/ en Sat, 26 Apr 2025 20:32:32 -0500 Tue, 20 Dec 22 06:30:00 -0600 /aha-center-health-innovation-market-scan/2022-12-20-executive-burnout-real-and-it-can-be-reduced <div class="container"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-8"><p><img src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/Executive-Burnout-Is-Real-and-It-Can-Be-Reduced.png" data-entity-uuid="5c0abfd1-7996-48cc-a00e-66e4c3492dff" data-entity-type="file" alt="Executive Burnout Is Real — and It Can Be Reduced. An executive in a business suit sits on the unburned end of a matchstick working on his computer as the matchstick burns down towards him." width="100%" height="100%"></p><p>In times of crisis, health care leaders need to be at their best. Throughout the pandemic, hospital and health system executives have demonstrated that ability. But the pandemic’s duration, shifting regulations and reimbursement rules, financial pressures, staff shortages and other factors are taking their toll on C-suite executives.</p><p>Nearly three-quarters of <a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/wittkieffer-issues-report-and-call-to-action-on-healthcare-executive-burnout-301694929.html" target="_blank" title="CISION PR Newswire: WittKieffer Issues Report and Call to Action on Healthcare Executive Burnout">health care executives</a> say they have felt burned out in the last six months and 93% believe burnout is negatively impacting their organizations, according to a recently published <a href="https://www.wittkieffer.com/thought-leadership/burnout-in-healthcare-executives-a-call-to-action/" target="_blank" title="WittKieffer: Burnout in Healthcare Executives: A Call to Action">WittKieffer survey</a>.</p><p>Indicating more can be done, 79% of the respondents said their organizations aren’t doing enough to reduce or prevent executive burnout. While more than half said their employers offer some kind of service or benefit — and in some cases more than one option — as a means of preventing or reducing burnout, some said no services are offered.</p><p><img src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/Health-care-executives-post-pandemic-burnout.jpg" data-entity-uuid="8a23491c-5b44-4d59-85d7-7e53d5e1dfe0" data-entity-type="file" alt="Health care executives' post-pandemic burnout. Is your organization doing enough to reduce or prevent execuitve burnout? 79% of health care executives say no. I know colleagues that have left health care due to burnout. 75% of health care executives agree. Source: "The Impact of Burout on Healthcare Executives," WittKieffer, 2022." width="100%" height="100%"></p><p>The survey, which included responses from 343 CEOs, chief financial officers, chief medical officers, chief nursing officers and other C-suite executives at the vice president and director levels, was conducted this past summer.</p><h2><span>The Impacts of Executive Burnout</span></h2><p>Those reporting feeling burned out are much less hopeful about the future of health care leadership, feel significantly less productive at work and less determined to make an impact in their work and careers. Other data show similarly concerning trends.</p><ul><li><span><strong>75%</strong></span> know colleagues that have left health care due to burnout.</li><li><span><strong>51%</strong></span> say burnout could cause them to leave their positions.</li><li><span><strong>50%</strong></span> say burnout could cause them to look at positions outside health care.<a href="#update"><sup>*</sup></a></li></ul><p>“I think that burnout has become the new norm in health care because of increased financial pressures over the past several years. Many organizations have taken the ‘do more with less’ approach to the extreme and I think talented leaders are leaving health care because of it,” one executive respondent notes.</p><p>Seventy-one percent of respondents say they are concerned that burnout will affect their careers in health care management. The percentage was just under 60% among those who felt burned out in the last six months, but it’s clear that the stresses brought on by the current health care landscape are having a detrimental impact on many leaders.</p><p>While seemingly split on whether burnout prevents them from doing their best work, most respondents believe there is more work to do than they can accomplish.