Aspiring healthcare leaders are furthering their education with a master’s degree. At Concordia University Chicago, students in the MBA in Health Care Management degree program equip themselves with the skills and knowledge to overcome challenges and improve patient care.
Now more than ever, outstanding healthcare leaders are needed to help with the fast-moving (and at times unpredictable) healthcare industry. Let’s examine how timely care, cybersecurity, rising operational costs, and workforce shortages create challenges in healthcare management.
Providing Timely Care
Patient access to timely care is critical in healthcare organizations because it sets the baseline for all patient encounters in the healthcare industry. Despite this significance, timely care isn’t a reality for many patients.
According to Statista, 46% of adults worldwide said that access to treatment and long waiting times were the highest reported challenges in the healthcare system in 2023.
One cause of this may be due to limited appointment availability and office hours that confine patients to the typical 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. hours — the time when patients need to be at work. Some healthcare organizations are expanding their office hours or using telehealth appointments to decrease these barriers to timely patient care.
Healthcare management will continue to face the challenge of providing timely care and looking from multiple angles to help patients quickly and efficiently.
Keeping Patient Data Safe
Since patient’s personal information is largely stored online, especially medical records that contain sensitive information, it’s important today more than ever for healthcare leaders to focus on cybersecurity.
The ransomware attack is popular among cyberattackers when targeting the healthcare industry because their goal is to gain funds from a ransom situation.
The cyberattacker will lock all employees out of the healthcare facility computer system, and then demand a payment to unlock the information.
But, there is no guarantee paying the ransom will unlock the information. This is why, according to a survey conducted by WSJ Pro Research, 57.5% of cybersecurity leaders said they wouldn’t pay a ransomware demand.
The effects of a cyberattack can be catastrophic, and at times, even result in providers turning away patients, transferring patients to a different facility, or smaller medical providers closing their facilities altogether.
Further effects of a cyberattack include:
- Loss of revenue
- Loss of patient trust
- More funds are spent on acquiring new patients and rebuilding trust
Consequently, healthcare leaders will need to adjust their budgets to put cybersecurity at the forefront in order to prevent cyberattacks from happening in the first place. Leaders will also need to organize more training sessions, so staff can be well prepared to spot possible cybercriminal phishing tactics.
Rising Operational Costs
A main goal for healthcare organizations is to decrease operational costs; however, the continued increase of operational costs in the industry can’t be ignored. For example, research shows 89% of medical groups’ operating costs increased in 2023 and 7% stayed the same.
The American Hospital Association states these four factors largely contribute to the rising operational costs of health systems and hospitals:
- Drug expenses
- Rising economy-wide inflation
- Medical supply and PPE expenses
- Workforce and contract labor expenses
Although it seems like these factors are difficult to improve, healthcare management professionals with an educational background in healthcare finances, analytics, and strategy can help.
Finding and Retaining Healthcare Staff
One of the main responsibilities falling on healthcare leaders is managing the overall staffing budget, which includes scheduling decisions and hiring high-skilled workers.
In the current healthcare climate, there is a shortage of registered nurses available. This issue will continue in the future if things don’t change.
In 2022, the American Hospital Association quoted an estimate that 500,000 nurses would leave by the end of that year. The amount of registered nurses retiring combined with other factors is opening more doors for professionals who choose a nursing career. In fact, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics states that “employment of registered nurses is projected to grow 6 percent from 2022 to 2032, faster than the average for all occupations.”
In the meantime, healthcare leaders will be in charge of finding and hiring more registered nurses while also balancing those already employed. Leaders will most likely need to brainstorm ideas to keep momentum moving forward, as well as, focus on making sure employees truly feel supported and appreciated.
Become a Healthcare Leader, Make a Positive Change
An online MBA with a specialization in Health Care Management program prepares those who are passionate about helping people take the next step into healthcare leadership.
Along with graduate business courses, students will be able to learn from a variety of healthcare-specific courses. Concordia University Chicago offers a well-rounded academic curriculum. Shape the positive future of healthcare — earn your online Health Care Management MBA.
