LEADERSHIP ASSIGNMENT PART 2

26 ∣ Urology Times ∣ JULY 2019

Business / PRACTICE MANAGEMENT

Embracing change in health care: How to get your team on board Follow these steps to facilitate the change process in your practice

STEVE GORDON, MD, AND KEELY KILLPACK, PHD

Dr. Gordon is a principal consultant with Point B, an integrated

management consulting, venture investment, and real estate

development fi rm, and Dr. Killpack is an independent consul-

tant and expert change management strategist. This article was

originally published by Urology Times sister brand Physicians

Practice.

C hange is a fact of life. Yet the degree to which change is occurring in health care is astounding. From Affordable Care Act requirements to the array

of medical research and new treatment options, providers have been overwhelmed by the pace of transformative change. So, when change needs to occur at an organization or medical practice, how should leaders approach it?

Whether that change requires embracing new technology or the adoption of new policies, leaders must communicate the reasons behind the change and connect people to strategy in order to help them assimilate the change and understand the benefits and impact on the business. Implement- ing change management best practices facilitates this process and helps staff more easily and quick- ly make a personal transition from a current to a future mindset.

Change efforts among physicians and providers falter when leadership stumbles into some com- mon pitfalls including:

• failure to describe and communicate the problem; its personal impact on physicians, providers, and staff; and what exactly individu- als are being asked to change within their daily workflow

• failure to determine the root cause of the prob- lem before working to solve it

• delaying engagement with providers until after the solution has been decided

• solution bias and over-confidence in the cho- sen approach

• inadequate support through the change; fail- ure to address the communication and training needs and provide at-the-elbow experts during implementation and additional staffing to main- tain productivity

• failure to recognize the personal investments made by physicians and providers and their suc- cessful adoption of the change benefitting the organization or practice

• failure to consider and align with other con- current organizational changes.

The first step in engaging your employees in the change process is the recognition that change is required. Leaders should assess practice culture, including the history of change in the organiza- tion, enablers or barriers, and whether stakehold- ers expect to be asked or told to determine the best way to initiative the change process among your employees.

The following tips can help you take your orga- nization or practice through any change.

Forming the strategy

Identify the specific problem you are trying

to solve. Frame it in a way in which people will understand and agree on the problem and convey what will happen if the problem goes unaddressed.

Engage physician and provider leaders. Cre- ate open dialogue and show empathy. Affirm that you understand the myriad challenges they face and ask for their advice and partnership in trying to solve this issue. Solicit their engagement in find- ing the solution, becoming experts in it, helping the rest of their colleagues adopt the change as it happens, and understanding resourcing needs afterwards.

Choose solutions wisely. Use proven data-in- formed techniques, such as Lean or 6-Sigma, to guide improvement and thoroughly review tech- nology products with a large group of physicians, providers and other relevant end user staff. All time spent choosing the right solution to the problem is invaluable and saves your organization exponentially down the road.

Planning for the change

Clarify each person’s role in the change pro-

cess. Prepare an inventory of roles and custom- ize a change plan for each. Participants without workflow change can nevertheless be impacted secondarily, so awareness matters.

Select which changes to bring to physicians

and providers for input or decision-making. Develop a tailored approach, focusing on how much and what information to bring forward, and each specific audience group.

Identify change champions. Seek out indi- viduals who have the most influence and ensure

your messages are resonating with the right team members who can help drive change.

Create checklists for change. Provide specific action item lists that inform staff of what will be needed, and when. Custom checklists for leaders, physicians, and other staff roles are helpful to sup- port each employee through the change experi- ence for their job.

Plan for success. Break large initiatives into smaller projects that are most likely to succeed. Any plan should be achievable from start to finish in 3 years or less.

Determine how success will be measured. Success measurements should be agreed on by all impacted group leaders and transparent to every- one. Adjustments to the solution may be needed, so set expectations to be flexible and to monitor and track performance as the change processes and becomes the new normal.

Get support from others. Align and part- ner around change with other individuals and groups inside and outside your practice, as well as with professional societies and advocacy groups with similar values. Consider investing in expert change management support for larger, complex initiatives and when change fatigue or physician burnout is a risk.

Making the change

Remind others that change is the new nor-

mal. Regardless of your specialty, position, or function, changes frequently emerge in health care, especially with external market forces such as MACRA or adopting new value-based pay- ment models. Emphasize that these programs are likely to change over time but are not going away.

Acknowledge the uncertainty with any

change. Shadow people in their daily work, solicit their reactions to the experience, understand their pain points, and offer assistance or support when you can.

