Burning Questions, Part IV

We continue again this week with my answers to the questions posed by leaders from across CHRISTUS Health at our recent leadership retreat.

Q. What is the direction you see for our international partnerships?

A. CHRISTUS Muguerza has many opportunities to grow in Mexico. And as capital in that country becomes more widely available, I am sure they will continue to explore and undertake opportunities to expand. We have become more culturally competent through this relationship, and CHRISTUS Muguerza is a much stronger ministry because we are partners in extending Jesus’ healing ministry. One of our sponsoring congregations, the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word of San Antonio, is most interested in us investigating an expansion into Peru to work with their health care ministries there, which include clinics, visiting home nurses, a prenatal program, and inpatient and outpatient hospice programs. Our other sponsoring congregation, the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word of Houston, recently asked for our assistance in the strategic planning process for their ministries in Guatemala. Through these opportunities, we are examining many possible future partnerships and directions.

Q. Can CHRISTUS Health develop successful ACOs?

A. The question is not “can we”, but “how” and “when will we.” Although we know the future will present challenges, we also know that we have all the pieces and are gaining the knowledge to put the puzzle together that will make us successful long into the future, regardless of heath care reform or not. Our abilities are undergirded by our 5 Strategic Directions and our 8 Strategic Enablers. We will do what we need to do to continue on the journey to put care within reach of all who need it.

Q. Has CHISTUS Muguerza fulfilled my expectation?

A. Clearly what had been accomplished in CHRISTUS Muguerza, expanding from 2 to 7 hospitals, multiple clinics, and ambulance service, a drug and addition center, a behavioral services facility, rehab facilities, and a network of clinics for the poor, has far exceed my expectations and vision for our international operations when we began that partnership in 2001. The team their embraced the CHRISTUS brand from day one, and quickly made the decision to join us on the Journey to Excellence.

Q. How do you move people out of silo thinking?

A. The ability to get every member of the CHRISTUS family thinking about how to horizontally integrate rather than to vertically report and think will be a critical success factor for our ministry. Clearly, we need to continue to explain the rationale of why this mode of operations is critical, and expand processes like matrix planning to force multiple constituencies to come together to plan a coordinated approach. And finally, integrated behaviors have to be incorporated into the performance planning processes, with clear expectation and identifiable rewards for accomplishing such.