Thriving amid the transformation in healthcare
Part 2: Inspiring the Burned Out Healthcare Provider:
Clinic administrators are sandwiched in the middle between the challenges of today’s patients and burned out healthcare providers. Physicians used to want their children to be doctors and follow in their footsteps, becoming pillars of the community, like Marcus Welby, MD. Now, many doctors encourage their kids elsewhere, feeling providers just aren’t treated with the same respect today. Amid this transformation, you have to find a way to figure out what excites your providers about healthcare. Here are a couple of good ideas:
- Publicize clinical excellence: For example, we’re already doing a lot of work to prove our quality outcomes for MACRA or other quality payment programs, why not publish those results? Whether an article, podcast, your social media pages, or in patient e-news? You might be surprised at the response among your clinical cadre and patients, alike.
- Reward excellence in patient satisfaction: Another way to inspire your clinicians is to reward them for higher patient satisfaction and engagement scores. The key is to figure out what motivates them. At one practice that I consulted with, providers earned Amex reward points. It was a great motivator for both clinical excellence and to encourage a healthy work-life balance.
Ultimately, you want to become the go-to practice in your community, so that local patients and employers become your best advocates to ensure your providers are included in-network for insurance carriers. Leadership and communication skills of the clinic administrator can help overcome the perils of a burned out provider during this transformation in health care.
