The silver tsunami is real. Wisconsin’s population is aging and healthcare care costs for the elderly and those needing long-term care are growing along with it. Gov. Walker’s budget increases Medicaid reimbursement for nursing homes and provides more money for direct care workers. Is it enough to address workforce shortages? And what’s next for Family Care? After pulling back its plans to overhaul the program, the administration is pushing forward with a statewide expansion. Will they incorporate other proposed program changes? Learn more at a Wisconsin Health News Panel Event May 2 in Madison.

​ Confirmed Panelists:

·      John Vander Meer, Executive Director, Wisconsin Health Care Association

·      Lynn Breedlove, Co-Chair, Wisconsin Long Term Care Coalition

​Register here

The 2016-2017 LDP cohort visited the UW Health and William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital (Madison VA) in February 2017. We started our day with a UW Health Overview & Leadership Roundtable, with Ron Sliwinski, FACHE, President of UW Hospitals and Chief of Clinical Operations; and Tim Gaillard, FACHE, UW Hospital Chief Operating Officer.  This interactive session was followed by a highly informative UW Med-Flight Tour led by Ryan Wubben, MD, Medical Director of UW Med Flight.  The group then had an opportunity to spend time with Jonathan Jaffery, MD, President & CEO of UW Health ACO, to learn about key initiatives related to Accountable Care & Population Health.  This was followed by an engaging session with senior leadership from UW Health’s American Family Children’s Hospital, including Jeff Poltawsky, FACHE, Senior Vice President and Barb Byrne, Vice President of Clinical Operations.

The group then traveled to the Madison VA Hospital on the same campus, and started that site visit with a session led by John Good, Group Practice Manager, on Leveraging Data to Increase Access.  The LDP group then had an opportunity to participate in a Madison VA Overview & Leadership Roundtable, led by John Rohrer, Madison VA Director.  Thor Ringler then introduced their Best Practice: My Life, My Story initiative with veterans, and the group participated in a Care in the Community Overview and Q & A with the team of Tony Dargiewicz, Chief of Patient Administrative Service.  The site visit culminated with Kayla Moreno, Nurse Manager, taking the group on a a Tour of the Community Living Center.

Consumer-driven services in business and the need for efficiency are accelerating changes in the way organizations operate and compete. Many consumers today are taking greater control of their purchasing power and healthcare decisions and are demanding excellence in service. The challenge is how to give them the best service in a meaningful and economic way.

Organizational survival relies on healthcare leaders with the vision, determination and courage to test various methods of enhancing the patient experience. Patient expectations are being set by other industries; for example, the airline industry, in which Southwest Airlines is the only airline that has turned in profitable years for 33 consecutive years, consistently achieved the best on-time performance, received the fewest customer complaints and fewest mishandled bags and is consistently cited for the best customer service, the smartest management and as the most fun place to work. Can the principles from a culture like Southwest Airlines help healthcare win the hearts and minds of their employees?

We will discuss that and more at the Reinventing Customer Service in Healthcare at the next Face-to-Face Chapter event. This program has been developed by ACHE-WI. The ACHE has awarded 1.5 ACHE Face-to-Face Education Credits to this program.

Moderator

• Stacy Conrad, Managing Consultant, The Benefits Group, Inc.

Panelists

• Teresa Feidt, FACHE, RN, CNO/VP Patient Services, Stoughton Hospital
• Aaron Kinney MS, FACHE, Executive Director, Herma Heart Center, Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin
• Marlaina Jackson, MHA, Director of Patient Relations and Support Services, Froedtert Hospital

April 28, 2017
7:30 – 9:30 am

ProHealth Waukesha Memorial Hospital
Waukesha, WI

Register Here

The Senate Committee on Revenue, Financial Institutions and Rural Issues approved a bill Thursday that would increase funding for rural broadband and add healthcare criteria the Public Service Commission should consider when awarding money.

Buoyed by the promise of better care and lower costs, health organizations are increasingly flocking to care coordination models. But they are not always easy to organize in today’s disjointed healthcare system and current payment structures often don’t reward the effort. Also, coordination among different programs is lacking.

A panel of experts will share their experiences from the field. Find out what’s working, what’s not and what they see as the future of care coordination. Panelists:

• Joy Tapper, Executive Director, Milwaukee Health Care Partnership
• Tom Lutzow, CEO, Independent Care Health Plan
• Jane Pirsig-Anderson, Director, Aurora Health Care Family Service

The event is Tuesday, April 4 from 11:30am – 1pm at the Wisconsin Club in Milwaukee (900 West Wisconsin Avenue).  Register online (link).

Benefits of Joining

ACHE offers four community groups that align with our members’ professional backgrounds and diversity inclusion. Join one that meets your professional needs and goals (pending the requirements).

Asian Healthcare Leaders | LGBT | Healthcare Consultants | Physician Executives

Sign Up Today: Join or renew your membership to one or more of these groups for an annual fee of $100 each, in addition to your ACHE membership dues. All benefits are accessible online and include a quarterly newsletter, an exclusive LinkedIn Group and special designation in ACHE’s online Member Directory.

Board of Governors Exam Fee Waiver Campaign Runs March 1–June 30

Take the next important step for your career by advancing to Fellow status benefits your professional goals and strengthens the healthcare management profession. Submit your Fellow applications starting March 1 with our Board of Governors Exam fee waiver offer (a savings of $200), available through June 30. Fellow applicants must submit their completed Fellow application, $250 application fee and all required documents, such as their references and organization chart, by June 30.

If you have any questions, please contact Erika Joyce, CAE, assistant director, Division of Member Services, at ejoyce@ache.org or (312) 424-9373.

Visit ache.org/FACHE to learn more.

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Encourage Your Colleagues to Join or Advance to Fellow

You are in a unique position of influence as a chapter member to grow ACHE, so share the value of ACHE with your colleagues by participating in the Leader-to-Leader Program. Each time a new Member is recruited or a current Member becomes an ACHE Fellow with the encouragement of another ACHE member, one point is awarded that can be redeemed for quality reward items. Note that sponsors must be listed on applications in order to receive credit.

Be sure to visit ache.org/L2L for more details about the Program, learn about sponsor referral cards, and see the new selection of reward items for 2017.

As a developing leader in an industry experiencing fast-paced and disruptive changes, the ability to lead effectively has never been more critical nor more marketable. Today’s leading healthcare organizations require the talent and skills of strong leaders to influence others in realizing the vision of the organization.

The leadership development program will enlighten the leader about their leadership abilities, enhance their knowledge of the healthcare industry, and provide them with the opportunity to immediately apply what they’ve learned for personal and professional growth.

Deadline: March 13, 2017

Apply Now

Save the date!  The MEGA Conference is back by popular demand.  The 2018 event, “Excellence through Collaboration” is January 15-17 at the Kalahari Resort and Conference Center in Wisconsin.  Updates and information available online at www.megawisconsin.com.  The conference is presented by AAHAM (Revenue Cycle Coop), HFMA, HIPAA COW and WMGMA.  Brochure available at the end of September.