershospitalreview.com

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and click on the events tab in the

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upper right.

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This is Laura Dierda with the Becker's Healthcare

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podcast. I'm thrilled today to be joined by

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Regina Foley, president of specialty hospitals and clinical

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services as well as chief nurse executive at

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Hackensack Meridian Health. Regina, it's a pleasure to

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have you on the podcast today. Good to

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talk to you too, Laura, and all your

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all your listeners.

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Awesome. Well, thank you so much for being

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here. I'm excited to have you because I

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know Hackensack Meridian Health is on the forefront

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of a lot of amazing things in the

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clinical care space, and especially thinking about nursing.

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You know? You're really, really interesting,

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ways that you've been adapting to the current

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environment and building on the ecosystem. But before

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we dig into that, can you tell us

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a little bit more about yourself and the

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organization?

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Sure.

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So I,

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Hackensack Meridian Health located in New Jersey.

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38,000

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team members strong,

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recover about eight counties in the state of

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New Jersey, 18 hospitals, about 500 locations.

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I'm a career

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HMH'er. I've been in our company for thirty

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nine years as we roll into twenty six

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years, thirty nine years.

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Different places, different roles. You know, it's been

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part of the

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the gift of being a nurse, whether it

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be, you know, nurse at the bedside, a

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chief nurse

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at, one of our hospitals or hospital president

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or leading transformation efforts, which is all the

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change,

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or even landing to the to the enrollment

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today.

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I, you know, have certainly have a lot

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of longevity

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within Hackensack Meridian Health. I would say I

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don't I'm not alone, though. We have many

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nurses that have been promoted from within

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and, or or say a career,

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within our company.

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Certainly proud

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of,

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of the organization.

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We had a recent restructuring

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in '26 where,

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we were divided in or or segregated kind

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of in a regional role within the within

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our our state.

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And,

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our CEO and board,

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thought let's you know, we need to get

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a little bit more provocative thinking and forward

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thinking here.

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So we actually eliminated,

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a regional structure

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and,

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which was north, central, and south.

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And then,

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we eliminated those roles,

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in that kind of although care is very

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local. And, you know, we keep care as

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local to the patient as possible or or

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community as possible. Administratively,

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now we've

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organized that our acute care hospitals are kind

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of one side of the house, and then

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areas like specialty hospitals or clinical services,

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that's what I have the responsibility of. So

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it's really allowed for a lot of, further

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integration,

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further continuity,

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you know, transparency

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of information, timeliness,

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which certainly, at the end of it all,

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helps us with, caring for our patients. So

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this kind of recent reorganization we did, in

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the in the kinda latter half of '25

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certainly, I think, turned out to be beneficial

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for the company.

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That's great to hear. And, you know, certainly,

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always a lot goes into those kind of

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restructures and reorganization,

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but I love that goal of, you know,

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making sure care is local and, putting the

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right people in the right places to,

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transform that care experience.

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Now when you think about the last year,

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what was the most important initiative that you

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led? What did you do, and what were

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the results?

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I think the top one of the top

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three priorities,

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would be,

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strengthening

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and supporting

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the workforce, the nursing workforce.

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I would say stabilization

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of the workforce.

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You know, the

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the pandemic really took its toll on the

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work on the health care workforce,

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globally.

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We also were part of certainly a part

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of that.

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So recently, I would say the most important

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initiative that we tackled in '25

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was stabilization of the workforce, which has led

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to we have a very low vacancy rate

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today,

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just about 4%. Actually, we have two of

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our hospitals that have below the four vacancy

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rate. Retention is extremely strong.

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We also were able to reduce,

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contracted labor agency utilization,

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by,

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about,

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gosh, dollars 41,000,000

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last year, which is not insignificant.

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So I would say making significant strides in,

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stabilization

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of the workforce and making sure that we

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have, very strong

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retention efforts,

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which is really is led from culture, you

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know, in the organization. So it's not just

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about recruiting

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net new. We want those nurses to stay

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in the organization, you know, just like me.

