Healthcare in 2023: How to Stay One Step Ahead

I am fortunate to meet and work with some really smart and admirable healthcare executives. I recently had the opportunity to speak with one such individual – someone I consider to be very strategic and forward-thinking. We discussed the outlook for 2023. Her priorities and outlook align very well with what we also see at Dossier and with our customers.

There is no doubt that there is a shift occurring in healthcare.

But what are we shifting to? 

During the pandemic, we began speaking about ‘the new normal.’ It turned out that the new normal is everything but normal. We’re facing a shifting macro economy, global staff shortages in healthcare, budget constraints, a tripledemic (RSV, flu and COVID – at least for a while) to name just a few of our current obstacles. 

The Biggest Healthcare Challenge in 2023

How do we respond and stay agile while learning, improving and staying one step ahead?

Here are four key takeaways from our conversation that I think could be the baseline strategy for a lot of organizations over the next year. If executed properly, they can help combat soaring costs, ease resource pressures and help you better navigate the uncharted waters of the new normal.

Shared Insights: Four Priorities for Organizational Success in Healthcare

1. Put quality of care and patient safety as priority number one. That sounds easy, but it means empowering employees to master their professions by having the confidence, focus, and capabilities they need. Now more than ever, leaders need to nurture their teams by being supportive and encouraging focus. 2023 will be the year of core business, removing hurdles, and giving team members the autonomy to focus.
2. Digitize at a faster pace so teams can maximize their resources. While digital transformations are occurring in healthcare, the pace at which these transformations are happening needs to escalate. Team members need to modernize how they work, and they can’t do that without digital tools. Everything from virtual care to removing papers and cutting corners by reusing data has accelerated to a speed we never thought possible in the healthcare industry. We cannot slow down. These technology investments need to continue. Incremental improvements have proven to be superior to large-scale tech projects. Organizations need to maintain efforts to modernize their healthcare organizations. Breaking down digital projects into sprints and measuring the ROI of those can be helpful.
3. Maximize the value of the tools currently available. We hear a lot of hospitals having thousands of different systems. These system investments can – and should – be maximized. At Dossier, many of our customers have a lot of great systems and resources for learning and professional development. Let 2023 be the year we connect systems to maximize the use and ROI of digital portfolios.
4. Celebrate and share successes! All organizations have success stories. Improvements have been made, teams are working smarter – helping the organization move forward. All these activities yield positive outcomes. Those stories should be shared – put them in the spotlight. Doing so is the most cost-effective, fastest, and most powerful way to demonstrate to your staff that you are willing to invest in their needs. It boosts morale, which helps you build a strong team in a challenging time!

Bring it on, 2023! We are ready!