Four months after taking over as CEO of Sutter Health, Warner Thomas has identified what he wants to achieve in his first year leading the nonprofit health system in Northern California and plans to borrow a Some ideas from my time at Ochsner Health.
Thomas began his role at the Sacramento-based integrated 23-hospital system in December, after 10 years as CEO of New Orleans-based Ochsner.. In an interview, he said in an interview that easing Sutter’s staffing and capacity restrictions was one of his top initiatives.
In 2020, Ochsner and Loyola University New Orleans teamed up to launch a pre-licensed undergraduate nursing program. The following year, Ochsner partnered with Delgado Community College to help train more nurses.
Thomas said Sutter will look at similar connections with academic institutions in Northern California to strengthen Sutter’s workforce.
“We couldn’t pay to get out of the healthcare challenges we face today, we had to train and educate to get out,” he said. “We have a unique opportunity in our market here to build close partnerships with academic institutions to ensure that we are training and educating the next generation of workforce.” health care workforce.”
Thomas also mentions expanding Sutter’s remote monitoring capabilities, expanding outpatient reach, establishing relationships with policymakers, and Here’s what’s on his to-do list. Thomas.
Extended remote monitoring
Health systems must build infrastructure and capacity for remote monitoring, including an electronic intensive care unit program, to free up space in hospitals and emergency clinics, many of which are Some of them are already overcrowded, Thomas said. Thomas said Sutter has expanded its hospitals and outpatient clinics, but a more concerted effort on outpatient growth lies ahead. “We will be looking to build digital partnerships and deliver cutting-edge technology to our patients. That’s one of the reasons I came to Sutter,” says Thomas, noting that it’s close to Silicon Valley.
Increase training opportunities
Sutter, which trains about 200 residents and fellows each year, plans to double that number next year, Thomas said. Sutter operates in one of the highest-paying markets in the country, so the system will have to make a difference in workplace culture, he added.
Relationship with the governing body
Sutter has invested nearly $10 billion over the past decade in earthquake safety measures, amid a looming 2030 deadline to meet California law designed to keep hospitals afloat. normal after an earthquake. By 2020, the state will, in most cases, require hospitals to upgrade their existing buildings to withstand earthquakes or replace them. “My concern is that many hospitals will not be able to meet the 2030 requirements,” says Thomas.
Thomas hopes to forge strong relationships with state and federal policymakers to have candid conversations about regulations like anti-seismic retrofit standards and how they affect suppliers, he said.
Strengthen community hospital
Thomas said Sutter had to turn away thousands of patients last year because it was at full capacity. The health system should continue to allocate resources to community hospitals to help them treat patients with poor health, he said. “If smaller facilities can’t take care of patients and need to move them out, that’s a big problem,” says Thomas.