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You know, here he is a few years

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later. So,

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that I would say there's many priorities, but

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I can tell you that's one standout or

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important initiative for '25,

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was,

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the, you know, stabilization

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of the work environment. I gave you some

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stats. Vacancy, retention,

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agency utilization,

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and,

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you know, behind the scenes of all of

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that, there's different kind of unique programs

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to help on the retentions on the recruitment

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side

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because many you know, our care is local.

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Our team members are local. We're very community

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based. So our our

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our physicians,

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team members, and patients are living within the

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communities that they're practicing in. So we have

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different programs in place to ensure that if

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somebody wants to go to school as a

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second career choice, how do we support them

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to do that? They always wanted to be

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a nurse. We we kinda mentor and figure

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out different ways, whether it be tuition reimbursement,

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scholarships, or things that we're bonusing.

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So a lot of detail there. There's a

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lot to unpack.

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But I I can say that probably stabilization

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of the work environment was a key initiative

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that we had success with, last year.

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Sounds amazing to hear. And, you know, definitely

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something that a lot of hospitals and systems

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are are trying to achieve. And so when

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you think about, you know, reaching those goals

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being,

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such a low vacancy rate and truly, truly,

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having that kind of retention that you need

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and then the savings as well by reducing

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the contract labor. I know, you know, there's

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a lot of components that go into being

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a great place to work and,

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you know,

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setting that right type of culture that people

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wanna be at. So, you know, when you

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look at that differentiating factor, what did it

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take to,

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achieve these these results and really transform the

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way you were thinking about the workforce?

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Yeah. I I first think

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nurses

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and it's more just that it's not just

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nursing, but, you know, we're on that topic

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right now. But the workforce wants to feel

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respected, appreciated, and that their opinion counts.

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So our you know, myself, our CEO,

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our COO,

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are very

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grassroots

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oriented that we're at you know, as I

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talked to you today, I'm at one of

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our hospitals

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where we're very we have a lot of

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visibility.

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I mean, you you're never as visible as

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the team members want, but,

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we definitely are at the site

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routinely to keeping things very real.

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And that that's that's I feel very symbolic

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on where culture begins.

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Our CEO

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was a hospital executive or CEO at one

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of our hospitals.

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Our leadership team, our executive leadership team for

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our company network,

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all have come from a hospital environment.

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And that really pays dividends because the team

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members,

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they I'll say they I feel like that

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they always know a faker. Right? Like, they

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can feel like, what are you talking about?

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You're saying this, but did you really live

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it? And in, you know, truth be told,

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myself, the COO, the CEO have done that.

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You know, clinicians by background have have literally

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rendered patient care and came from very humble

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beginnings. So I think culture begins there because

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we it is very family oriented. I I

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don't just say it to resonate like, oh,

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Virginia, you gotta be kidding me. You know,

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again, I'm in our company for thirty nine

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years.

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It is an extension of my house. I

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I, you know, have three kids. They're adult

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children now, but they they know

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where where I practice and what what I

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do for a living is extremely important even

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to our family.

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And so, therefore, that is that translates

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because of,

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I would say, style and type of communication

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being authentic.

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Team members know that they're cared for. They

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know that they're respected.

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We want nurses to work at full scope

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of practice and full license.

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We partner with our medical community to ensure

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that that happens for potentially advanced practice providers.

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So, again, culture, it's not I mean, it

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could probably be a whole other podcast is

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culture really sets the tone of

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how you're able to really move the needle

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in your in your organization,

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whether it be workforce, whether it be financial

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results,

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god forbid, a situational issue.

