2012 AHA Health Care System Transformation Fellowship

Chicago—Sixteen senior executives have been selected to participate in the second class of the American Hospital Association (AHA) Health Care System Transformation Fellowship. The Fellowship is an intensive six-month program that provides participants with a road map of how to design and plan for new care delivery and payment models, such as medical homes, bundled payments and clinical integration programs.

“Understanding the changing health care landscape and the implications of health care reform should be paramount to every executive as they address the future,” said Christopher M. Dadlez, president and CEO of Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center in Hartford, Conn. and a participant in the inaugural 2011 Fellowship class. “The Transformation Fellowship provides an incredible opportunity to learn from leading systems across the country, share strategies and discuss the pros and cons of the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ accountable care approaches.”

“The goal of the Fellowship is to create a network of health care executives who are committed to transforming the care delivery system,” said Maulik S. Joshi, president of the Health Research & Educational Trust (HRET) and senior vice president of research for the AHA. “We provide them with a forum to share success stories, discuss challenges and create innovative methods for improving the quality of the services in their communities.”

Fellows will learn key foundational competencies including effective ways to manage enterprise risk, how to demonstrate value to various stakeholders and leveraging physician relationships to better coordinate patient care. Through a combination of in-person learning retreats and web seminars, fellows will hear first-hand accounts from organizations that have developed and executed these models, including representatives from the 2011 fellowship class. Additionally, fellows will complete a defined project, with the goal of advancing their organizations’ efforts towards the implementation of a care delivery or payment model.

Among the Fellowship projects planned by the 2012 fellows:

  • One organization, located in the Southeast, is seeking to align and integrate employed and private practice physicians to optimize coordination of care, clinical outcomes and professional collaboration and decision-making.
  • A Midwest integrated health system aims to improve physician performance and connect inpatient, outpatient and home health services to reduce duplication and improve overall patient care.
  • An East Coast health system is intending to implement a transitional care program in three urban facilities with the goal of reducing unnecessary readmissions and emergency department visits.

The fellowship activities for this new class begin February 15, and continue through July 2012.

Visit www.AHACareTransfromationFellowship.org for additional details.

About American Hospital Association (AHA)
The AHA is a not-for-profit association of health care provider organizations and individuals that are committed to the improvement of health in their communities. The AHA is the national advocate for its members, which includes more than 5,000 member hospitals, health systems and other health care organizations, and 42,000 individual members. Founded in 1898, the AHA provides education for health care leaders and is a source of information on health care issues and trends. For more information about AHA, visit www.aha.org.

About Health Research & Educational Trust (HRET)
Founded in 1944, the Health Research & Educational Trust (HRET) is the not-for-profit research and education affiliate of the American Hospital Association (AHA). HRET’s mission is to transform health care through research and education. HRET’s applied research seeks to create new knowledge, tools, and assistance in improving the delivery of health care by providers in the communities they serve. For more information about HRET, visit www.hret.org.