The Successes of Learning Health Systems During COVID with Marty Bonick

As the pandemic persists, and the increasing caseload caused by the Delta variant continues to force hospitals to adapt to new challenges, we turn to learning hospital and health systems to understand how they are uniquely positioned to treat patients during the COVID crisis. Chip and his guest Marty Bonick, President & CEO of Ardent Health Services, discuss what hospitals are seeing on the ground during this latest surge. They also spoke about the efforts of integrated health systems, like Ardent, to increase the quality of care for patients during and after the pandemic.

Hospitals at Scale with Jeff Goldsmith

Hospitals are not just the four walls of a building; they are also the backbone in an American community. As the pandemic continues across the country, Chip and Jeff Goldsmith examine how hospitals learned to treat a disease without a proven cure or readily available therapies. They also spoke about what characteristics were displayed by hospitals that demonstrated successes during the past 18 months of this COVID-19 crisis. Jeff is the President of Health Futures, Inc. The two discuss the benefits of the ever-evolving hospital as well as its changing role in health care.

Fighting on the Frontlines with Fiona Chew

Fiona Chew is the kind of nurse you want at your bedside. Her positive attitude and willingness to go above and beyond make her an excellent advocate for her patients and colleagues. Early on in the pandemic during the New York/New Jersey surge, Ardent Health Services asked for volunteers to assist the hospitals in the hotspot. Fiona didn’t hesitate to go. Listen to Fiona give you her story from the frontline.

Ron Pollack Discusses Survival of the Affordable Care Act

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has just survived its most recent challenge at the Supreme Court. We wanted to hear both its incredible history of survival in the courts and the basic tenets of the ACA. Chip is joined by the founder of Families, USA, Ron Pollack. The two discuss their personal stories of working to help support the ACA and how the ACA should be expanded under the Biden Administration to help end coverage gaps.

Interested in learning more about the ACA and its expansion? Check out What the Nation Could Learn from ACA Health Coverage Expansion in CA with Peter Lee

The Policy Implications of Medicare at 60

Medicare at 60 sounds simple enough – but is it? Chip asked expert, Dr. Lanhee Chen, on this episode to explain his latest research exploring the potential policy and its complications. Chip and Lanhee explore the many questions his report exposes that policymakers must consider to make this potential policy an actual possibility - from how to pay for the $400 billion price tag to the impacts on health coverage and access to care.

Read the report entitled “The Fiscal Costs of Medicare at 60”.

The Impact of COVID-19 on Value-Based Reporting with Dr. Ken Sands

In this episode Chip is joined by Dr. Ken Sands – the Chief Epidemiologist at HCA Healthcare, whose system has treated tens of thousands of COVID patients. Together they look at a current Health Affairs blog co-authored by Chip on how COVID is impacting Medicare hospital quality reporting and value-based purchasing programs. These programs are critical for patient decisions and the evaluation of care provided at every hospital in the nation.

Learn more about hospital reporting by listening to Chip’s conversation on HCAHPS with Dr. Claudia Salzberg.

Making the Rounds: Nursing on the Front Lines with Roxy Hinojosa

Inaugural episode of Making the Rounds begins with Roxy Hinojosa. She is a nurse at Mission Regional Medical Center in Texas. Roxy shares with Chip how she began her nursing career, what the profession means to her and how the last year has changed nursing on the front lines.

Join Chip as he hears from the health care heroes on the front lines in the new Hospitals In Focus short series: Making the Rounds.

Better Data, Better Outcomes: New Data is Changing Care at Inpatient Rehab Facilities

COVID has drastically changed the health care delivery system, perhaps even permanently. Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities (IRFs), like those operated by Encompass Health, stepped up during the pandemic by partnering with acute care hospitals to help patients recover from the virus. It once again showed how critical IRFs are to the care continuum by making sure patients received the right care in the right setting.

Encompass Health President and CEO Mark Tarr discusses the impact of COVID-19 on IRFs, as well as the innovative ways his company is using new sources of data to inform clinical decisions and improve patient outcomes. Additionally, Chip and Mark touch on the importance of relevant, up to date data on implementation of the IMPACT Act and the Review Choice Demonstration.

Learn more about post-acute care providers in the time of COVID by listening to The Role of Long-term Acute Care Hospitals During COVID-19 with Ben Breier.

Surviving COVID: How Physicians are Providing Vital Care and Keeping Practices Open

Patients often form strong and long-lasting bonds with their care providers and COVID-19 has drastically altered that ever-important doctor-patient relationship. Visits have moved online and fear of the virus has some patients skipping care altogether. This raises three concerning questions for physicians: how are patients with chronic diseases managing their treatment without regular in-person care; are patients putting their lives at risk unnecessarily by delaying care and screenings; and how will their practices survive through the pandemic so they can continue caring for their communities?

Dr. Susan Bailey, president of the American Medical Association, and a practicing allergist/immunologist, joined Chip to discuss how private physician practices have been handling COVID while caring for their patients and how Congress is helping. 

How Ingenuity & Innovation Helped a Hotspot Hospital Save Lives During COVID Surge

Just a few weeks ago, COVID was ravaging hospitals across the country as cases were surging following the December holidays. St. Francis Medical Center is already one of Los Angeles County’s busiest trauma centers. During the surge, St. Francis was up to 120% capacity – and still caring for every patient that came through its doors. With the ER turned into a COVID unit, some emergency services were moved to tents in the parking lot. Chip spoke with St. Francis’ CEO Dan Jones who explained how the hospital was able to meet the challenge with their extraordinary staff, how they are working with staff to mitigate burnout, and how Prime Healthcare is investing in the hospital and the community it serves.