Approximately 25 hospital and health system members convened for the first MHA Person & Family Engagement (PFE) Advisory Council meeting of the 2023-2024 MHA program year. Members discussed action items and goals, including advancing the adoption of the 2023 PFE Roadmap, which provides policies, procedures and an assessment tool for hospital teams to advance engagement with patients and families. The council is also exploring how to support health equity efforts by working with the MHA Health Equity Task Force.
Members with questions about the MHA Person & Family Engagement Advisory Council may contact Erin Steward at the MHA.
The September edition of Trustee Insights, a monthly digital package from the American Hospital Association (AHA), includes a study of financial well-being and the need to shift from a transaction-first mindset to a human-centric mindset focused on providing people the care they need for a sustainable future.
As hospitals and health systems focus on workforce restoration, boards are challenged with shifting their mindset – this article outlines what to focus on. Another article explores the deeper meaning behind the “independence pledge,” outlining a range of affiliation options and how they might be considered.
Members seeking more information about MHA trustee resources or webinars may contact Erin Steward at the MHA.
The MHA has multiple higher education partners that recently received Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) grants to increase the number of community health workers (CHW) and health support workers (HSW), and these institutions are looking to partner with hospitals on training and placement of these workers.
Opportunities include:
West Michigan – Grand Rapids Community College (GRCC): The purpose of the GRCC program is to increase the number of CHW and HSW (certified nursing assistants (CNA), medical assistants (MA) and direct support professionals) and equip them with the skills needed to provide effective community outreach. GRCC will be training new CHW and HSW, including completion of hybrid coursework and internship/field placements or registered apprenticeships. GRCC has partnered with West Michigan Works to create a new CHW registered apprenticeship program and is looking for partners in this area. GRCC is also seeking field placement sites where non-incumbent CHW students can complete internships during their training. Hospitals with incumbent workers who may not have a certification in CHW, MA, CNA and direct support workers and would like to obtain one, the GRCC HRSA grant can cover any tuition cost for them to obtain certification through GRCC. Any hospital interested in these GRCC programs should contact Diego Roman at GRCC.
Southeast Michigan – Wayne State University: Wayne State University is partnering with the Michigan Community Health Worker Alliance on a CHW academy through a HRSA grant held by the Alliance. The Academy works with organizations who require the services of CHWs to understand their employment needs and then develop recruitment, hiring, training, supervision, and professional development plans that are uniquely tailored to the CHW employment needs of the organization. In addition, the Academy also provides customized trainings for individuals seeking to gain employment as a CHW. All services are guided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Core Public Health Competencies and Essential Public Health Services. Hospitals interested in learning more or in partnering should contact Nate McCaughtry, PhD, academy director at WSU.
Members with general questions about partnering with higher education may contact Erin Steward at the MHA.
Gov. Whitmer signed several MHA-supported bills during the week of July 17 related to the Healthy Michigan Plan, organ donation and vaccine distribution. Those bills include: House Bills 4495–4496 (Public Acts 98-99 of …
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released a proposed rule to update the Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) outpatient prospective payment system (OPPS) effective Jan. 1, 2024. The rule proposes to: Increase the outpatient conversion …
Crisis events are unpredictable and often present unique challenges in healthcare. The MHA is convening healthcare and community leaders virtually from 8:30 to 10 a.m. Aug. 25 to exchange ideas and resources for crisis events …
The July edition of Trustee Insights, the monthly digital package from the American Hospital Association (AHA), focuses on the board’s role in improving quality. Elizabeth Mort, MD, MPH, former senior vice president of quality and safety …
“It’s a time when workforce activism is peaking, and hourly workers in hospitals, long-term care facilities and in home care are targets of organizing efforts by unions. …
In an industry as big and prominent as healthcare, hourly workers including nurses, techs, business office and patient support services are vital to its performance. Those in skilled professions that require licenses are buffered by shortages: that’s the case with nurses, physical therapists and others. But not as much for non-skilled positions where cost-cutting has heightened labor-management tensions. And this comes as most hospitals have recovered to pre-pandemic financial health and CEO compensation in not-for-profit systems has become a lightening rod for industry critics like Arnold Ventures, West Health and Lown Institute among others. …
Hourly workers are the beating heart of the healthcare industry: they don’t have star power, they don’t have a voice, and they don’t feel they’re seen or heard. As the system transitions to AI-powered workforce solutions in bigger organizations, the heartbeat is irregular. It needs attention.”
