Healthcare Reinvention Collaborative

??Reflections on the 2025 World Happiness Report: A Wake-Up Call and a Path Forward It was an honor to attend today’s launch of the 2025 World Happiness Report at Gallup. The findings are both eye-opening and deeply concerning. ?? The U.S. has dropped to its lowest-ever ranking—now 24th in the world, down from 15th in 2023. ?? Loneliness is rising at an alarming rate—19% of young adults globally report having no one they can count on, a 39% increase since 2006. ?? Deaths of despair—suicides, drug overdoses, and alcohol-related deaths—remain high in the U.S. and South Korea, while declining in many other countries. ?? Sharing meals is more important than we realized. People who eat alone regularly report significantly lower happiness levels, yet dining alone has increased 53% in the U.S. since 2003. ?? We underestimate the kindness of others. In wallet-drop experiments, people returned lost wallets at rates twice as high as expected—showing that trust and connection are often stronger than we assume. But the report also offers hope: ?? Altruism benefits everyone. Acts of kindness don’t just help recipients—they significantly boost the wellbeing of those who give. ?? Social trust reduces inequality. Countries where people expect kindness have more equal distributions of happiness. ?? Wellbeing intelligence is a skill we can build. By fostering connection, trust, and emotional resilience, we can reverse these troubling trends. Hope is the strategy—but only if we choose to act. A better, more connected future is within our reach. And speaking of connection—the happiest part of today wasn’t just the data, but getting to spend time with Christine Sheehan, Danielle Posa (Pusateri), Nicole Carline, Melissa Carr -Anzelc, Sarah Cunningham, Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, Jim Clifton and so many others. Proof that happiness is built in moments of real human connection. Link ?? to the report: https://lnkd.in/eKUkUnrv #WorldHappinessReport #WellbeingIntelligence #HopeIsTheStrategy

The Emergency Care Research Institute (ECRI) published their 2025 top 10 of patient safety concerns: Number 1 on the list: Dismissing patient, family, and caregiver concerns. You can get the report here: https://lnkd.in/e-FMygrx #patientsafety #qualityimprovement #healthcare

Sometimes people ask me?WHY?I do this work. Why focus so much on the relational side of seniors' care? Why talk about emotions, transitions, stories, and empathy when there’s already so much else to manage in our systems? The truth is, it’s the relational pieces that shape everything else. It’s what helps families feel less alone, more supported and validated they made the right decision moving their loved one into your home. It’s what helps staff feel more grounded, empowered and aligned to their ‘why they do this work’. It’s what turns systems into something more human. After training I delivered for members of NHNSA, a participant shared: “When you hear from someone who has been through the process from the other perspective, it gives you insight. Her real-life story was so captivating and interesting.” Another said: “Deborah’s lived experience is a welcomed insight… it deepens understanding and helps us identify what families may be experiencing.” That’s what this work is about. Creating space for stories, not just strategies. Because when we lead with awareness, understanding and appreciation, we start to shift the experience, not just for families, but for the people doing the care, too.

Right now is healthcare leadership a shark tank, a petting zoo or a mediocracy? The thing is, there are leadership teams throughout the system, and it's easy to point the finger at other teams and say they are the ones causing the trouble. ? The courageous leadership teams will look to themselves, asking the tough questions and what they need to do, as opposed to pointing, telling and demanding. The overarching principles from this HBR article for courageous leaders- ?? Develop a clear vision and purpose. ?? Focus on alignment. ?? Outline responsibilities. ?? Establish behavioral norms. While not stated specifically in this article, creating a leadership team that works takes courage. Many of the ideas suggested to shift teams reminded me of a Jim Collins principle - getting the right people on the bus. Right now when roles are interim, significant cuts are being proposed and many senior leaders are leaving - who are the right people and how the he’ll do we get them on the healthcare leadership bus? #HealthNZ #healthcareleadership https://lnkd.in/gePyArhw Hi, I'm Katie. ?? ?? I help healthcare leaders juggle the demands and complexity of their roles so they can feel excited and hopeful about their work ?? Click follow for ideas and inspiration.

Among the most highly charged topics in American medicine is the role of physicians, NPs, and PAs. Physicians (rightfully) feel their extensive training earns them unparalleled practice privileges. NPs and PAs (rightfully) feel underappreciated and sometimes even disrespected. NPs and PAs now provide a quarter of all outpatient visits. As two of America's seven fastest-growing professions, they will provide even more care in the future. In this new Forbes article, I argue it’s time to move beyond asking whether NPs and PAs provide similar quality care to MDs. Most studies suggest that they do, although quality is challenging to measure. Instead, as our population ages and AI spreads across healthcare, we must consider how each of these professions should evolve to meet our populations’ increasing needs. Exploring this subject reminded me that it's quite difficult to make generalized statements, especially about entire professions. Reality is more nuanced than we often admit. Let me know what you think! https://bit.ly/4kz86NC