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You're able to see very,

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very clearly in a quick period of time

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when everybody's on the same sheet sheet of

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music and moving in the same direction, how

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you can really make things happen in a

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very short short,

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and very timely. And I I would say

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the definition of that is having a healthy

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00:09:34,059 --> 00:09:35,919
culture. So I I

278
00:09:36,299 --> 00:09:38,480
appreciate you bringing it up because very often,

279
00:09:39,044 --> 00:09:41,284
when health care executives are asked, you know,

280
00:09:41,284 --> 00:09:43,304
it's about margin and volume,

281
00:09:43,924 --> 00:09:46,004
and we don't necessarily think that way. I

282
00:09:46,004 --> 00:09:47,625
mean, yes, it's those are important,

283
00:09:48,004 --> 00:09:50,164
but at the at the beginning of it,

284
00:09:50,164 --> 00:09:51,865
you know, quality is at the bedside.

285
00:09:52,509 --> 00:09:54,589
How do we make sure that the quality

286
00:09:54,589 --> 00:09:55,569
that we're rendering

287
00:09:56,029 --> 00:09:57,309
you know, how do we make sure the

288
00:09:57,309 --> 00:09:58,929
individuals rendering that care

289
00:09:59,309 --> 00:10:01,230
know you know, are we listening to them?

290
00:10:01,230 --> 00:10:03,389
And that's, again, where it begins with culture.

291
00:10:03,389 --> 00:10:06,110
So probably a long way of answering it,

292
00:10:06,110 --> 00:10:07,845
but that I mean, that's just from, you

293
00:10:07,845 --> 00:10:09,625
know, my heart sharing that with you.

294
00:10:10,085 --> 00:10:12,504
I really appreciate it. And then and such

295
00:10:12,565 --> 00:10:14,804
an important thing to to to share, and

296
00:10:14,804 --> 00:10:16,644
I can tell your passion for what you're

297
00:10:16,644 --> 00:10:18,825
doing and everything that goes into,

298
00:10:19,205 --> 00:10:20,665
the organization there in HMH,

299
00:10:21,044 --> 00:10:22,559
is really shining through. So,

300
00:10:23,039 --> 00:10:25,360
that's amazing. I think when you look ahead

301
00:10:25,360 --> 00:10:27,759
to 2026, are there any other priorities you're

302
00:10:27,759 --> 00:10:29,759
looking at or headwinds that you're focused on,

303
00:10:30,000 --> 00:10:30,740
right now?

304
00:10:31,279 --> 00:10:32,580
Easy answer is yes.

305
00:10:33,440 --> 00:10:34,259
One is,

306
00:10:35,054 --> 00:10:36,995
how and where we can leverage technology.

307
00:10:37,695 --> 00:10:39,955
We we did launch virtual nursing

308
00:10:40,415 --> 00:10:41,774
in the last two years, and we have

309
00:10:41,774 --> 00:10:42,894
a 147

310
00:10:42,894 --> 00:10:43,375
beds,

311
00:10:43,774 --> 00:10:45,934
activated with virtual nursing. So it's a nursing

312
00:10:45,934 --> 00:10:48,495
partner. It's somebody else taking care of the

313
00:10:48,495 --> 00:10:49,794
administrative burden

314
00:10:50,459 --> 00:10:52,379
of caring for the patient. And we are

315
00:10:52,620 --> 00:10:54,220
you know, we'll monitor it for a solid

316
00:10:54,220 --> 00:10:56,139
year to make sure to just to say

317
00:10:56,139 --> 00:10:57,980
it's it's for those 147

318
00:10:57,980 --> 00:10:59,819
beds in four different hospitals, a unit in

319
00:10:59,819 --> 00:11:01,120
all in four different hospitals.

320
00:11:01,579 --> 00:11:03,679
And we're in the process now of evaluating

321
00:11:03,980 --> 00:11:05,339
to see if that's something that should be

322
00:11:05,339 --> 00:11:05,839
expanded

323
00:11:06,294 --> 00:11:06,955
or not.

324
00:11:07,654 --> 00:11:09,115
So I I think leveraging

325
00:11:09,415 --> 00:11:09,915
technology

326
00:11:10,774 --> 00:11:12,154
to lighten the load

327
00:11:12,695 --> 00:11:13,195
for

328
00:11:13,575 --> 00:11:15,595
individuals that are patient facing.

