There are no two ways about it. Stuff happens. In the midst of our own personal and societal crises, hope tends to ebb away. Fear and pessimism easily set in. In such times, however, we should recall the old saying: “every cloud has a silver lining.” Hospital leaders will need to keep this maxim in mind over the next few months, as it may make the difference in how they respond to what appears to be a difficult road ahead.

Financial and accounting services giant BDO recently published its “Healthcare Stability Outlook Report: 2022 and 2023.” The subtitle of the report is “What to expect as the U.S. heads into an economic downturn.” From this subtitle, we are reminded that the nation is currently going through difficult days and will likely be facing a harsh winter of discontent. Hyperinflation and supply chain breakdowns are only two indicators of the current economic climate. With a recent federal government announcement that American supplies of diesel will be virtually depleted at some point this month, the severity of the crisis becomes clear. The lifeblood of our nation’s economy is diesel, since getting goods to market requires transport and much of that transport runs on diesel.

Despite all this doom and gloom, the analysts at BDO are convinced that there is the potential for finding at least a few positives in the healthcare sector over the coming months. Below is a summary of some of the challenges and opportunities for hospital leaders going into 2023.

Patient Access and Experience

According to BDO, patients may start or continue to put off treatment over the next quarter or so, due to high deductibles, loss of health insurance or other financial factors. Deferred care on a wide scale would lead to a decrease in case volumes, which—in turn—would lead to less hospital revenues. Over time, inability to fill America’s health facilities could lead to cutbacks in services, with the additional expectation of some permanent closures.

1. ​Prioritize patient-centric innovation, to include investing in projects that will bring the greatest benefits to your patients in the short term. Longer-term ROI projects may need to be deferred to preserve precious capital. 
   
2. Optimize your digital front door in order to make it easier for patients to schedule appointments, manage their health and understand the cost of their care. 
   
3. Streamline your referral system to reduce hurdles and improve patient care coordination. 
   
4. Consider exploring how maximizing the value of your EHR system can facilitate a cleaner referral process. Proactively monitor patient acuity and outcome measures. Work with the applicable payers to negotiate potential modifications to reimbursement and penalties of risk-based contracts to address the negative trend.

Providing a smoother and more robust patient-centered process may make the difference in removing the barriers to care in the minds of patients.

Operations and Supply Chain

Operating costs will likely increase, according to BDO analysts. They also see a continuation and intensification of supply shortages over the next several months. Certain vendors may go out of business, particularly niche vendors, further exacerbating supply difficulties across the industry. Here are suggestions on turning these challenges into opportunities:

1. Explore how EHR optimization can reduce operating costs. Hospitals may be able to simplify workflows, reduce the amount of duplicative work that’s required by both clinicians and support staff, and reduce the need for other software
   solutions. This, in turn should lead to an overall reduction in operating costs.
   
2. Consider working with a group purchasing organization (GPO). Working with these organizations can support the facility’s supply chain management and help expand access to supplies that are currently hard to obtain or even find. 
   
3. Explore lower-cost supplies. This may entail moving away from physician preferred supplies. Work with physicians to standardize supply, device and implant choices and optimize volume pricing.

There is no magic bullet for this present crisis in healthcare, but there are some strategies that each hospital should adopt to mitigate the issues now being felt in America’s health facilities. Innovation, experimentation and thinking outside the box will go a long way to providing at least a modicum of stability in these challenging times.