Insights from a Chief Medical Officer – Supporting Providers’ Priorities

How a chief medical officer of a large hospital navigates the changing landscape of medical technology and digital health solutions

The medical technology (MedTech) and digital health sectors are undergoing transformation, driven by innovation, regulation and consumer demand. How do healthcare facilities, especially hospitals, adapt to these changes and leverage the opportunities they offer? What are the challenges and priorities of hospital leaders when it comes to selecting and implementing MedTech and digital health solutions?

To answer these questions, Alexander Group interviewed the chief medical officer (CMO) of a large tertiary hospital that is part of a regional and national health care system. The CMO shared his insights on current and future trends in MedTech and digital health, as well as his advice for commercial leaders of MedTech and digital health companies who want to support his hospital and others like it.

Growth, Cost and Retention

According to the CMO, the main priorities for his hospital are growth, cost containment and retention.

Growth means capturing market share in key service lines, such as neurosciences, cardiothoracic and orthopedics, by recruiting providers, establishing name recognition and branding, and streamlining the regional transfer process.

Cost containment means eliminating traveler and PRN positions, moving towards a consistent workforce and adjusting the fair market value for the staff.

Retention means establishing a relationship with new employees, developing a sense of belonging and reducing turnover.

The CMO said that his hospital has been successful in achieving these goals, especially in the last two years, by implementing various strategies and initiatives.

Outpatient Shift and Quality Metrics

One of the major strategies which the CMO focused on was shifting procedures from inpatient to outpatient settings, especially to the ambulatory surgery center (ASC). He said that this was a huge focus for his hospital, as it allows for better facility rates and revenue generation. Orthopedics, dentistry, ophthalmology and plastic surgery were cited as examples of service lines that have moved to the ASC.

However, he also noted that this shift has some implications for the quality metrics of the hospital, as it leaves behind a sicker and riskier patient pool that requires longer lengths of stay and has higher chances of readmission, wound infection and re-exploration. The CMO said that his hospital is very sensitive to these metrics and tries to balance the outpatient shift with the appropriate DRG capture, coding and documentation.

MedTech and Digital Health Decision-Making

The CMO also explained how his hospital decides on MedTech and digital health vendors and solutions. His hospital is part of a group purchasing organization (GPO) that contracts with different vendors and devices and provides a list of options for the hospital to choose from.

However, his hospital also has some flexibility to pull in new products that are not under contract, if they are cheaper or significantly better than the existing ones. His hospital has a new product committee that reviews and approves these products, based on their contribution margin and patient outcome. He also said that some product categories have a minimum percentage requirement that the hospital has to meet, based on the regional or national agreement with the vendor. This applies to vascular products, stents and orthopedics, among others.

Advice for MedTech and Digital Health Companies

Finally, the CMO offered some advice for MedTech and digital health companies that want to improve how they support his hospital and others like it.

The most important things that these companies can do is education and training of providers, data analytics and transparency, and outcome and cost comparison. These companies should provide education and training for the providers who use their products, especially if they are new or complex.

Also provide data analytics and transparency on the skill set of the providers, the time in the OR, the length of stay and the quality metrics associated with their products. They should also provide outcome and cost comparison with the existing products and show how their products are better for the patient and the hospital.

These are the things that will get his attention and interest. He does not need any “baloney or exaggerated claims.”