OneTeam approach to health care

On May 29 and 30, leaders from The Nebraska Medical Center, UNMC Physicians and UNMC College of Medicine held a series of employee forums to provide updates on what they’ve learned so far from our engagement with Deloitte LLP, a consulting group that offers strategy recommendations on how to make a business stronger.

When patients think of the medical center, campus leaders say they make no distinction between the UNMC College of Medicine, The Nebraska Medical Center, UNMC Physicians, Bellevue Medical Center and Private Practice Associates.

The message of the forum: we must do the same.

Forum questions included: Is this a precursor to merge the hospital and practice group? That needs to be studied, Shaw said. But, merger is a technical word and Fosdick and Shaw view clinical integration as “common law integration” with each entity retaining their legal independence. At this time, leaders are focused on designing an enhanced model that may include consolidation/integration and/or standardization of current functions and processes. Will positions be affected? “Yes,” Fosdick said, noting this is a time of transformation for all health care organizations. “We all know the pressures in health care, but we walk into this better prepared, better positioned than others.” Fosdick also said we don’t know what positions or how many will be impacted. The impact may include changes in roles and/or responsibilities, elimination of roles and/or responsibilities, or additional training to learn new skills. The exact nature, degree and timing of these impacts is unknown and will be determined during the design phase.

That OneTeam approach is necessary within and across the organizations to pursue strategic opportunities in an evolving health care environment.

View recording of forum here.

“We need to think differently about how we deliver care,” said Cory Shaw, chief executive officer, UNMC Physicians. “Not just what happens in the four walls of the hospital or in our outpatient clinics, but rather how we move patients across the continuum of care in a seamless way.”

Glenn A. Fosdick, president and CEO of The Nebraska Medical Center, agreed. “We need to think of our self as a health system, not a hospital and practice group.”

Vision 2020 and OneTeam site.

The Deloitte assessment evolved out of Vision 2020, a shared concept that together “we will be the region’s leading health system, comprised of nationally recognized academic and community-based providers, aligned and integrated to optimize the health of our patients.”

Frequently asked questions

Using their strategic assessment, a 10-member, enterprise-wide leadership team was announced which consists of members of the hospital, UNMC Physicians, UNMC and private practice. This team met for the first time May 31 and will lead the work toward our clinical integration and performance improvements.

As changes occur, leaders ask employees to:

• Maintain their focus on the patient;
• Stay informed;
• Be open to change; and
• Communicate with their teams.

Brad Britigan, M.D., dean of the College of Medicine, said the Deloitte assessment outlined how medical center teams need to think more globally about such opportunities as revenue enhancement, competitive positioning and process improvements.

“We need to think more globally about what’s best for the clinical enterprise,” he said.