</p><h2><span>Burnout Follows Leaders Home</span></h2><p>Not surprisingly, many leaders feel that the effects of burnout are impacting their lives outside the office.</p><ul><li><span><strong>65%</strong></span> report rarely or never taking all their allotted vacation days due to their workload.</li><li><span><strong>56%</strong></span> aren’t getting seven to eight hours of sleep per night.</li><li><span><strong>47%</strong></span> say burnout has had a negative impact on their personal relationships.</li><li><span><strong>46%</strong></span> frequently skip at least one meal per day because they are too busy or stressed from work.<a href="#update"><sup>*</sup></a></li></ul><p>Despite these impacts, some executives conclude in written comments that it’s all part of the job, albeit that the job has grown more challenging over the last several years as financial pressures on organizations have mounted significantly. Many remain optimistic that the impacts of burnout can be managed by taking proactive steps.</p><p>“I think we need to consider how to build resilience and take a positive spin on how to build a healthy life balance,” one respondent notes.</p><h2><span>5 Ways to Address Burnout</span></h2><h3><span>1</span> <span>|</span> Measure burnout rate.</h3><p>Identifying the issue is the first step and action should swiftly follow. Organizations should openly address the topic and encourage proactive conversation before things become unsalvageable.</p><h3><span>2</span> <span>|</span> Build more efficient work teams.</h3><p>Noted by 26% of the respondents, this could help improve operating efficiency and workflows.</p><h3><span>3</span> <span>|</span> Adjust expectations and deadlines.</h3><p>Maintain a strategic focus and say “no” to the nonessential tasks and requests for time.</p><h3><span>4</span> <span>|</span> Improve alignment on top priorities.</h3><p>Define how your team will measure success, scope of roles and improve clarity and transparency on decision-making processes. This will help with team connectedness and support for the leadership vision.</p><h3><span>5</span> <span>|</span> Don’t be afraid to step away.</h3><p>Using vacation time to recharge is essential. Spending time with family and friends and engaging in a favorite hobby were the top suggestions among respondents to reduce or prevent career burnout. Any activity — working out, yoga, spending time alone reading or praying — that helps you refresh is worthwhile.</p><h2><span>Learn More</span></h2><p>The following AHA leadership resources can help support leadership teams in creating a new professional strategy to offset the demands of the 24/7/365, fast-paced and unrelenting health care environment.</p><h3><a href="/leadership-experiences">AHA Leadership Experience 2023</a></h3><p>This program helps participants develop a powerful ability to develop new skills, patterns and rituals that create equilibrium among the competing dimensions of their lives.</p><h3><a href="/center/next-generation-leaders-fellowship">AHA Next Gen Leaders Fellowship</a></h3><p>This annual program is a unique opportunity for developing leaders to bring about change in the hospital and health systems in which they serve. Each Fellow is paired with an executive-level mentor who will guide them through the planning and execution of a yearlong project.</p><h3><a href="https://www.aonl.org/education/overview" target="_blank" title="AONL Education Programs landing page.">AONL educational programs</a></h3><p>The American Organization for Nursing Leadership offers virtual and in-person programs to expand the leadership skills of nurse managers.</p><hr><h2 id="update">Update</h2><p>As we noted in this December 20 lead story, the past few years have taken a heavy emotional toll on health care executives. A recent <a href="https://www.wittkieffer.com/thought-leadership/burnout-in-healthcare-executives-a-call-to-action/" target="_blank" title="WittKieffer: Burnout in Healthcare Executives: A Call to Action">WittKieffer report</a> provides details about this issue.</p><p>In our story about findings from the report, we inadvertently included some data from <a href="https://www.wittkieffer.com/webfoo/wp-content/uploads/Burnout-Survey-Report_2019_Final_New-Logo.pdf" target="_blank" title="WittKieffer: Burnout in Healthcare Executives: A Call to Action 2018">WittKieffer’s 2018 report</a> that addressed this subject as well. To clarify, see the complete results for the <a href="https://insight.wittkieffer.com/acton/attachment/40398/f-14a7b229-a118-4320-acfb-14a9d2e6846b/1/-/-/-/-/2022%20Healthcare%20Executive%20Burnout%20Survey.pdf" target="_blank" title="Burnout in Healthcare Executives: A Call to Action 2022">2022 WittKieffer report</a>.