Standing in the Gap: From the Desk of the CMO

As a part of its 2024 Healthcare Workforce Scan, the American Hospital Association discusses the importance of transitioning nursing students from an educational setting to the work environment. In one example, accredited nurse residencies help to close the gap between academia and clinical practice by teaching novice nurses the skills necessary to navigate both the complex healthcare environment and their role as professional nurses.

I am proud to share that HealthTrust’s Clinical Services and Operations teams are helping to bridge a knowledge gap for students in the Bachelor of Science program at Galen College of Nursing’s Nashville campus by expanding their practical learning through exposure to clinically integrated supply chain insights and the work of HealthTrust’s Advisory Boards. (See “The Power of Collaboration.”)

In addition to participating in traditional classroom and clinical settings, BSN students can now elect to supplement their learning through exposure to communications and teamwork within HealthTrust. Through this pilot program, they are exposed to leadership initiatives, clinically integrated supply chain strategy and effective collaboration among peers. Discussion continues with Galen leadership engaging HealthTrust subject matter experts in additional curriculum related to communications, leadership, management, evidence-based practice and research.

The supply chain & clinical gap

Since its inception almost a decade ago, HealthTrust’s Clinical Services Team (originally called Physician Services) has curated and created a number of valuable resources designed to support sourcing leaders and supply chain professionals with the best available evidenced-based information to make actionable purchasing decisions on clinical products. New resources continue to be developed and are available to HealthTrust members online through a Knowledge Library launched in 2023. (See “Knowledge In Action.”)

In addition, we have elevated our level of clinical service. If a member can’t locate what they are looking for to address a problem or need, they can submit a personalized request for support through the Knowledge Library or through our online community site, the HealthTrust Huddle. We are excited about this opportunity to connect members in real time with valuable resources and, when possible, tailor a response specific to their need.

Addressing the staffing gap

The workforce crisis continues to touch all aspects of the healthcare industry. One of the most significantly impacted segments of the clinical workforce shortage is bedside nurses. That shortage in turn affects all areas of patient care and operations, including patient safety, care access and financial resiliency.

Participants in HealthTrust’s Collaborative Summit on the Staffing Crisis held in February of 2023 expressed a desire for additional collaboration around innovative ways to impact recruitment and retention and how to use technology more efficiently to tackle nurse scheduling. On Feb. 27–28, 2024, HealthTrust will convene nursing, human resources, technology and healthcare executive leaders from across its membership to collaborate and rethink how to solve for the clinical workforce shortage. I look forward to sharing insights and solutions that emerge from this think tank in The Source and in programming at the HealthTrust University Conference in August. In the meantime, be well.

John Young, M.D., MBA, FACHE
Chief Medical Officer, HealthTrust Performance Group
Executive Publisher & Editor-at-large, The Source magazine