Resource Library

Here are some of the questions that we as governance consultants hear most frequently about board committees.

In most professions, there are clear and relatively consistent pathways along one’s career continuum, as well as clearly defined experiential and educational requirements. Not so with health care governance staffing, which ranges from board support provided by a CEO’s assistant all the way to a comprehensive governance support staff led by a senior vice president/chief governance officer.

A board member/trustee with a nursing background brings a unique voice to governance conversations focused on the Triple Aim. Nurses bring expertise in and valuable perspectives about community health, quality, safety, patient experience, workforce development, staff engagement and financial stewardship.

Establishing well-organized and consistent governance processes and procedures enables the board to be most productive, and ensures that its time is allocated to the most critical topics.

As the drumbeat of attention to governance effectiveness intensifies, the evaluation of individual directors is off-limits no more. Indeed, the New York Stock Exchange, Business Roundtable and National Association of Corporate Directors all recommend that corporate boards institute individual director assessment.

The tools that follow lay out a framework to assist you in that thinking and planning process with a focus on the competencies of individual trustees.

The role of a health care organization trustee gets more complicated and more sophisticated every day. Pressures are increasing simultaneously for higher quality, lower cost, more transparency and accountability, and use of evolving and evermore expensive technology.

Hospital and health system boards and leadership can advance their understanding of telehealth and how it fits into organizational priorities by considering the following questions.

The inspiring “Bridging Worlds” roadmap is just one of many resources SHSMD offers its members in healthcare planning, marketing, communications, physician relations, and business development.

This Conflicts of Interest and Documentation Policy (“Policy”) applies to all directors and officers of ....

Throughout my years of serving on boards, I typically have done so as an outside trustee, someone who brings knowledge about health care issues in general and about governance in particular, to the board table. Boards composed primarily of community members, as hospital boards traditionally have been, often incorporate outside trustees within their membership to bring a fresh, external perspective into board discussions.

Some 66 percent of U.S. hospitals are now part of health systems, according to 2016 survey data from the American Hospital Association. As systems continue to grow in scope and complexity, their governance often follows suit.

As community leaders, trustees are a powerful voice for their hospitals or health systems when it comes to advocacy. They can offer legislators “real life” insights and perspectives into the challenges facing patients and community members in the hospital’s service area, as well as how legislation and regulation will affect the women and men who work every day to fulfill their hospitals promise of help, hope and healing.

Analytics can be a tool for constructively engaging physicians in health systems’ transition to value

As health care organizations become more complex and diverse, their governance requires individuals with a range of knowledge, skills and behaviors that can address the needs and challenges of these evolving enterprises.

How well boards govern is influenced by a number of factors, among them, the knowledge and skills board members bring to their work.

Carolinas HealthCare System’s Journey to Revamp Its Mission & Vision Statements to Better Represent the Heart of the Organization

An aging population, increasing rates of chronic disease and the onset of value-based payment structures are among the many drivers that have moved hospitals and health systems in recent years to take a more prominent role in disease prevention, health promotion, and other public health initiatives.

Voluntary accreditation is considered to be an important symbol of a hospital’s commitment to high-quality, safe care. Some consumers look for accreditation when choosing a hospital. Many health care professionals believe it is an important indicator of the commitment to quality and safety they are looking for when choosing a place to practice.

Traditional community-based boards in health systems and hospitals have long been the stalwart of health care governance because of their value in connecting health care organizations to the communities they serve.