329
00:11:15,975 --> 00:11:17,654
It could be a doctor, could be a

330
00:11:17,654 --> 00:11:20,075
nurse, it could be a PCT. Right? And,

331
00:11:20,100 --> 00:11:22,279
you know, a partner, right, a partner

332
00:11:22,659 --> 00:11:23,319
in care.

333
00:11:23,940 --> 00:11:24,440
So

334
00:11:24,899 --> 00:11:26,819
I would say our one of the biggest

335
00:11:26,819 --> 00:11:27,879
priority or headwind

336
00:11:28,339 --> 00:11:28,980
would be,

337
00:11:30,179 --> 00:11:31,319
leveraging technology

338
00:11:31,940 --> 00:11:34,839
and advancing technology we have in place

339
00:11:35,375 --> 00:11:37,454
as we're monitoring it and, you know, we're

340
00:11:37,454 --> 00:11:39,454
measuring it, what are the benefits, and is

341
00:11:39,454 --> 00:11:40,995
it something that could be expanded?

342
00:11:41,454 --> 00:11:43,375
You know, we can't underestimate the power of

343
00:11:43,375 --> 00:11:43,875
AI.

344
00:11:44,735 --> 00:11:47,134
We we are at Hackstack Meridian, we do

345
00:11:47,134 --> 00:11:49,075
utilize and leverage the EPIC platform,

346
00:11:49,589 --> 00:11:51,209
And we have some generative,

347
00:11:51,750 --> 00:11:52,889
AI that are helping,

348
00:11:53,429 --> 00:11:54,409
nurses with,

349
00:11:55,029 --> 00:11:57,029
notes, you know, end of shift notes to

350
00:11:57,029 --> 00:11:57,529
help,

351
00:11:57,909 --> 00:11:58,309
that,

352
00:11:59,029 --> 00:11:59,929
change a shift,

353
00:12:00,309 --> 00:12:02,684
time to you know, could we

354
00:12:03,464 --> 00:12:05,144
reduce that in any way and can we

355
00:12:05,144 --> 00:12:05,804
be more,

356
00:12:06,345 --> 00:12:06,845
comprehensive?

357
00:12:08,024 --> 00:12:09,464
So, you know, if you would have said

358
00:12:09,464 --> 00:12:11,404
five years ago, we were gonna be leveraging

359
00:12:11,464 --> 00:12:13,144
AI at the bedside, I'd say, I don't

360
00:12:13,144 --> 00:12:14,764
know. I'm not quite there. Now

361
00:12:15,220 --> 00:12:18,100
early adopter, and the answer is yes because

362
00:12:18,100 --> 00:12:19,799
AI can really be another partner

363
00:12:20,340 --> 00:12:22,820
in helping that nurse or clinician care for

364
00:12:22,820 --> 00:12:25,220
the patient. So those are two, I would

365
00:12:25,220 --> 00:12:27,075
say, big priorities for us this year.

366
00:12:28,035 --> 00:12:29,235
Got it. I love that.

367
00:12:29,715 --> 00:12:32,355
Fantastic. Thank you so much for for sharing.

368
00:12:32,355 --> 00:12:33,794
Now what do you think the hardest thing

369
00:12:33,794 --> 00:12:34,915
you're gonna have to do will be in

370
00:12:34,915 --> 00:12:35,735
the next year?

