
Chesterfield, Mo.-based St. Luke’s Hospital president and CEO Andrew Bagnall is main efforts to deal with healthcare trade challenges like monetary pressures and shifting affected person wants.
With 17 years of healthcare expertise below his belt, Mr. Bagnall joined St. Luke’s Hospital in August 2022 from Hospital Sisters Well being System Wisconsin, the place he served as president and CEO.
St. Luke’s includes two hospitals and round 30 outpatient places throughout St. Louis, based on its web site.
Becker’s linked with Mr. Bagnall to debate the biggest trade hurdles within the coming years, and to learn the way St. Luke’s Hospital is strategically centered on assembly sufferers the place they’re and fostering a tradition of steady enchancment.
Notice: Responses have been calmly edited for size and readability.
Query: What do you count on to be the most important monetary problem going through hospitals and well being techniques within the coming 12 months, and the way is St. Luke’s getting ready to handle it?
Andrew Bagnall: One of the vital urgent challenges going through hospitals and well being techniques within the coming 12 months is the twin influence of reimbursement challenges and rising prices, each of which we have now skilled over the previous a number of years. Making certain that we’re reimbursed pretty, well timed and precisely for the care that we offer is one thing that has been a spotlight for us over the previous 12 months. Subsequent is making certain that we’re working each effectively and successfully, with out sacrificing high quality, as prices have risen past what we’re being reimbursed. With this, our focus has been on advancing a tradition of steady enchancment.
Q: Given the present financial local weather, how are you prioritizing capital investments for St. Luke’s within the upcoming 12 months? In what particular areas do you see the very best return on funding?
AB: We’re prioritizing capital investments which are according to the strategic aims we have now got down to obtain over the approaching years forward. These embody investments in advancing our core service line methods, ambulatory progress, in addition to bettering entry.
Q: What strategic strikes is St. Luke’s making to develop outpatient and ambulatory companies, and the way do you propose to steadiness this with sustaining inpatient care?
AB: Whereas St. Luke’s has historically been “hospital-centric,” we acknowledge the significance of assembly sufferers the place they’re. At present we serve a lot of our sufferers in many alternative ambulatory care settings, which is an space we’ll proceed to develop sooner or later. On the identical time, inpatient care stays an vital piece of the continuum of care through which we serve our sufferers. We’re nationally acknowledged for the distinctive high quality of our inpatient companies, and that can at all times be one thing that we have now excessive expectations round. Balancing these two areas ensures we meet the healthcare wants for our neighborhood.
Q: What particular methods will St. Luke’s deploy within the coming 12 months to enhance worker retention, notably in crucial front-line roles?
AB: Worker retention begins with making a tradition the place folks really feel valued, supported, and empowered. At St. Luke’s, we’re dedicated to fostering a patient-centered surroundings that empowers and engages our staff via collaboration and enhancing a tradition of steady enchancment. We’re smaller than the massive well being techniques in our area, and this permits us to have customized, high-trust relationships with every one among our staff, suppliers, and sufferers. This method has been key to constructing what we name a “successful tradition” — which advantages our sufferers via the distinctive care they obtain.”
Q: How would you describe your management model, and the way has it contributed to your group’s success?
AB: My management model combines assist and encouragement coupled with setting excessive expectations. I consider that to attain excellence, we should frequently problem ourselves to innovate and develop. I attempt to carry out one of the best in our leaders by offering clear steering, a shared imaginative and prescient, and the sources they should succeed. Management is not about doing all the things your self — it is about empowering others to attain extraordinary outcomes, and I take nice pleasure in seeing our leaders rise to the event.