Picture this: You’re a senior executive of a major healthcare network that recently finalized a merger with a neighboring health system. The move promises greater reach, expanded services, and the operational, financial, and clinical efficiencies of “systemness”— a model that unifies functions across the organization for cohesion and coordinated care. But the financial complexities of blending two organizations have brought new challenges to your desk, and now you’re facing overlapping technologies, disjointed processes, escalating costs and more.
The merger has left your network with a mixed fleet of medical technology with interoperability issues, redundant IT systems with ballooning maintenance costs, disparate supply chain contracts that need alignment, and restructured workforce demands that risk increased burnout. On one hand, there’s an urgent need to stabilize operations and address these immediate financial pressures. On the other, a transformative digital infrastructure project could help centralize operations and prepare for the future demands of coordinated care. Both priorities are critical but competing for limited resources, and tension is rising.
The challenge of balancing short-term financial stability with a long-term vision more than operational, it’s an opportunity to define the future of your organization’s success.
Caught between now and next: Funding the future without breaking the bank.
Immediate demands like patient care, staffing, and technology upgrades are frequently in financial competition with funding the aspirations of tomorrow. And leaders can feel caught in the middle. The key is to move beyond traditional transactional investments and embrace innovative financial strategies that provide flexibility and resilience.
Value-Based Contracting: A bridge to long-term success
Value-based contracting bridges the gap between current financial constraints and future transformation goals. By aligning financing options with long-term objectives rather than short-term sales, these models help healthcare systems successfully navigate competing priorities.
Partial self-funding. Advanced technologies, such as AI and digital platforms, can help generate financial gains with increased efficiency and throughput, enabling them to self-fund part of their investment. These solutions can also be upgraded and scaled over time, extending their value. For example:
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Reduced length of stay. Advanced remote care technologies and operational command-centers can help streamline care coordination, reduce occupancy, and minimize delays, supporting additional throughput, and minimizing the staff burden.
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Increased efficiency and staff support. AI, automation, and assistive technologies can help reduce cognitive burdens and enhance productivity. Equipment with standardized capabilities, protocols and maintenance requirements helps simplify workflows, improving overall efficiency and patient care.
Aligned incentive-based agreements. Vendors can share responsibility for value realization by achieving pre-agreed outcomes, fostering accountability.
Predictable payment schedules. Consistent payments scheduled over a longer timeframe can enable better financial planning and allow for incremental scaling of investments.
By aligning financial strategies with innovation, healthcare leaders can fund the future without breaking the bank, unlocking value today and building resilience for tomorrow.
Read about navigating the complexity of adopting new technologies at scale across health systems.
Strategic planning for a stronger, smarter future
A multi-year technology roadmap that integrates financial and operational goals is essential for balancing today’s demands with tomorrow’s opportunities. By prioritizing scalability and flexibility, it helps ensure adaptability to changing market conditions and health system needs, foster sustainable growth, and preserve operational integrity.
Build a futureproof technology ecosystem
To prepare for a sustainable future, consider the following:
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Maximize existing assets. Ensure your installed base is delivering maximum benefit. Are there unused features that can unlock efficiencies?
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Lifecycle management. Strategically retire or reallocate aged equipment by aligning its value to acuity and clinical needs, rather than simple one-for-one replacement. This approach extends the value of assets and ensures that the right technology is available in the right place at the right time.
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Plan for obsolescence. Anticipate technology obsolescence with proactive planning to minimize disruption and avoid unnecessary costs.
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Scalability. Prioritize technologies that can adapt and grow with evolving needs, ensuring consistency even with mixed-aged fleets. Many innovations can now be upgraded with additional functionality or provide a scalable platform from which to expand.
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Take a long-term, programmatic approach. Think in decades rather than years. Workflow and technology assessments can help identify big opportunities, enhance cross-team collaboration and integration, and create a cohesive ecosystem for growth and adoption.
By adopting this approach, health systems can create resilient ecosystems that support immediate needs and prepare for sustainable success in the future.
Start with the right allies
Developing integrated technology strategies requires expert guidance and trusted collaborators. This is where the right vendor can make the difference. Value-based contractors are essential for aligning investments with clinical and operational goals, supporting the full lifecycle of implementation and beyond. They have the expertise and experience to co-develop roadmaps that align people, processes, and technologies, working elbow-to-elbow with health system teams to ensure measurable outcomes over time.
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Governance frameworks. They enable the co-development and execution of strategic initiatives by establishing clear KPIs and aligning technology with long-term objectives, ensuring accountability and sustained progress throughout implementation.
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Flexible financial solutions. They provide predictable long-term expenditures, supporting innovation while allowing adaptability to future needs.
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Integration and change management support. They help ensure smooth adoption and enhanced ROI.
Learn more about the power of integration across people, processes, and technologies.
Build the future, today
Successfully balancing the urgent demands of today with the transformative potential of tomorrow is critical for healthcare systems transitioning to a more cohesive, efficient ‘systemness’ model. By leveraging flexible financial strategies, adopting multi-year technology roadmaps, and forming value-based alliances, healthcare leaders can successfully navigate this challenging balancing act.
Now is the time to align today’s actions with tomorrow’s ambitions and deliver on the promise of system-wide transformation that drives both resilience and growth.