371
00:12:37,154 --> 00:12:39,634
I would say continuing to innovate, you know,

372
00:12:39,634 --> 00:12:42,330
because our our our teams are not,

373
00:12:42,889 --> 00:12:45,610
they're not complacent and just same old, same

374
00:12:45,610 --> 00:12:47,850
old. They're always looking to challenge. There's you

375
00:12:47,850 --> 00:12:50,330
know, with the all the smart scientists and

376
00:12:50,330 --> 00:12:52,590
things that are happening on the technology side,

377
00:12:52,649 --> 00:12:54,809
how can we how can we afford to

378
00:12:54,809 --> 00:12:55,790
be early adopters

379
00:12:56,205 --> 00:12:58,125
when we see benefits of patient? You know,

380
00:12:58,125 --> 00:13:00,045
robotic surgery comes to mind. You know, if

381
00:13:00,045 --> 00:13:02,445
if I mean, you can't argue with the

382
00:13:02,445 --> 00:13:04,065
technology in robotic surgery.

383
00:13:04,605 --> 00:13:07,004
Patients are you know, they're back to work

384
00:13:07,004 --> 00:13:09,565
quicker. They're back to their regular activities of

385
00:13:09,565 --> 00:13:11,665
daily living. They're able to travel quicker.

386
00:13:12,360 --> 00:13:14,940
They have less complications. They have less time,

387
00:13:15,080 --> 00:13:16,759
you know, in the Operating Room. They have

388
00:13:16,759 --> 00:13:18,600
less time in the hospital, meaning more time

389
00:13:18,600 --> 00:13:19,419
with their families.

390
00:13:19,720 --> 00:13:22,220
So, again, that's where technology has really advanced.

391
00:13:23,080 --> 00:13:24,759
So I would just say that one of

392
00:13:24,759 --> 00:13:27,340
the hardest thing is can continuing to innovate

393
00:13:28,754 --> 00:13:31,095
and be early adopters of the technology

394
00:13:31,475 --> 00:13:34,595
as it, you know, as it evolves. Certainly,

395
00:13:34,595 --> 00:13:36,375
I shared on the AI front

396
00:13:36,754 --> 00:13:39,075
or virtual. We have those 147

397
00:13:39,075 --> 00:13:40,455
beds that we have activated.

398
00:13:40,950 --> 00:13:42,870
Well, how do we how do we quantify

399
00:13:42,870 --> 00:13:45,669
the benefits of that? Hard savings. It can't

400
00:13:45,669 --> 00:13:47,750
just be soft. I can't just say to

401
00:13:47,750 --> 00:13:49,929
CEO, oh, so we're retaining nurses longer,

402
00:13:50,710 --> 00:13:51,210
or

403
00:13:51,590 --> 00:13:52,809
we have less incidental

404
00:13:53,445 --> 00:13:55,925
overtime because the the change of shift time

405
00:13:55,925 --> 00:13:58,404
is is quicker. I I need to quantify

406
00:13:58,404 --> 00:13:59,384
with hard savings.

407
00:13:59,925 --> 00:14:01,365
So that's what we're in the process to

408
00:14:01,365 --> 00:14:02,725
do now, and that's hard. Because there's a

409
00:14:02,725 --> 00:14:04,985
lot of soft savings associated with,

410
00:14:05,764 --> 00:14:06,745
virtual nursing.

411
00:14:07,089 --> 00:14:08,769
But, you know, our CEO and board are

412
00:14:08,769 --> 00:14:10,610
gonna look for some hard savings. So those

413
00:14:10,610 --> 00:14:11,009
are,

414
00:14:11,649 --> 00:14:13,649
tough because it's a delicate balance of to

415
00:14:13,649 --> 00:14:14,389
be innovative,

416
00:14:14,850 --> 00:14:17,009
to bring technology to the bedside. But now

417
00:14:17,009 --> 00:14:18,370
that we have it, how do we expand

418
00:14:18,370 --> 00:14:20,210
it? And I'm gonna have to quantify that

419
00:14:20,210 --> 00:14:22,149
with, hard savings. So that's certainly

420
00:14:22,704 --> 00:14:24,065
a that's a it's a big nut to

421
00:14:24,065 --> 00:14:25,204
crack for this year.

422
00:14:26,065 --> 00:14:26,565
Absolutely.

423
00:14:27,024 --> 00:14:29,584
That that sounds like a huge, huge challenge.

