Thursday, Sept. 11
2:30 – 4 p.m.
Optional pre-conference session (included in conference registration)
New hospital board member orientation program
- Florence L. Di Benedetto, President and Chief Executive Officer, Di Benedetto Solutions, Inc.
- Sharon L. Hanson, Chair, Board of Governors, HTNYS, and Board Secretary, Erie County Medical Center, Buffalo
- Nicholas Henley, MPH, Executive Director, HTNYS, and Vice President, External Affairs, HANYS
- Kathy Rauch, RN, MSHQS, BSN, CPHQ, Vice President, Quality Advocacy, Research and Innovation, HANYS
The amount healthcare trustees must learn to effectively fulfill their governance responsibilities can seem overwhelming. The healthcare landscape is complex and can be especially daunting to new board members and professionals coming from outside of the healthcare sector. To educate new trustees and provide a refresher to more experienced board members, HTNYS is hosting an orientation program with a comprehensive overview of healthcare governance and the fundamental roles and responsibilities of healthcare trustees in New York state.
This program will provide a tailored scan of New York’s hospital system, an overview of leading governance practices and the board’s role in quality and patient safety, and a Q&A with content experts and veteran hospital board members.
This session will be useful for board members new to their position on a hospital, health system or nursing home board and an important refresher for longer-serving trustees.
4:15 – 5:30 p.m.
Welcome
- Sharon L. Hanson, Chair, Board of Governors, HTNYS, and Board Secretary, Erie County Medical Center, Buffalo
Keynote address
Leadership is worthless…but leading is priceless: What I learned from 9/11, the NFL and Ukraine
- Thom Mayer, MD, Medical Director, NFL Players Association
Dr. Thom Mayer has led through some of the most prominent crises of our generation, including serving as the command physician at the Pentagon on 9/11, incident commander for the first bioterrorism incident in the U.S., medical director of the NFL Players Association and leading a mobile emergency team during the Ukraine invasion. This experience has led him to develop a contrarian approach to leadership, which is: leadership is worthless…because it is a noun — something you say. But leading is priceless…because it is a verb — the things you do, all day, every day, in every walk of life.
During this keynote, Mayer will challenge you to ask the right question, "How will I lead myself and my team today?” By helping you embrace leading in everything you do — no matter what job you do — he will inspire you to lead yourself, your team and your family.
Filled with stories and examples from his career as “The Master of Disaster,” leading at the forefront of crises on the world stage, this session will challenge and inspire new and practical approaches to leading your hospital or health system and life in times of crisis.
5:30 – 6:30 p.m.
Welcome cocktail reception
Kick off the conference by enjoying delicious light bites, cocktails and conversation with your peers.
6:30 p.m.
Dinner
Enjoy an evening of dinner on your own and explore exciting Saratoga Springs!
Friday, Sept. 12
7 – 8 a.m.
Breakfast
8 – 8:30 a.m.
Opening remarks
- Nicholas Henley, MPH, Executive Director, HTNYS, and Vice President, External Affairs, HANYS
- Kristen Phillips, CAE, Director, Trustee Education, HTNYS, and Director, Community Health Policy, HANYS
8:30 – 9:30 a.m.
Healthcare 2040: The six vectors that will shape the future of healthcare
- Rubin Pillay, MD, PhD, MBA, MSc, Assistant Dean, University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine; Chief Innovation Officer, UAB Health System; Founding Executive Director, Heersink Institute for Biomedical Innovation
By 2040, healthcare will be vastly different from where we are today. But what forces will drive this evolution? Renowned medical futurist and healthcare innovation specialist, Dr. Rubin Pillay, will unpack the key trajectories that promise to reshape our healthcare landscape in the coming years. This session will explore the six vectors Pillay identifies as critical to shaping the future of healthcare:
- Digital transformation and medical automation: Witness the future of healthcare as it becomes increasingly interconnected and digitized. Discover how technologies like telemedicine, AI, big data and blockchain will revolutionize patient care and healthcare administration. Explore how AI, machine learning and automation will revolutionize diagnostics, treatment planning and care delivery, improving efficiency and accuracy.
- Personalized medicine: Learn how advances in genomics, proteomics and bioinformatics are paving the way for personalized, precision medicine, tailoring treatments to the unique makeup of each individual.
- Shift to well care: Delve into how transitioning from sick care to a well care model will drastically improve patient outcomes while reducing healthcare costs.
- The patient as a prosumer: As patient-centric care becomes the norm, understand how a technology-empowered, informed patient population will have more control and transparency in their healthcare.
- Insurance to OUTsurance: The availability of real-time data and multivariable data points will dramatically change how we pay for healthcare. Learn about novel approaches to healthcare payment.
- The cure paradox: Healthcare’s quest to cure disease is materializing, driven by the “omics” revolution. Is this a good business model for “sick care”?