The MHA received media coverage the week of July 17 regarding the healthcare workforce, federal legislation to address drug shortages and bills signed by Gov. Whitmer eliminating burdensome provisions in the Healthy Michigan Plan and …
The July edition of Trustee Insights, the monthly digital package from the American Hospital Association (AHA), focuses on the board’s role in improving quality. Elizabeth Mort, MD, MPH, former senior vice president of quality and safety and chief quality officer at Massachusetts General Hospital, shares best practices for senior administrative and clinical leaders and board members to set a safe and just culture that supports inclusion and psychological safety. Mort offers tactics for framing the board’s work around quality and safety goals. Another article focuses on a critical quality issue – improvement in substance abuse treatment. A recent study indicated approximately one in 11 visits to the emergency department and one in nine hospitalizations are related to substance use disorder (SUD), accounting for up to 33% of all admissions in safety net settings.
Boards should consider how to promote evidence-based practices through their quality programs, advocate for SUD-related education and serve as a vital conduit between the hospital’s SUD work and the community.
For information about MHA trustee resources or webinars, contact Erin Steward at the MHA.
The MHA announced the winners of its 2023 Ludwig Community Benefit Award during the association’s Annual Membership Meeting June 29. The honorees include programs supported by Detroit-based Henry Ford Health; Trinity Health Livonia; and ProMedica Charles and Virginia Hickman Hospital, Adrian. The award is named in memory of Patric E. Ludwig, a former MHA president who championed investing in the community’s overall health, and is presented to member organizations integrally involved in collaborative programs to improve the health and well-being of area residents. Each winner will receive $5,000 from the MHA Health Foundation to assist in its health improvement efforts.
Dr. Adnan Munkarah receives the Ludwig Award on behalf of Henry Ford Health.
Henry Ford Health partnered with the Ruth Ellis Center, a Detroit-area social services agency serving the LGBTQ+ community, to provide primary care and behavioral health services, at both Ruth Ellis Health & Wellness Center (HWC) and Ruth Ellis Clairmount Health & Wellness Center in collaboration with Henry Ford Health.
The first HWC opened in 2018 at the Ruth Ellis Drop-In Center in Highland Park, and the second opened in February 2023 inside the new Ruth Ellis Clairmount Center, which is a permanent supportive housing development in Detroit. The goal of the partnership is to provide an integrated healthcare model in a safe, trusted, and affirming environment to increase healthcare access and utilization, with a long-term goal of improving overall health outcomes for LGBTQ+ young people in the Detroit area.
Data from December 2020 through December 2022 shows the HWC in Highland Park saw 728 unique patients, including 429 transgender young adults, and completed 6,873 medical visits. This partnership is important work towards achieving health equity for a historically marginalized community.
Health Equity for LGBTQ+ Young People: A Collaboration between Henry Ford Health and Ruth Ellis Center will use its cash award to support HWC operations, including enhancing the video intercom system to improve facility security, ongoing medication support for under- or uninsured patients, and general clinic supplies to most effectively meet the needs of patients.
Shannon Striebich receives the Ludwig Award on behalf of Trinity Health Livonia.
Trinity Health Livonia is a partner in the Western Wayne Suicide Prevention Coalition (WWSPC), which is made up of seven school districts, seven community-based organizations and the hospital. The coalition implements a program of evidence-based behavioral health services, youth activities and education aimed at zero complete youth suicides.
Trinity Health Livonia’s 2015 Community Health Needs Assessment identified behavioral health as one of the area’s priority health concerns, which motivated community stakeholders to develop the coalition to provide behavioral health education, improve early detection for suicide, decrease stigma and increase identification of depression. Behavioral health continues to be a prioritized community health need for the ongoing 2021 Community Health Needs Assessment, as the COVID-19 pandemic has increased concerns around youth mental health. Western Wayne County school districts represent more than 52,000 students, and data from the Michigan Profile for Health Youth survey shows at least 4% of high school students and 11% of middle school students have reported suicide attempts.
WWSPC initiated a comprehensive program to train teens, families, school staff and community members, and to change policies to better support suicide prevention. The initiative offers thousands of young people the opportunity to be screened for mental health concerns, recognize suicide risk in themselves and others, obtain knowledge and skills to address factors that contribute to mental health problems and receive treatment as needed.
So far, WWSPC has certified trainers and offered the Question, Persuade, Refer training model to more than 3,000 school personnel and 1,000 students. WWSPC also hosted conferences for school mental health practitioners and parents. The money from the Ludwig Award will be offered as mini grants for student-led mental health and resilience initiatives in WWSPC districts.
For more information on the WWSPC, contact Laurie Gustafson, director of Community Health and Well-Being for Trinity Health Livonia, at (734) 655-8943.
Dr. Julie Yaroch, president, Promedica Charles and Virginia Hickman Hospital (left), receives the Ludwig Award on behalf of ProMedica.