424
00:14:29,584 --> 00:14:31,985
And, you know, I appreciate all the dynamics

425
00:14:31,985 --> 00:14:33,605
that go into trying to,

426
00:14:34,144 --> 00:14:35,284
be that innovative

427
00:14:35,745 --> 00:14:37,639
and tech forward organization while at the same

428
00:14:37,639 --> 00:14:39,720
time making sure that you've got,

429
00:14:40,279 --> 00:14:42,600
quality, safety, everything else there, and it can

430
00:14:42,600 --> 00:14:43,419
really prove,

431
00:14:43,879 --> 00:14:46,940
the results coming from those different initiatives. So,

432
00:14:47,559 --> 00:14:49,160
I I love that, you know, kind of

433
00:14:49,160 --> 00:14:51,320
talking about those soft savings, especially in virtual

434
00:14:51,320 --> 00:14:53,514
nursing, and then trying to continue to to

435
00:14:53,514 --> 00:14:56,315
transfer that into the hard savings as well.

436
00:14:56,554 --> 00:14:58,794
Before we wrap up here, I'm curious. How

437
00:14:58,794 --> 00:15:00,634
do you see growth and development over the

438
00:15:00,634 --> 00:15:01,995
next year? Where do you see the best

439
00:15:01,995 --> 00:15:03,534
opportunities to continue growing?

440
00:15:04,875 --> 00:15:07,375
Well, I guess two two things.

441
00:15:07,995 --> 00:15:08,495
We've

442
00:15:08,829 --> 00:15:11,789
had a pretty significant appetite the last couple

443
00:15:11,789 --> 00:15:14,589
of years to expand our ambulatory footprint. You

444
00:15:14,589 --> 00:15:16,829
know, patients that are in hospitals are so

445
00:15:16,829 --> 00:15:19,389
acute. Right? They're really acute. They're the acuity

446
00:15:19,389 --> 00:15:20,049
is high.

447
00:15:20,589 --> 00:15:23,195
They're very sick. Patients are very sick. We

448
00:15:23,195 --> 00:15:24,875
wanna keep people certainly, if they need to

449
00:15:24,875 --> 00:15:26,235
come to us, we we're the we're the

450
00:15:26,235 --> 00:15:27,274
guy to take care of them. I have

451
00:15:27,274 --> 00:15:29,754
no problem with that. We wanna keep people

452
00:15:29,754 --> 00:15:33,375
healthy and happy in their local community environment.

453
00:15:33,914 --> 00:15:35,294
So we've placed ambulatory

454
00:15:35,674 --> 00:15:36,174
locations

455
00:15:36,819 --> 00:15:38,500
peppered throughout the state. As I mentioned in

456
00:15:38,500 --> 00:15:40,360
the outset, we have about 500 locations.

457
00:15:40,899 --> 00:15:41,399
But,

458
00:15:41,940 --> 00:15:44,339
even today, I think there's about 14 or

459
00:15:44,339 --> 00:15:46,819
15 shovels on the ground, different different areas

460
00:15:46,819 --> 00:15:48,759
in New Jersey, building an ambulatory

461
00:15:49,059 --> 00:15:49,559
environment

462
00:15:49,875 --> 00:15:52,034
so that patients can go to to see

463
00:15:52,034 --> 00:15:54,375
their primary care doc, go to a pharmacy,

464
00:15:54,754 --> 00:15:56,995
get a CAT scan, or or an image

465
00:15:56,995 --> 00:15:59,315
done for something. So that's one. The other

466
00:15:59,315 --> 00:16:01,495
is, you know, as we roll into '26,

467
00:16:01,875 --> 00:16:03,720
we really can't talk about health care in

468
00:16:03,720 --> 00:16:06,120
New Jersey with Hackensack Meridian Health without talking

469
00:16:06,120 --> 00:16:07,740
about the FIFA World Cup.

