Are your physicians aligned with your strategy?

What does physician alignment mean anyway? In this context, alignment begins with engaging in direct conversations with physicians and incorporating their input in your strategies rather than merely discussing concepts behind closed doors. It is a common misconception that all physicians are motivated similarly; in reality, physicians are a diverse set of stakeholders with unique motivations that cross specialty, employment, and even gender norms. Successful ambulatory strategies are highly physician-centric, involving physicians in the dialogue and setting realistic goals based on trust, respect, and mutually agreeable targets. A practical starting point is to engage your surgeons by asking a few key questions to understand their perspectives and motivations.

What motivates them to want to participate in a new location?

Changing the location where a physician performs a service is hard. This is even harder for surgeons. So simply asking or worse yet, just informing a surgeon about a move to a new location without providing them significant input can lead to frustration for both surgeons and administration due to the disruption of routine and the very real impact it can have on patient care. When developing a new ambulatory model of care or expanding your ambulatory service footprint, taking the time to understand each surgeon's unique motivation, whether they are driven by work-life balance, professional development, or patient care quality, is crucial. Open communication and active listening are essential in helping to identify the unique motivators and tailor solutions that align with their personal and professional goals. By prioritizing a personalized and collaborative approach, you can reduce resistance and create a positive environment that aligns both the surgeons and administration in expanding the ambulatory footprint.

What operational changes will need to be made when moving to or adding an ambulatory surgery location?

?So now that we understand our surgeon’s motivations, there are still operational changes that will need to be addressed to move from concept to reality. Things like scheduling, equipment, implants, staff, patient criteria, all need to be addressed before cases can be moved. But they can’t be addressed in a vacuum.

Using surgeon and patient data to determine which cases and surgeons could and should migrate is essential. It provides insights into trends, success rates, and potential risks, but it must be supplemented with qualitative inputs. Engaging with physicians and their clinical staff to augment data with their input on workflows and preferences is crucial, as their firsthand knowledge and experience can highlight potential challenges that data alone might not reveal.

While there are literally dozens of simultaneous change management workstreams required, it all starts with understanding what types of cases and what types of surgeons are best suited for your new facility and engaging with them to map out a custom plan to match their needs.

What does success look like?

Just as motivation is a deeply personal and individualized experience, what defines success can also vary greatly from one individual to another. In the context of your surgical team, it is crucial to recognize that each surgeon is likely to have unique perspectives on what constitutes success. This could be influenced by their personal goals, professional aspirations, patient outcomes, or specific areas of interest within their practice.

When you take time to understand what success looks like for your surgeons, you can tailor your metrics to reflect their priorities and values as well as for the organization. This personalized approach ensures that the metrics are not only relevant but also meaningful to those they are intended to serve. It fosters a sense of ownership and alignment, as surgeons see their goals and benchmarks being considered in the measurement process.

When you take time to understand and incorporate the unique perspectives of your surgeons into your ambulatory strategy, and hardwire their needs into the process, you are capturing the essence of physician alignment. An essential element for building trust and reinforcing the alignment between individual aspirations and organizational objectives.

Join us next week for part 3 of our hospital ambulatory strategy series focused on the impact payor contracting has on your strategy.? ??