ProMedica Charles and Virginia Hickman Hospital, Adrian, created ProMedica Farms and the Veggie Mobile collaboratively with the Lenawee Health Network to improve access to fresh, affordable produce and education, encouraging healthy lifestyles. The programs have been progressively implemented over the course of 10 years to improve the health and well-being of people and whole communities.
Located on the hospital campus, ProMedica Farms includes a clinically accessible hoop house, outdoor gardens, an education center, and walking trails connecting to the main hospital and a playground, all of which are open to the community. The program provides an interactive space for residents, patients and staff to engage in gardening, participate in evidence-based workshops and access produce grown by ProMedica Farms or sourced by the Veggie Mobile. It is also used to provide resources for patients and staff screening positive for food insecurity.
The Veggie Mobile is ProMedica’s mobile market that travels to 17 locations throughout Lenawee County, offering residents a range of fresh, low-cost produce sourced from ProMedica Farms and local farmers. The Veggie Mobile visits various locations, including senior centers, non-profit organizations, schools, apartment complexes and more.
The Ludwig Award will be allocated toward providing food to patients screening positive for food insecurity and supply costs for gardening workshops.
For more information about ProMedica Farms & Veggie Mobile, contact Amy Gilhouse, manager, ProMedica Farms, at ProMedica Charles and Virginia Hickman Hospital, at (517) 577-1020.
Applications are due June 28 for the 2023-2024 class of the MHA Excellence in Governance Fellowship, which will be held from October 2023 through June 2024.
The fellowship focuses on the functions of governance, leadership development and gaining insight into meaningful healthcare issues. Four strategic areas are covered in person: principles of effective governance, improving quality and patient safety, building collaborative medical staff partnerships and building strong relationships with the community and stakeholders. Virtual sessions held in the months the class does not meet in person address additional topics, such as social determinants of health and health equity, healthcare employee burnout and resilience, and workforce shortages and development. All sessions are led by experts in governance with a healthcare background.
Discounts are available to organizations with more than one applicant. To further explore this one-of-a-kind offering or to notify the MHA of intended applicants, contact Erin Steward at the MHA.
Approximately 80 leaders responsible for quality, safety and patient experience and patient care participated in an MHA webinar to review the newly released MHA Person & Family Engagement (PFE) Roadmap, which includes recommended policies to re-engage patients and caregivers. Participants reviewed the harm that the pandemic caused and its contribution to patient and caregiver isolation. Participants also shared best practices to rebuild relationships and collaborate on patient care. An assessment tool is available by request for hospitals and health systems to identify and resolve challenges around PFE adoption.
Members with questions may contact Erin Steward at the MHA.
Strategic thinking is a critical skill for all healthcare leaders and the future belongs to organizations whose governing board, working in strategic partnership with management, helps envision the future and assists in discerning and framing problems to determine what questions the organization should ask of itself to prepare for the future. Fulfilling these duties takes knowledge, preparation and action, which is why hospital leaders should strongly consider enrolling board members in the MHA Excellence in Governance Fellowship.
Launched 20 years ago, the fellowship isa rigorous and comprehensive program delivering tools and knowledge in strategic areas such as governance excellence, safety and quality, organizational vitality and leadership development. Fellows meet in person four times a year at the MHA headquarters in Okemos and participate in virtual sessions held in the months when fellows are not meeting in person. This format is designed to give board members the opportunity to fit this valuable learning into their busy schedules.
Graduates of the fellowship have high praise for the fellowship, as demonstrated by a video of graduate testimonials. Applications are currently being accepted for the 2023 – 2024 Excellence in Governance Fellowship, which will be held from October 2023 through June 2024. To further explore this one-of-a-kind offering, contact Erin Steward at the MHA.
Erin Steward, vice president of field engagement at the MHA kicks off the MHA Human Resources Member Forum.
The MHA hosted a human resources member forum April 26 at the MHA Headquarters in Okemos and virtually with about 200 leaders participating. Moderators Patrick Irwin, vice president, human resources, South Market, Henry Ford Hospital and Mary Rosser, MA, SHRM-SCP, chief human resources officer, Trinity Health Saint Mary’s, led discussion related to challenges and tactics for enhancing workforce safety and pipeline. Many member hospital employees shared their experiences and the forum concluded with a keynote presentation delivered by Mary Sand, Ph.D., Sand Consulting, LLC. The forum was generously sponsored by Coverys and Salary.com.
Members with questions about Member Forums may contact Erin Steward the MHA.
Governor Signs MHA Supported Legislation and Announces Round of GoingPro Awards
The Health System needs a Heart Transplant
