Hospital executives are most concerned with workforce challenges in 2022, but they are increasingly worried about meeting the greater demand for behavioral health services.
According to the annual survey by the American College of Healthcare Executives, workforce shortages still topped the list of 281 most concerned hospital executives last year. Respondents said the shortage of registered nurses and technicians was the biggest challenge. Similar to last year’s survey, financial constraints due to rising labor and material costs came in second.
Behavioral health issues ranked third among hospital CEOs’ top concerns, up from fourth in the 2021 survey. Respondents noted a lack of facilities adequate funding, insufficient dedicated funding, and inadequate reimbursement rates because hospital operators were forced to treat patients in their emergency departments for extended periods of time because of outpatient referral partners and their traditional boarding was at full capacity.
ACHE CEO Deborah Bowen said: “There are not many community-based behavioral health facilities and programs. “Operating companies are struggling with increased demand.”
The short-term, acute, non-federal hospital survey was conducted in September. Here are some lessons learned.
- The staffing issues of registered nurses and technicians are also the biggest concerns for hospital CEOs in 2021, but those challenges will no longer be common by 2022. Correspondingly, 90% and 83% of respondents said they had problems with registered nurses and technicians. That compares with 94% and 85% in the 2021 survey. Kaufman Hall data shows that labor pressures have eased slightly in recent months.
- 65% of hospital CEOs said they had a primary care physician staffing problem by 2022, up significantly from 45% in 2021. Number of residents practicing primary care head has increased in recent years but there are still not enough clinicians to meet current demand. Medical school graduates by specialty can earn twice as much as a primary care physician depending on the specialty.
- 70% of hospital CEOs say there is not enough reimbursement for behavioral health and addiction services. Although the Addiction and Mental Health Equality Act was enacted in 2008, there is still a large gap between payment for mental health and physical care, partly due to a lack of reality. exam. President Joe Biden said in his State of the Union speech last week that his administration would propose new rules to close that pay gap.
- 66% of respondents expect to reduce operating costs by 2022, up from 53% in 2021. Many hospitals, especially in rural areas, have had to cut services in the past year.
- 51% of respondents reported an increased need for opioid addiction and related treatment. Thirty percent of hospital executives said legal and regulatory challenges have limited treatment options, and 29% said stigma around behavioral health has hindered care.