By the end of this session, attendees will have a better view of what healthcare in 2040 might look like and understand the profound implications these changes will have on patients, providers and society.
9:30 – 9:45 a.m.
Break
9:45 – 10:45 a.m.
Can hospitals save the medical profession? Strengthening our institutions’ most valuable asset
- Todd Sagin, MD, JD, National Medical Director, Sagin Healthcare Consulting, LLC
In the twentieth century, medicine evolved from a trade into a profession. However, in the twenty-first century, physicians are finding the prerogatives of their chosen profession being constantly whittled away. This has created both dissatisfaction and moral distress among clinicians and exacerbated the burnout induced by the COVID-19 pandemic. Hospitals and health systems that don’t respond to this new reality for physicians will find their recruitment and retention efforts diminished and their doctors’ engagement less than desired.
In this session, we will look at the changed nature of medical practice and its impact, explore why so many organized medical staff represent an anachronistic and inadequate hospital structure, describe ways hospitals and health systems can strengthen their relationships with doctors, and discuss the different roles governance and management play in relating to the hospital and health system professional community.
10:45 – 11 a.m.
Break
11 a.m. – noon
Breakout strategy sessions
Evolving the board to meet expected and unexpected future needs
- Laura Orr, Senior Partner and Global Board Advisory Leader, WittKieffer
- Rachel Polhemus, Senior Partner, Healthcare, WittKieffer
Hospital and health system boards must continuously adapt and keep pace with industry shifts. Proactive succession planning for future members is essential to ensure the right mix of competencies, expertise and adaptability to meet anticipated strategic needs and unforeseen challenges. Boards must constantly evaluate these needs and seek experienced functional experts as well as "athletes" with broad capabilities and adaptability.
In this session, speakers from the executive search and leadership advisory firm WittKieffer will provide a comprehensive look at how healthcare boards are evolving, the critical competencies needed for the future, and practical approaches to recruiting, onboarding and accelerating the impact of new members.
Condition critical: The emergency department liability experience
- Michael J. Schoppmann, Esq., Chief Executive Officer, MLMIC Insurance Company
The emergency department is one of the leading sources of professional liability claims against hospitals and healthcare providers. The chaotic environment, difficult patient presentations and a lack of communication and care coordination can all contribute to the liability risks. Join us as MLMIC presents data on the leading causes of emergency medicine claims and offers strategies to mitigate the risk of such claims within your organization.
By the end of this session, attendees will be able to:
- identify the most common causes of professional liability claims in the ED;
- recognize the communication issues that contribute to claims in this setting;
- discuss the key lessons learned through the analysis of clinical case studies; and
- understand how effective risk management strategies can improve patient safety and reduce potential liability exposure in the hospital.
Patient experience in New York: What trustees need to know
- Hillary Alycon, DrPH, MPH, CIC, CPPS, CPHQ, LSSBB, Associate Vice President, Quality Management and Infection Prevention, Glens Falls Hospital, Albany Med Health System
- Rick Evans, Senior Vice President and Chief Experience Officer, NewYork-Presbyterian
- Kathy Rauch, RN, MSHQS, BSN, CPHQ, Vice President, Quality Advocacy, Research, and Innovation, HANYS
Evaluating patient experience is essential to providing a complete picture of healthcare quality. Substantial evidence points to a positive association between various components of patient experience, such as good communication between clinicians and patients, and important processes and outcomes.
While New York hospitals perform below the national average on HCAHPS surveys, further analysis shows the impact of population demographics on hospital ratings within the state. During this session, patient experience leaders will share statewide, regional and peer-group data, as well as strategies for gathering information, developing strategic plans and leveraging limited resources to act on feedback and improve patient experience.
By the end of this session, participants will be able to:
- explain why patient experience is an important component of healthcare quality worthy of being included in the organization’s strategic plan;
- understand how community demographics may impact HCAHPS survey results;
- identify multiple ways to gather feedback from patients and families about their experience; and
- articulate improvement strategies that are low cost to the organization.
Noon – 1:30 p.m.
Luncheon
Presentation of the Healthcare Trustee Leadership Award
- Nicholas Henley, MPH, Executive Director, HTNYS, and Vice President, External Affairs, HANYS
- Sharon Hanson, Chair, HTNYS, and Secretary, Erie County Medical Center, Buffalo
Dialogue with HANYS’ President: The state of healthcare in New York and beyond
- Bea Grause, RN, JD, President, HANYS
1:30 – 1:45 p.m.
Break
1:45 – 2:45 p.m.
Breakout strategy sessions
Evaluating CEO performance: A core board responsibility for strategic success
- Laura Orr, Senior Partner and Global Board Advisory Leader, WittKieffer
- Rachel Polhemus, Senior Partner, Healthcare, WittKieffer
A thoughtful, structured and well-executed CEO evaluation process is one of the board’s most powerful tools for driving strategic alignment, leadership development and organizational results. For many boards, however, there’s an opportunity to enhance the approach to make it more consistent, future-focused and impactful.