Primary Care Is an Investment—Everything Else Is a Cost ?? Emergency room visits now account for 6% of total plan sponsor spend—and that’s an insane number. So here’s the big question: Why are patients turning to the ER for care that should be handled in primary care settings? ?? Lack of access to primary care. ?? Broken incentives for hospitals and carriers. ?? And, honestly, systemic neglect of primary care as a strategic investment. As Dr. Scott Conard said on the pod, “Good primary care is an investment. Everything else is a cost.” If you don’t invest in primary care, you’re going to pay for it—in the most expensive place possible: the ER. This is a theme that’s come up over and over in recent episodes. I explore it with Dr. Scott Conard (EP462), Dr. Rushika Fernandopulle (EP460), and Al Lewis (EP464). ?? Listen to the latest Relentless Health Value Podcast episode and see how it all connects: https://cc-lnk.com/EP467 #HealthcareCosts #PrimaryCare #HealthPolicy #RelentlessHealth Also mentioned in this #healthcarepodcast: Matt McQuide; Christine Mohrhaus Hale, MD, MBA; Kenny Cole; Al Lewis ????; John Lee; Rushika Fernandopulle; Scott Conard, MD; Vivian Ho; Betsy Seals; Wendell Potter; Tim Denman; Francois de Brantes; Jeff Charles Goldsmith; J. Michael Connors MD; Primary Care for All Americans; Robert Andrews; Alex Sommers, MD, ABEM, DipABLM; Ann Lewandowski; Steve Schutzer, MD; Sergei Polevikov, ABD, MBA, MS, MA ????????; Kevin O’Leary; Health Tech Nerds; Vivek Garg, MD, MBA; Suhas Gondi; Tom Nash

We hosted a very insightful round of conversations with Denise Wiseman and others from the Healthcare Reinvention Collaborative. If you missed the event you can watch the recording here: https://lnkd.in/eV_bD5jY

Another digital health IPO. Another workaround business model. Happy St. Patrick's Day... Hinge Health is going public, positioning itself as a game-changer in musculoskeletal (MSK) care. And financially, they’ve played their cards well—securing big employer contracts, raising massive venture capital, and now making their way to Wall Street. But here’s the thing: What Hinge Health offers isn’t groundbreaking. Any orthopedic practice or physical therapist could provide the same services—if insurers covered them. So why don’t they? Because the system isn’t designed to pay for logical, preventive care within traditional healthcare settings. Instead, digital health companies find what insurers won’t cover, monetize the workaround, and sell it back to employers as “innovation.” Find the gap Monetize the workaround Extract profits Go public (or at least raise big bucks) Meanwhile, the trusted, long-term providers who actually build patient relationships get left behind. So here’s my question: Why do insurers refuse to cover these same services when delivered by the providers patients already know and trust? And bigger picture: Can you name a digital health company that has truly achieved the Quadruple Aim—better outcomes, lower costs, improved patient experience, AND clinician well-being? Because I can’t. Full article below. Let me know what you think.

?? Hey hospital executives, ?? ?????????? ??'????????????????????????? ???? ???????????????? ?????????? ???????????? ???? ?????? ????????????: go to your ER and be a fly on the wall. I can guarantee that you will learn more about your role, your power, and your own hospital than a month's worth of meetings. Here are the rules: 1?? You can't tell anyone you're coming. Just clear your schedule and show up. Otherwise your direct reports will try to please you by making it look nicer. 2?? You can't help. NatGeo photographer rules apply here; you're there to observe and let nature take its course. 3?? Talk to everyone, and listen so you can fully understand. (Not only is this an infinite value glitch, it's also an infinite frontline workers respect-builder) 4?? You gotta do this for 8 hours, and cover all 3 shifts. Let's say 6a-2p, 2p-10p, and yes, 10p-6a. All of these have fundamentally different challenges on your teams, your patients, your hospital, and your own body. Maybe do one shift a month. ?? I'd strongly recommend a Friday or Saturday overnight to see what happens when a patient comes in with something that can't get addressed until Monday. 5?? No shortcuts/no cherry-picking. You gotta stay the whole 8 hours, and you can't just hang out in the doctors' room. Sit in the waiting room for an hour. Follow a nurse into the dirty utility room. Talk with a patient in the hallway. 6?? You have to share what you learned. I'm not asking you to reveal your ED's flaws or problems, but you need to tell others about your experience. (If you want to send it to me and have me post it anonymously, I'm fine with that too.) And not only will you come away from the experience with way more understanding of your ER and your hospital, but I think you will leave feeling exceptionally honored and proud to know how many incredible, dedicated people exist in your organization working on the frontlines of healthcare today. Anyone up for the challenge? ??