Health Care Industry Forum

Highlights from Forum on Health Care Industry
November 22, 2002 Sawmill Inn, Grand Rapids, MN

Our panelists talked about issues facing the health care industry.

Panelists: Jeff Stampohar, CEO, Deer River HealthCare Center, Debra Nyquist, MD, Grand Itasca Clinic and Hospital, and Steve Feltman, CAO, Grand Itasca Clinic and Hospital

Keynoter: Dan Zismer, PhD, Managing Principal of Dorsey Health Strategies

The third in a seven-part JOBS 2020 forum services on creating a common vision for the future of the Itasca region was held Friday, November 22nd. Panelists were asked to discuss issues and trends affecting their businesses and identify what their business needs from the community to survive and thrive.

Dan Zismer, Managing Principal of Dorsey Health Strategies, keynote speaker at the health care industry forum, stresses that communities do not grow without high-quality accessible health care.

Economic Fundamentals in Health Care (Dan Zismer)

• Demographics and technology changes will continue to drive accelerating demand
• Technical advances will allow more medical procedures to be done locally
  
• A community our size realizes $70,000 - $110,000 net revenue per full time employee in health care
  
• A significant portion of the dollar flow is generated from the outside (government and insurance payers)
  
• Health care is a people business requiring a wide range of skilled professional, technical and tradespeople to deliver services (one physician generates 3-4 additional jobs)
  
• The consumer is driving demand for access, availability, convenience and comprehensive service menus and “product packaging”
  
• Communities do not grow with sophisticated businesses without high-quality, accessible health care
  
• Rural hospitals have defied dire predictions of the ‘90s and are performing at higher levels than those in the metro areas
  
• The principal health care business model must promote effective and efficient reinvestment in the core business and infrastructure
  
• Communities must co-invest in essential services (do no assume essential services are affordable from the typical health provider business model)
  
• Our community is positioning itself to attract capital investors: public finance institutions want to invest in rural health care – larger systems are willing to make larger investments in communities like Grand Rapids
  

Dan Zismer, Managing Principal of Dorsey Health Strategies, addresses more than 100 community leaders at the JOBS 2020 health care forum.

Pressing Issues:

• Workforce shortages
  • By the year 2010 the U.S. will have a shortage of 50,000 physicians; by 2020 a shortage of 200,000
  • Today there are an estimated 126,000 nursing positions vacant in the U.S. and the number is estimated to grow to 400,000 by 2020 (Minnesota currently has approximately 2,900 nursing vacancies)
  • Additional high tech and professional positions for laboratory, radiology, pharmacy, etc. remain vacant across Minnesota and the nation.
• Rising insurance costs limit availability of health care
• Aging of the population (274% growth between 1965-1990 of 85 year olds)
• Capital investments are high (Grand Itasca Clinic and Hospital estimated project expenditure: $63 million)
• Therapeutics
  • Drug expenditures have doubled between 1992 and 2000
  • Ethical issues related to advances in technology (stem cell research)
  • Pharmaceuticals have produced significant advancement in treatment of disease, but not without cost
  • Human Genome project is mapping the entire human genetic blue print
  • Technology is rapidly changing and is driven by significant consumer demand
• Meeting consumer expectations and providing more specialty care locally
• Educating and updating leadership and staff on regulations
• Technology investments
• Out-Migration (defined as the decision of a local resident to systematically bypass a local hospital to seek care at larger, more distant urban hospital)

How can the community help?

• Recognize that health care is a growth industry (current employment in Itasca County is 2,000)
• Support healthcare services provided locally
  • Seeking health care services outside the local community puts local health care facilities in jeopardy and further limits access.
• Support senior services and housing facilities
• Provide communication and dialogue to the medical community to help determine what services should be provided locally and gain a better understanding of reasons for out-migration
• The three Itasca County hospitals must work together and with other health care organizations in the community to meet the needs of health care customers located in the service area.
• Support recruitment and retention of medical staff