Academic medical centers (AMCs) are facing many of the same operational and financial pressures as every US healthcare organization—workforce shortages, changing patient expectations, a need for sustainability, and more. But AMCs also have to balance the demands of their education and research missions. As they look for new ways to grow and continue to serve their communities, AMCs are evolving into academic health systems, often with nontraditional partners. Such growth brings added complexity to the academic enterprise—and opportunity as well.
Earlier this year, ECG partnered with Becker’s Healthcare to design, sponsor, and launch the inaugural AMC Leadership Forum at the Becker’s Annual Meeting. The two-day event saw more than 1,000 AMC executives, leaders, and other experts congregate to discuss emerging trends and new opportunities in academic healthcare.
The Becker’s team created a whitepaper that distilled key themes from the forum’s panels; download the whitepaper here. Here are five key themes Becker’s identified:
- Growth. AMCs’ evolution into academic health systems is enabling them to expand their footprints, influence, and research enterprises. But there are growing pains as well.
- Patients and Community. Reaching diverse patient populations requires a multifaceted approach, and one that considers the unique geography, social conditions, and even political climate of the areas AMCs and academic health systems serve.
- Sustainability. Many academic healthcare organizations have diversified their portfolios in response to financial pressures. For-profit endeavors, once unheard-of in the AMC environment, are now considered crucial for financial sustainability.
- Reputation. AMCs are driving local and global partnerships to advance research, promote their brands, and shed their “ivory tower” image.
- The Workforce. As the healthcare workforce becomes an increasingly precious commodity, AMC leaders emphasized the importance of supporting their workers. Those the promote transparency will be better poised to ensure retention.
Read the Full Whitepaper