</p></div><div class="col-md-4"><p><a href="/center" title="Visit the AHA Center for Health Innovation landing page."><img src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/logo-aha-innovation-center-color-sm.jpg" data-entity-uuid="7ade6b12-de98-4d0b-965f-a7c99d9463c5" alt="AHA Center for Health Innovation logo" data-entity- type="file" width="721" height="130" class="align-center"></a></p><a href="/center/form/innovation-subscription"><img src="/sites/default/files/2019-04/Market_Scan_Call_Out_360x300.png" data-entity-uuid data-entity-type alt width="360" height="300"></a></div></div></div>.field_featured_image { position: absolute; overflow: hidden; clip: rect(0 0 0 0); height: 1px; width: 1px; margin: -1px; padding: 0; border: 0; } .featured-image{ position: absolute; overflow: hidden; clip: rect(0 0 0 0); height: 1px; width: 1px; margin: -1px; padding: 0; border: 0; } Tue, 20 Dec 2022 06:30:00 -0600 Health Care Leaders /aha-center-health-innovation-market-scan/2022-06-07-aws-latest-accelerator-aims-give-boost-health <div class="container"> <div class="row"> <div class="col-md-8"> <p><img alt="AWS’ Latest Accelerator Aims to Give a Boost to Health-Equity Startups. A seated black mother in a winter coat and hat holds her baby who is wrapped in a blanket." data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="8e51e4c4-4570-4e65-9bf0-0d415c3ef48b" src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/AWS-Latest-Accelerator-Aims-to-Give-a-Boost-to-Health-Equity-Startups.jpg" width="620" height="381"></p> <p>Finding solutions to help the more than 3.6 million Americans who miss or delay their health care appointments each year because they lack transportation is no simple process. In 2016, a Philadelphia-based startup <a href="https://roundtriphealth.com/" target="_blank" title="Rountrip homepage">Roundtrip</a> teamed with a group of local health care providers, including nurses, physicians, social workers and transportation providers to examine the process for arranging trips for those in need.</p> <p>A year later, Roundtrip’s three founders used design-thinking methodology to create their on-demand transportation company. The firm provides nonemergency medical transportation to providers and patients. Roundtrip’s <a href="https://roundtriphealth.com/health-systems/" target="_blank" title="Roundtrip: Inside our digital transportation solution">customized online marketplace and digital tools</a> connect patients with the type of rides they need — from ride shares and medical sedans to wheelchair vans and stretcher vehicles.</p> <p>This year, with support from Amazon Web Services (AWS), Roundtrip will scale in California by launching a pilot with <a href="https://cchealth.org/" target="_blank" title="Contra Costa Health Services homepage">Contra Costa Health Services (CCHS)</a> to increase call center efficiency. Together, AWS, CCHS and Roundtrip will design and implement automated <a href="https://aws.amazon.com/connect/" target="_blank" title="Amazon Connect landing page">Amazon Connect</a> cloud-based contact center infrastructure and incorporate machine learning services such as <a href="https://aws.amazon.com/lex/" target="_blank" title="Amazon Lex: Build chatbots with conversational AI landing page.">Amazon Lex</a> and <a href="https://aws.amazon.com/polly/" target="_blank" title="Amazon Polly: Turn text into lifelike speech using deep learning landing page.">Amazon Polly</a> to make it easier to book rides for vulnerable people who need care.</p> <p>Roundtrip’s continuing development can be traced in part to AWS’ <a href="https://aws.amazon.com/government-education/nonprofits/global-social-impact/health-equity/" target="_blank" title="AWS: New Global Program to Help Customers Develop Cloud Solutions to Advance Health Equity">Health Equity Initiative</a>, a three-year $40 million commitment to help its health care customers develop cloud-based solutions to reduce health disparities.</p> <p>Now AWS has launched its <a href="https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/aws/new-aws-healthcare-accelerator-focuses-on-health-equity" target="_blank" title="Amazon: New AWS Healthcare Accelerator focuses on health equity">second health care accelerator</a> to support 10 startups with U.S.