Hi Team –

 

I hope you had a safe and fun-filled Memorial Day holiday weekend! And a BIG thank you, once again, to all of our team members and physicians who served our patients throughout the holiday weekend.

 

A special thanks also goes out to our TriHealth Armed Forces Group and Supporters (TAGS) Employee Resource Group for helping TriHealth to honor and remember – in a number of special ways – the Armed Forces service members who gave their lives to protect our nation’s freedoms.

 

First, TAGS partnered with Hospice of Cincinnati for a special Memorial Day program held last week. I was honored to join our TriHealth team members, leaders and physicians, alongside Veterans, Hospice patients and members of our community, as part of this touching tribute. And then alongside TriHealth team members, TAGS supported the Honor Flights Welcome Home Rally last Wednesday. Our TriHealth team provided a heroic “welcome home” to Tri-State Veterans at CVG Airport who participated in a once-in-a-lifetime visit to the war memorials in Washington, D.C. Later in the week, TAGS hosted a traditional Flag Folding Memorial Service on the campus of Bethesda North Hospital.

 

Earlier this month, our Board approved TriHealth’s FY2025 Annual Plan, which consists of our strategic priorities, pillar goals and budget for the upcoming fiscal year. It serves as a “road map” for the next phase or “body of work” in our multi-year journey to Get Healthcare Right – all so we can deliver on the triple aim of better care, better health and better value, always! Our Annual Plan was developed through a collaborative and inclusive process involving leaders, physicians and team members from across the system.

 

The planning process started in January by examining major industry trends and challenges that are impacting TriHealth and other health systems across the nation. The most important of these include workforce shortages, persistent health disparities, expanding access, costs rising faster than revenue, growing consumer expectations and digital transformation (AI, virtual care, analytics, cloud computing, etc.). Detailed initiatives and tactics were then developed to address these industry imperatives, as part of our continuing work to Get Healthcare Right by: 

In the coming weeks, we’ll share more information on our Fiscal Year 2025 Annual Plan and our work ahead in my Weekly Update, our Monthly Town Halls and your local department and unit meetings.

 

Over the past 20 years, TriHealth and Xavier University (XU) have forged a growing partnership based on our shared commitment to lead the way in advancing community health and education. Through this alliance, TriHealth serves as the preferred healthcare provider for the entire XU community, including student-athletes, students, faculty and staff.

 

This relationship has enabled us to create a pipeline of future healthcare workers and tap into XU’s nationally recognized academic and research programs to help transform healthcare delivery for the better in alignment with our bold vision for Getting Healthcare Right. And this relationship continues to grow each year. Last year, XU announced plans to launch the nation’s first Jesuit university-sponsored College of Osteopathic Medicine (COM), with plans for TriHealth to serve as the major clinical and teaching partner, offering the potential for TriHealth physicians to serve in teaching and clinical leadership roles. We are now working closely with XU to plan for the opening of the COM, which is scheduled to welcome its inaugural class in the Fall of 2027. And in the coming years, TriHealth will further expand our educational collaboration with XU beyond the COM and our current clinical affiliations.

 

In support of our growing collaboration, earlier this year, Jean Griffin, former Dean of Students at XU, was appointed to the newly created role of Executive of the TriHealth/Xavier University Alliance. And in the most recent Getting Health Care Right podcast with the Cincinnati Business Courier, Jean and Terri Hanlon-Bremer, TriHealth Executive Vice President and System Chief Operating Officer, share many of the important aspects of this powerful partnership, including strategies for addressing healthcare labor shortages and TriHealth’s influence on academic innovations at XU. Click here to listen.

 

As the most recent example of TriHealth’s regional and national leadership in Getting Healthcare Right, I’m pleased to share that the Good Samaritan Free Health Center (FHC) was honored with the Marian & Donald Spencer “Spirit of America” Award last week.

 

Since 2015, the Cincinnatus Association and the Greater Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky African American Chamber of Commerce have recognized individuals and organizations with this award for having demonstrated exceptional dedication and service to the greater Cincinnati area, with a commitment to ensuring greater inclusion and diversity in the community.

 

As yet another way we are working to eliminate health disparities and improve health equity for our own patients and the broader community, the FHC serves uninsured and underserved adults who are disproportionately at risk for chronic diseases, such as diabetes and hypertension. The FHC provides regular access to the right care at the right time to help these patients enjoy an improved quality of life. And since its founding in 2011, the FHC has served thousands of uninsured adults by providing primary care services on-site, together with referrals to TriHealth specialists and hospitals when needed for more complex and specialized care.

 

Congratulations on this well-deserved honor go out to Linda Smith-Berry, FHC Executive Director, Dr. Stephen Eby, FHC Medical Director, and all of our physicians, providers and community volunteers who bring our mission to life through this work!

 

As I shared in my email communication last week, we are now five months into the search process for a new TriHealth Chief Nursing Executive (CNE) to succeed Jenny Skinner, who announced in January her plans to retire at the end of this fiscal year. It is now clear that this search will not be completed before Jenny retires at the end of June. So, I am excited to share that we have asked Maria Ashdown, Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer (CNO), Good Samaritan Region (pictured top right), to step in and serve as Interim TriHealth CNE until we select Jenny’s permanent successor. Maria enthusiastically agreed, allowing Jenny to provide Maria with “onboarding” guidance and support over the next six weeks, so she can “hit the ground running” in July. And while Maria fills the interim system CNE role, Sarah Barwell, Associate CNO for Good Samaritan Hospital (pictured bottom right), has agreed to take on the additional responsibilities of Good Sam Region CNO.

 

Special thanks to both Maria and Sarah for stepping into these interim nursing leadership roles, allowing us the time necessary to complete a thorough search, selection, and onboarding process for the next TriHealth CNE. Look for details about retirement celebration plans for Jenny Skinner in the next couple of weeks, as we look forward to saying thank you to Jenny for more than 30 years of exceptional leadership and service to TriHealth and our patients.

 

For many, the start of summer means the start of vacation season… and for some, this means travel to exotic destinations abroad. As part of our commitment to serve our growing patient population by expanding access to care where and when our patients prefer to receive it, TriHealth is now offering travel medicine services.

 

Earlier this year, TriHealth opened our Travel Vaccine & Preventative Care Clinic located near Bethesda North Hospital. The new clinic is staffed by experienced Board Certified Infectious Disease physicians and nurse practitioners who are trained in Tropical and Geographic Medicine. It offers a full range of vaccines – from routine annual shots to specialized travel immunizations – in a patient-first setting that prioritizes the patient’s health, comfort and convenience. And to underscore the travel clinic’s focus on convenience, the individualized care plans are accessible at any time through MyChart. To date, the travel clinic has served nearly 400 patients, providing easy access to necessary vaccinations and advice for upcoming international travel plans! A BIG shout out to Sadath Hussain, MD, Manager, TPP Health Services and Innovation, for his leadership in advancing this important program which will allow TriHealth to serve an ever-growing patient population with the right care at the right time in the right place! And this includes those who want to travel abroad safely with the peace of mind that all medical precautions have been taken!

 

Thank you for your continued commitment to work together as ONE TEAM, TRIHEALTH STRONG to “see, hear and heal” all those we serve, always! Because of your collective dedication and hard work, we ARE Getting Healthcare Right! Our care is safer, more accessible and affordable, our patients are healthier and our community is increasingly turning to TriHealth for all of their healthcare needs!