Pressure Points: After COVID-19, times are tough, but silver linings abound 

More than 1,000 executive leaders from the nation’s top hospitals and health systems convened at the 2023 AHA Annual Membership Meeting, April 23-25 in Washington, D.C.

Research presented by acclaimed health care finances expert Lisa Goldstein, senior vice president for Kaufman Hall, show that times are tough but hospital leaders indicate there are silver linings from the COVID-19 pandemic that will pay dividends moving forward.  
  
“For the first time that I've ever seen, we've got all three legs of the stool, if you will, all three components of running a business that are under pressure, which means for 2023, it's going to be a tough year ahead,” Goldstein said. “And the rating agencies have said this, they're all have negative outlooks on the sector as we go forward.” 
  
Goldstein said hospitals should focus on how they can preserve the cash they have on hand, particularly in uncertain times.  
 
In a discussion moderated by AHA Chair-elect Joanne Conroy, M.D., president and CEO of Dartmouth Health, Cathy Jacobson, president and CEO of Froedtert Health, and Michael Stewart, CEO of Saline Health System, expressed how adapting to this new environment starts with advanced analytics that offer new operational understandings. In addition, Stewart said the pandemic reaffirmed that community partnerships are critical to elevating care, particularly in areas outside hospitals’ expertise, like transportation.  

For more on the 2023 AHA Annual Meeting, read AHA's coverage.