Workforce Relief That Works

Workforce Relief That Works 
How Leading Systems Support Clinicians and Performance 

Thursday, April 16, 2026 
1 - 2 p.m. Eastern; noon - 1 p.m. Central; 10 - 11 a.m. Pacific   

Health systems cannot protect performance without supporting the clinicians who sustain it. Yet many organizations still rely on physicians and care teams to absorb growing after-hours demand, patient messages, and real-time interruptions, a model that is quickly becoming unsustainable as workforce pressure rises. Leading organizations are rethinking how clinical support is delivered to reduce unnecessary provider workload, protect scarce clinical capacity and preserve patient access without overextending care teams. Many are finding that small changes in how patient demand is managed can have a meaningful impact on workforce sustainability.

In this session, leaders from CHRISTUS Health and The Urology Group will discuss the operational shifts they have made to stay ahead of rising workforce demand while maintaining access and care continuity. Among the strategies they will discuss is centralized nurse-first triage, used to better manage patient demand, support appropriate site-of-care decisions, reduce avoidable escalation to providers and minimize disruptions to provider groups. The discussion will be facilitated by Dominique Wells, MSN, RN, chief operating officer at Conduit Health Partners. 

Attendees Will Learn How To:

• Rethink clinical support models to reduce unnecessary provider workload, protect scarce clinical capacity and preserve patient access as workforce pressure rises.
• Apply operational lessons from CHRISTUS Health and The Urology Group on managing growing patient demand while maintaining access and care continuity.
• Use centralized nurse-first triage to better manage patient demand, support appropriate site-of-care decisions, reduce avoidable escalation to providers and minimize disruptions to provider groups. 

Speakers: 

Jackie Lopez, MHA, BSN, CPQH, CSSMBB 
Director, Ambulatory Quality Management 
CHRISTUS Health 
Irving, Texas

Stephen Kappa, MD, MBA 
Board-Certified Urologic Surgeon and Market President  
The Urology Group 
Fairfield, Ohio  

Dominique Well, MSN, RN 
Chief Operating Officer 
Conduit Health Partners