Top health systems focus on alignment of quality across facilities post-merger

As health systems get larger, quality leaders are faced with the tough task of making sure outcomes are similar no matter where a patient receives care.

“Once you start adding more hospitals, it becomes very challenging to figure out how to align across the system,” said Ekta Punwani, leader of the 100 Top Hospitals Program at IBM Watson Health. “It’s not just about technology, it’s about strategies. How do you lead the organization? That is a newer challenge in healthcare.”

Consolidation continues across the industry, including the recently announced proposed merger of Atrium Health, Wake Forest Baptist Health and Wake Forest University that would create a 49-hospital system.