This session will provide board members with a comprehensive roadmap for effective CEO evaluation. Participants will explore how to establish clear expectations; use both qualitative and quantitative performance indicators; and link results to meaningful feedback, compensation and development planning. Through an interactive case study, board members will learn how to foster trust, facilitate growth-focused conversations and ensure the evaluation process reinforces both accountability and partnership.
This session is designed for board members of all experience levels and offers practical tools and strategies to elevate your board’s CEO evaluation approach and strengthen the CEO-board relationship.
The changing cybersecurity landscape and the board’s role in building a risk reduction strategy
- Thomas Hallisey, Director, Digital Health Strategy, HANYS
- James Purvis, Associate Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer, University of Rochester/UR Medicine
Healthcare facilities are the most targeted sector for cybersecurity attacks. At the same time, significant funding pressures continue, and forthcoming regulations will require governing boards to oversee cybersecurity programs.
During this session, attendees will learn about the overall cybersecurity environment, the scope and goals of the coming regulations, and what the board’s involvement should be in this new age. James Purvis, CISO of UR Medicine, a health system that includes both an academic medical center and rural hospitals, will add context to these concerns and give his perspective on meeting the regulations, assessing the risks and guiding the board’s required involvement.
Effective governance in systems
- Jeffrey A. Kraut, Executive Vice President, Strategy, Northwell Health; Assistant Professor and Associate Dean, Strategy, Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell
As health system affiliations have progressed and matured over recent years, many hospital boards within health systems have transitioned their scope from fiduciary to community or local advisory boards. This transition can raise questions about the board’s new role and its ability to continue meeting the unique needs of that community. Hear directly from Jeffrey Kraut, a Northwell Health executive with extensive experience in system affiliations and creating effective governance models across diverse communities in the Northwell system. As chair of New York State’s Public Health and Health Planning Council, Kraut is uniquely positioned to understand and communicate the impact of different governance and affiliation models.
This presentation will review strategies and steps boards can take to chart a path toward more effective system governance, including roles and responsibilities, community connections, communication and continuing education.
2:45 – 3 p.m.
Break
3 – 4 p.m.
Artificial intelligence in healthcare: Five challenges for leaders and trustees
- Steven Berkowitz, MD, Founder and President, SMB Health Consulting
Hardly a day goes by when there is not a story in the news about artificial intelligence and its impact on healthcare. New advances in technology and applications — both exciting and scary — seem to be evolving exponentially.
Building on his session at last year’s conference, Dr. Berkowitz will review basic AI models and concepts, emphasizing their applications in healthcare. He will discuss this technology’s inherent biases, limitations and performance gaps, emphasizing the importance of maintaining the human factor.
He will discuss specific applications that can be initiated today, such as AI scribes, clinical decision support and operational optimization, citing national best practice examples.
5:30 – 6:30 p.m
Sip, snack and socialize at J&A American Grille
(An extra fee and registration are required.)
Join your peers for cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and networking at J&A American Grille (38 High Rock Ave, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866), a restaurant rooted in American tradition. Located in the heart of Saratoga Springs and just a short walk from the conference, this will be a great opportunity to connect with colleagues over delicious bites to start your evening.
6:30 p.m
Dinner
Enjoy an evening of dinner on your own and explore exciting Saratoga Springs!
Saturday, Sept. 13
7 – 8 a.m.
Breakfast
8 – 9 a.m.
DOH update from the commissioner
- James V. McDonald, MD, MPH, Commissioner, New York State Department of Health
Hear the health commissioner reflect on the current healthcare system in New York, including:
- Workforce: Learn about efforts to bolster the healthcare workforce, including RNs, LPNs and CNAs, as well as the issue of workplace violence;
- Caring for patients with complex needs: Hear his perspective on the increasing complexity of patients served by hospitals and nursing homes and the associated challenges with post-discharge placements; and
- Quality and patient safety: Learn about efforts to maintain and improve care quality amid the current landscape of throughput and placement challenges, including constraints associated with the lack of available placements to post-acute settings.
9 – 10 a.m.
The ultimate responsibility: Executing the board’s role in quality and safety
- Kathryn K. Leonhardt, MD, MPH, CPHQ, CPPS, Principal Consultant, International Quality and Patient Safety, Joint Commission International
Evidence shows that the board’s actions significantly impact patient and staff outcomes. However, as healthcare becomes more complex, boards struggle to understand how to effectively govern quality and safety. The Joint Commission states that the governing body has “ultimate” responsibility — and accountability — for safety and care quality.
During this session, we will share a roadmap that provides strategic and tactical recommendations for trustees and senior leaders and address specific responsibilities required by regulatory and accrediting organizations, such as TJC. Trustees will understand how to fulfill their role in improving organizational performance in quality and safety.
10 a.m.