It has been an intense few weeks as we face historic challenges with the growing COVID-19 pandemic. To each of you, our colleagues, friends and partners, we hope you and your loved ones stay healthy and safe.

At the Value Institute, we greatly appreciate the myriad efforts of clinicians, health care administrators, and many others whose selflessness and concern for their patients are the bright spots in these trying times. From all of us, a profound thank you.

COVID-19 and High-Value Health Care

Although health care organizations are rightly focused for now on getting through this crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic may also accelerate changes that lead to higher-value health care in the future. For instance, many health care providers and payers, including Medicare, are rapidly expanding telemedicine services so that more patients can receive care at home. Most immediately, these changes slow the spread of the virus and preserve personal protective equipment for providers. Once the crisis eases, however, the increased use of telehealth may become permanent, offering new opportunities for providers to treat patients conveniently and to expand access to high-value services across a wide geographic area. The opportunities for clinicians to work together virtually can speed learning and reduce disparities in outcomes for patients in remote or under-served areas.

Team-based care is another area where we may see longer-term shifts that challenge conventional thinking. As hospitals prepare for an onslaught of ill patients, health professionals of all types are being asked to work “at top of license” and to coordinate in new ways. These types of changes have the potential to drive a lasting transformation to value-based care.

Value Institute Updates

Given current restrictions on travel and group interaction, as well as the increased demands on many people’s time, we are rescheduling our upcoming Executive Education programs and extending the final admissions deadline for the Master of Science in Health Care Transformation program. Please see below for more details.

New Executive Education Program Dates:

Implementing High-Value Health Care

June 11 – 12, 2020

Measuring What Matters

September 30 – October 1, 2020

Financial Acumen for Clinician Leaders

October 14 – 15, 2020

Based on our experience in distance learning with the Master of Science in Health Care Transformation program, we will soon offer interactive online Executive Education programs for value-based health care. We will announce these new learning opportunities in future updates.

We are also still taking applications for the 2020-21 cohort of our MS in Health Care Transformation program. The application deadline has been extended to June 15, 2020.

Please reach out with any questions and thank you for your understanding. While we all stay physically distant, we may still stay socially close. We are happy to talk, videochat, or Zoom.

Stay well!

Your friends at the Value Institute