470
00:16:08,279 --> 00:16:09,740
We this global

471
00:16:10,279 --> 00:16:12,679
this global you know, these games are gonna

472
00:16:12,679 --> 00:16:14,759
be played here in New Jersey at MetLife

473
00:16:14,759 --> 00:16:17,504
Stadium beginning this summer July June into July.

474
00:16:17,985 --> 00:16:19,684
And our quaternary facility,

475
00:16:20,225 --> 00:16:22,325
Hackensack University Medical Center,

476
00:16:23,024 --> 00:16:24,544
will be on the world stage. I know

477
00:16:24,544 --> 00:16:27,345
that is this that that our hospital will

478
00:16:27,345 --> 00:16:28,725
be the hometown hospital,

479
00:16:29,904 --> 00:16:32,929
for New Jersey, New York hosting this global,

480
00:16:33,709 --> 00:16:34,370
this global,

481
00:16:34,829 --> 00:16:37,230
game, so to speak. So that on top

482
00:16:37,230 --> 00:16:38,990
of the two hundred fiftieth anniversary of our

483
00:16:38,990 --> 00:16:41,709
country, obviously, we're booked down between New York

484
00:16:41,709 --> 00:16:42,769
and, Philadelphia.

485
00:16:43,325 --> 00:16:45,264
A lot of activity happening in the Philadelphia

486
00:16:45,325 --> 00:16:47,325
market, certainly in the New York market, but

487
00:16:47,325 --> 00:16:49,105
right across the river here in New Jersey,

488
00:16:49,485 --> 00:16:52,205
we'll be hosting the, the FIFA World Cup.

489
00:16:52,205 --> 00:16:52,705
So

490
00:16:53,245 --> 00:16:55,404
that certainly is something it certainly it's a

491
00:16:55,404 --> 00:16:57,809
tremendous opportunity for us, but then it's on

492
00:16:57,929 --> 00:17:00,809
you're on the global world stage of, rendering

493
00:17:00,809 --> 00:17:01,309
care.

494
00:17:01,850 --> 00:17:04,089
God forbid, you know, somebody gets hurt. But

495
00:17:04,089 --> 00:17:05,769
in the world we live in on,

496
00:17:06,089 --> 00:17:08,109
you know, mitigating risk and

497
00:17:08,490 --> 00:17:09,470
protecting those,

498
00:17:09,769 --> 00:17:11,934
making sure that when they go to an

499
00:17:11,934 --> 00:17:14,494
event, it's as safe, right, as safe as

500
00:17:14,494 --> 00:17:16,654
possible, and that they're going to have a

501
00:17:16,654 --> 00:17:19,055
good time. So we'll we're gonna be part

502
00:17:19,134 --> 00:17:19,634
we're,

503
00:17:19,934 --> 00:17:22,575
you know, very much early adoption in the

504
00:17:22,654 --> 00:17:24,174
you know, this plans have been going on

505
00:17:24,174 --> 00:17:25,920
for more over more than a year.

506
00:17:26,480 --> 00:17:28,559
But, certainly, as we get into this year

507
00:17:28,559 --> 00:17:29,299
and opportunities

508
00:17:29,759 --> 00:17:30,820
on the growth side,

509
00:17:31,440 --> 00:17:33,279
you know, we're we're gonna be hosting or

510
00:17:33,279 --> 00:17:36,320
we're we're sponsoring the FIFA, World Cup. I

511
00:17:36,320 --> 00:17:39,085
believe that, you know, New Jersey, it's very

512
00:17:39,085 --> 00:17:39,565
highly diverse,

513
00:17:40,924 --> 00:17:41,825
diverse state.