All progress is good and should be recog-

nized. Don’t assume that every physician or group can or should be a top performer right away. Push- ing too hard or too fast may jeopardize long-term success. Focus on short-term goals and be sensitive to overlapping demands for change.

Please see EMBRACING CHANGE, page 27

JULY 2019 ∣ Urology Times ∣ 27

Celebrate progress and express your

appreciation. Recognize individuals not just for the change at hand, but also for providing

compassionate, high-quality care every day. Above all else, always keep your eye on the

patient. Virtually all providers and staff can agree on a change when the benefit to patient care is clear.

Change is a predictable component of health

care delivery. Developing and refining an effec- tive approach to managing change is an essential leadership skill. Recognizing common pitfalls, planning accordingly, and course correcting effectively will help to inspire others, ensure success, and minimize adverse impact. UT

PRACTICE MANAGEMENT / Business

AARON CLIFFORD

Mr. Clifford is the senior vice president of marketing for the

Binary Fountain, a cloud-based provider of patient feedback and

reputation management solutions.

H ealth care practices, like any busi- ness, need to constantly pursue new customers as well as work to retain existing ones.

As the cost of health care continues to rise in the United States, currently a $3 trillion busi- ness, many patients are beginning to reassess their visits. Was the promised service delivered, was it delivered with quality and was it delivered at a fair price? If the standard of care does not meet patients’ expectations, they are more likely to switch practices.

In today’s experience economy, health care practices need to concentrate on two things: providing excellent customer service and oper- ating a profitable business. These two seemingly disparate clinical and business goals are inter- connected through reputation management, patient engagement, and value-based care.

The need for reputation management

In the past, a health care provider’s reputation was based primarily on word-of-mouth recom- mendations from friends, family or another pro- vider. However, online reputation management is something health care practices can no longer afford to overlook.

Today, searching and selecting a physician is more than just verifying a physician is experi- enced and qualified. Patients are actively seek- ing and reading online ratings and review sites. They’re evaluating a physician or practice based on a myriad of components, such as cleanliness, bedside manner and parking.

A recent consumer survey found:

• 95% of respondents say online ratings and reviews are “somewhat” to “very” reliable

• 70% of Americans say online ratings and review sites have influenced their decision when selecting a physician

• 41% of consumers still check online ratings and reviews of physicians/specialists even when referred by another physician.

Therefore, maintaining a positive online rep- utation is key to promoting a successful busi- ness.

With this in mind, medical practices need to monitor and track what is being said about them online. Although many physicians are skeptical of online reviews—particularly neg- ative reviews—more health care providers are using this data as a means of benchmarking their performance.

In fact, online ratings and reviews enable physi- cians to better understand and make operational improvements to the patient experience. In today’s competitive health care market, online reputation could be what distinguishes one physician apart from another, especially when cost of care and location are similar.

The role of patient engagement

Medical practices want to build trust, loyalty, and a rapport with their patients. Therefore, practices and their providers need to be vigilant about ask- ing patients to leave online ratings, reviews, and recommendations.

Reputation monitoring and management is most effective when a large percentage of patients and caregivers are participating. The more feedback captured via Consumer Assess- ment of Healthcare Providers and Systems sur- veys, ratings and review sites, or social media, the better the patient experience will be for future patients.

Today, more and more consumers are provid- ing unfiltered, public-facing feedback to help others make an informed decision about whether a practice is worth a visit. It’s equally important for practices and providers to request patient feedback and respond to all online reviews, even the negative ones. In doing so, practices and pro- viders will show they care about improving the patient experience.

The shift toward value-based care

The health care industry is currently operat- ing mostly on a fee-for-service payment mod- el. However, the industry may soon be heading toward a value-based reimbursement payment model.

Regardless of how a provider is paid, improving the patient experience and closing gaps in care should be top of mind for all providers. Patients already have high expectations for the level of customer service that they wish to receive.

OnePoll conducted a survey of more than 1,000 U.S. adults with a physician. They found that 48% of Americans believe “a friendly and caring attitude” is the single most important factor for patients when rating or evaluating a physician, closely followed by “ability to answer all my questions” (47%) and “thoroughness of the examination” (45%).

If practices want to increase their number of repeat patients, it is imperative they create pro- fessional, personable, and valuable experiences for their patients.

Patient experience is the common thread that ties reputation management, patient engage- ment, and value-based care together. The expe- rience is the catalyst for driving patient reten- tion, referrals, and revenue for physician prac- tices. After all, without satisfied patients, there is no business. UT

How online ratings can affect your practice’s bottom line Maintaining positive online reputation key to drawing new patients

EMBRACING CHANGE continued from page 26

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