Director, Goshen Physicians
October 2023- The Journal of Healthcare Contracting
JHC: Can you tell us about your role and responsibilities?
Bill Born: I joined Goshen Physicians in February 2022 as a member of Goshen Health’s HR team in a role entitled Colleague Development Specialist. The focus of this position was to provide leadership training across the organization. I was in the HR role for three and a half years. When our current Vice President for Goshen Physicians moved from a Director role to the Vice Presidency, I opted to pursue the vacated Director role.
The HR role served as an internal consulting role on leadership. Over time I realized I missed the actual leadership component of engaging teams and working with the same group of people week in and week out. I didn’t have any direct clinical management experience prior to my move to the Director role, but I had been in higher education for 26 years in a variety of leadership roles. I think there’s a component of communication, operations and strategic management that can serve across different professions.
I’m learning much about clinical management and actively engage others including practice managers, vendors, and providers. I’m enjoying the work with several clinics from GI and OB/GYN to a handful of family practice, primary care provider clinics. I also work with onsite direct care clinics with major employers in the area.
JHC: What’s a recent project you’ve been excited to work on?
Born: Goshen Health and Goshen Physicians has a history of providing creative clinic care and wellness services. We have a Business Health Advantage team who works directly with employers. Several onsite clinics have been established over the years offering clinical care to employees and their families. This model of care provides direct access and serves both the employees and employers. When I took this role, we were in the final stages of negotiations with a large recreational vehicle manufacturer in our area. We launched the onsite clinic on their campus in January of 2023 and it has been a joy to see the success of this service.
Onsite clinics are a partnership with the companies we work with and Goshen Physicians. In this particular case the Director of HR was an active participant in the design of both the space and service model for their employees. They invested the resources in building the full clinic adjacent to their Occupational Health Clinic and Fitness Center for their employees. Specific steps were taken to make sure employee family members were also cared for. It is a beautiful facility with a waiting room, exam rooms, a lab and procedure room. We have three nurse practitioners rotating six days a week to providing clinic appointment service and care for their employees. The clinic also provides a formulary of medications available as part of the service.
The manufacturer underwrites quite a bit of expense which provides the incentive for their employees to use the service. There are many unique stories since the clinic opened in January. One example is an employee in their 50s who noted “Yeah, I haven’t seen a doctor since I was 17.” The availability and convenience of utilizing this clinic was the motivation for this individual to come in and begin to look after their personal wellness for the first time as an adult.
With access to the fitness area, we can promote wellness in ways many clinics cannot. We offer wellness coaching and are developing additional wellness programs with the manufacturer. These opportunities have led to a special rapport between provider and patients. It’s been fantastic.
Over 500 appointments were completed in January 2023 when the clinic opened. Use has remained steady. This has been a huge success. Patients complete the patient satisfaction surveys and are very satisfied with the care they are receiving. Ultimately it fits our mission of meeting the needs of our community in a creative way. As you can imagine, there are ongoing conversations with other manufacturers because of this clinic’s success. Large employers are asking, “How can we replicate this for our employees?”
Not all employers may have the option or interest in building their own clinic onsite. We offer a model of this program to a handful of employers where our existing Family Practice Clinics in close proximity can provide prioritized care. We are currently considering how to utilize all of our clinics in this way to make this sort of program more attractive and available to more members in the communities we serve. It’s a model to increase access and care.
JHC: What is your philosophy on where non-acute care fits into the overall healthcare continuum?
Born: It is about access and preventive care. Our onsite model has and will continue to reach community members who have not made wellness a priority. Many of the employees of our latest onsite are Amish and the availability of this service has met their needs in ways other options might not. This avenue got more of them in a clinic and looking after their care. So, I think it’s part of the access question – how do we create access for all of the community members that we serve?
JHC: What facets of supplier-provider relations have gained a greater importance in today’s marketplace?
Born: There’s no doubt that in this industry, it’s essential that supply chain managers and vendors understand their clients – not only their clients and who they’re serving, but also the communities in which they’re serving. Debbie Jensen (Senior Account Manager, Health Systems, McKesson) who we work with understands our communities, our models for care and works as a partner in our efforts.
One skill is knowing the community, knowing the patients we’re serving. She lives within our region. She has lived here for some time. She understands Goshen, she understands Syracuse, and the communities that we serve.
Another skill is connecting personally. Debbie makes her way to all the clinics. We have 30 or so and she touches base with each practice manager. She’s not just working with me; she’s also connecting with practice managers and providers and finding out what their specific needs are.
Then she’s proactive and always looking for what might be the next thing that could better serve a clinic or aid in meeting the needs of what we’re trying to accomplish.
This combination allows her to help us in our negotiation of additional vendor contracts. She knows the industry, knows our needs, and can help articulate this to the vendor community. This has been essential. She’s a trusted partner. It’s not just about medical supply management, it’s about meeting us where we are and knowing what we need to meet the healthcare needs of our community.