-based operations through a four-week technical, business and mentorship program. Applications are due July 1, and the program begins in late August.</p> <p>The new health care accelerator will consider startups focused on increasing access to health services, reducing disparities by addressing social factors influencing health and using data to promote equitable and inclusive systems of health. Participating startups will be eligible for:</p> <ul> <li>Up to $25,000 in AWS promotional credits.</li> <li>Connections to venture capital firms through AWS’ innovation network.</li> <li>Collaboration opportunities with other AWS health care customers and AWS partners.</li> <li>Specialized AWS training and mentoring from domain and technical subject matter experts.</li> <li>Guidance on business development and fundraising from AWS and accelerator collaborators.</li> <li>Go-to-market planners.</li> </ul> <p>Applications are available on the <a href="https://aws.amazon.com/government-education/nonprofits/global-social-impact/health-equity/" target="_blank" title="AWS: New Global Program to Help Customers Develop Cloud Solutions to Advance Health Equity">AWS Healthcare Accelerator</a> webpage.</p> </div> <div class="col-md-4"> <p><a href="/center" title="Visit the AHA Center for Health Innovation landing page."><img alt="AHA Center for Health Innovation logo" data-entity- data-entity-uuid="7ade6b12-de98-4d0b-965f-a7c99d9463c5" src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/logo-aha-innovation-center-color-sm.jpg" type="file" class="align-center"></a></p> <a href="/center/form/innovation-subscription"><img alt data-entity-type data-entity-uuid src="/sites/default/files/2019-04/Market_Scan_Call_Out_360x300.png"></a></div> </div> </div> .field_featured_image { position: absolute; overflow: hidden; clip: rect(0 0 0 0); height: 1px; width: 1px; margin: -1px; padding: 0; border: 0; } .featured-image{ position: absolute; overflow: hidden; clip: rect(0 0 0 0); height: 1px; width: 1px; margin: -1px; padding: 0; border: 0; } Tue, 07 Jun 2022 08:27:29 -0500 Health Care Leaders /node/681835 <p>The role of the physical environment in communication between health-care professionals and persons with communication problems is a neglected area. This study provides an overview of factors in the physical environment that play a role in communication during conversations between people who are communication vulnerable and health-care professionals.</p> Mon, 24 Jan 2022 16:22:49 -0600 Health Care Leaders /node/681814 <p>This resource provide simple practices that health professionals can incorporate to develop skills around speaking respectfully about disability.</p> Mon, 24 Jan 2022 12:53:40 -0600 Health Care Leaders /node/681805 <p>The purpose of this tool is to ensure equity by creating a lens through which each Healthy King County Coalition Workgroup better understands who is impacted by our policies and practices.</p> Sun, 23 Jan 2022 01:56:25 -0600 Health Care Leaders /node/681759 <p>This toolkit provides step by step guides on how to create a strategic plan with diversity, equity, and inclusion in mind.</p> Thu, 20 Jan 2022 16:51:35 -0600 Health Care Leaders /node/681731 <p>This article covers implicit bias on a basic level, noting its role in policies and patient care while beginning to look at ways to reduce implict bias.</p> Thu, 20 Jan 2022 16:18:31 -0600 Health Care Leaders /node/681729 <p>This blog post offers an overview on how to assess your organization's DEI understanding so they can make a plan to move forward in the work. This organization also links to multiple resources on DEI training, including webinars, a resource library, and success stories.</p> Thu, 20 Jan 2022 15:47:16 -0600 Health Care Leaders /node/681722 <p>This article presents challenges and offer recommendations for facilitating the process of eliminating health disparities and achieving health equity across diverse populations.</p> Thu, 20 Jan 2022 15:23:48 -0600 Health Care Leaders /node/681718 <p>This guidebook offers a section on why investing in communities is necessary for the benefit of the overall health of local populations and in encouraging accountability. The guidebook encourages the involvement of leaders in the local community.</p> Thu, 20 Jan 2022 15:12:45 -0600 Health Care Leaders