514
00:17:42,365 --> 00:17:45,085
The post of it as as this the

515
00:17:45,085 --> 00:17:45,585
attention

516
00:17:46,204 --> 00:17:47,825
is on New Jersey for this,

517
00:17:48,365 --> 00:17:50,204
to be, you know, to be shown for

518
00:17:50,204 --> 00:17:52,259
a month, you know, June into July. We're

519
00:17:52,259 --> 00:17:55,140
also gonna build, these, I think, what they're

520
00:17:55,140 --> 00:17:58,019
called, like, legacy fields. So in communities that

521
00:17:58,019 --> 00:18:00,660
need additional fields where kids need, you know,

522
00:18:00,660 --> 00:18:02,680
get away from technology, get outside,

523
00:18:03,380 --> 00:18:04,599
you know, team sport,

524
00:18:05,044 --> 00:18:06,884
be with your friends. Right? Get out in,

525
00:18:07,125 --> 00:18:08,424
get out in the environment.

526
00:18:09,044 --> 00:18:11,304
We're gonna build three three, fields,

527
00:18:11,765 --> 00:18:13,845
in our state so that kids could, you

528
00:18:13,845 --> 00:18:16,085
know, get excited about it as much as

529
00:18:16,085 --> 00:18:17,605
we are, but keeping them more, you know,

530
00:18:17,605 --> 00:18:18,960
in their community. So,

531
00:18:19,599 --> 00:18:20,980
certainly a global platform,

532
00:18:21,839 --> 00:18:23,279
that we'll be able to share, well, things

533
00:18:23,279 --> 00:18:25,359
that are important to us, tackle kids' cancer.

534
00:18:25,359 --> 00:18:27,140
You know, we do have two children's hospitals,

535
00:18:27,519 --> 00:18:29,279
and they're doing a lot of cancer care

536
00:18:29,279 --> 00:18:30,019
with children.

537
00:18:30,880 --> 00:18:32,640
And we have you know, we we wanna

538
00:18:32,640 --> 00:18:34,319
fundraise as much as we can for that

539
00:18:34,319 --> 00:18:37,465
because, I mean, nobody should be nobody should

540
00:18:37,465 --> 00:18:39,384
feel sick or or feel badly. But let

541
00:18:39,384 --> 00:18:40,845
me tell you, when a kid has cancer,

542
00:18:41,224 --> 00:18:44,424
it is, really it's a very pivotal thing

543
00:18:44,424 --> 00:18:45,785
for the those that are caring for the

544
00:18:45,785 --> 00:18:47,529
child as well as the family. So we

545
00:18:47,529 --> 00:18:49,210
have a lot of initiatives behind the scenes

546
00:18:49,210 --> 00:18:51,049
on that. So those are another areas of

547
00:18:51,049 --> 00:18:52,910
growth for us on the philanthropy side.

548
00:18:53,690 --> 00:18:56,089
That's amazing to hear. Wow. A lot of

549
00:18:56,089 --> 00:18:58,329
great opportunities coming up this year. Regina, thank

550
00:18:58,329 --> 00:18:59,609
you so much for joining us on the

551
00:18:59,609 --> 00:19:02,025
podcast today. I really appreciate your time, and

552
00:19:02,105 --> 00:19:03,945
has been a great conversation. I look forward

553
00:19:03,945 --> 00:19:05,464
to seeing you at our annual meeting as

554
00:19:05,464 --> 00:19:06,904
well coming up here. I know you'll be

555
00:19:06,904 --> 00:19:09,144
speaking on a panel, and we'll continue to

556
00:19:09,144 --> 00:19:09,884
to deepen,

557
00:19:10,184 --> 00:19:11,625
some of the themes we talked about here.

558
00:19:11,625 --> 00:19:13,065
And this will be a great opportunity to

559
00:19:13,065 --> 00:19:15,144
connect with all those, from across the country

560
00:19:15,144 --> 00:19:17,759
leading very similar health care challenges as well

561
00:19:17,759 --> 00:19:19,139
as initiatives moving forward.

562
00:19:19,599 --> 00:19:21,599
Sounds good, Laura. You know, flattered to be

563
00:19:21,599 --> 00:19:23,940
asked and, happy to partner with any of

564
00:19:24,079 --> 00:19:26,019
my friends and colleagues throughout our country.