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In this episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast, host Dan Collard sits down with Colleen Swick, chief nursing officer and vice president of patient care continuum at Sarah Bush Lincoln Health System in Mattoon, Illinois. Their discussion centered on what nearly two decades of sustained cultural excellence looks like and how to protect it through growth. Sarah Bush Lincoln began its culture journey in 2007. They branded the work “Excellence as a Way of Life,” a name chosen deliberately to signal that this was not a consulting engagement with an expiration date. It stuck. Nearly 20 years later, the organization has grown from a three-county to a ten-county service area and from 1,500 to 3,600 employees, with a broad ambulatory and outpatient footprint across South Central Illinois. But growth dilutes culture. When Sarah Bush Lincoln looked around and realized only 300 of its employees had been there for the original launch, they made a decision: bring everyone back into the room, all 3,600 of them, to reset the foundation and rewire what needed rewiring. Listeners will learn: ·       How Sarah Bush Lincoln branded its culture work to signal permanence, not a flavor-of-the-month ·       Why a pre-employment commitment statement became a cornerstone of hiring and accountability ·       How to recognize culture dilution and know when it’s time to refresh ·       Why bringing all 3,600 employees into the same message mattered (and what that commitment signaled to the team) ·       How a strong culture drove physician recruitment and service line growth in a rural market ·       How outside coaching helped a high-performing organization see what its own leaders had stopped noticing This is a conversation for any healthcare leader who wants to build something that lasts and keep it strong even as the organization around it grows and changes.

In this episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast, host Dan Collard sits down with Don Taylor, president of Don Taylor Leadership, LLC, and adjunct professor at UT Southwestern Medical Center’s School of Public Health, to explore one of healthcare’s most underutilized assets: its nearly 700,000 advanced practice clinicians.  Taylor brings a perspective few can match. A retired U.S. Air Force colonel with more than 45 years in healthcare, he commanded the busiest trauma hospital in Iraq as the only non-physician to hold that role. There, advanced practice clinicians (APCs) were indistinguishable in many ways from the physicians working alongside them. That experience shaped a conviction he has carried ever since: The healthcare system has underestimated what nurse practitioners, physician assistants, CRNAs, and other advanced practice clinicians can lead and do. This episode, recorded as part of the run-up to the Rewiring Healthcare: Foundation to Future conference to be held October 20-21, 2026, in Nashville, TN, frames APCs not as gap-fillers but as a largely undeveloped leadership pipeline with real potential to reshape care delivery, physician well-being, and healthcare costs. Listeners will learn: Why healthcare is at an inflection point on how it develops and deploys advanced practice cliniciansWhat vertical development means for APCs, from dedicated leadership training to creating a legitimate path into senior leadership rolesHow horizontal development could extend APC practice into prevention, primary care, post-acute care, and end-of-life settingsWhy the APC conversation is “physician-and,” not “physician-or,” and why that framing matters for well-being across the care teamHow AI augmentation could support the safe expansion of APC practice, particularly in primary care and low-intensity settingsWhy Taylor says less than 10 percent of healthcare workers using AI are formally trained on it, and what that means for health systems right nowThis is a conversation for any healthcare leader thinking seriously about workforce strategy, care redesign, and what it will take to meet the access and cost challenges ahead.

In this episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast, host Dan Collard sits down with Mike Schafer, CEO of Spooner Health in Spooner, Wisconsin, for a conversation about what sustained high performance looks like over time. Schafer has led Spooner Health since 1990. When he partnered with the Studer Group in 2009, his organization was at the 12th percentile for employee engagement. Within two years, they had hit the 94th. For the last three years, they have held at the 99th. This is an impressive turnaround story. But it’s also a staying-the-course story, and those are rarer and harder to tell. Schafer brought that story to the inaugural Rewiring Healthcare: Foundation to Future conference in Atlanta earlier this year, where attendees called him one of the most humble and self-aware CEOs they had ever seen on a stage. This episode gives listeners who were not in the room a chance to hear it. Listeners will learn: Why Spooner Health's five-year engagement plan happened in two years, and what made the differenceHow employee-written standards of excellence became the cultural backbone of the organization and still hold todayWhy transparency with data, including the uncomfortable numbers, builds more trust than protecting people from themWhat Schafer tells every new hire at orientation and why storytelling is now central to how he does itHow the rewiring concept gave a high-performing organization a framework for continuing to improve without starting overWhy investing in external development matters even when an organization is already at the top of its gameThis is a conversation for any healthcare leader who wants to know what it looks like to build something that lasts.

With an average CEO tenure now at 3.8 years, leaders are moving between organizations faster than ever. Cultures are shifting. Leadership structures are reshaping. The ability to step into a new environment and genuinely connect, not just perform, is a skill every healthcare leader needs to develop deliberately. That skill has a name: belonging. (Yes, we talk about belonging for employees all the time…but rarely for the leaders themselves.) In this episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast, host Dan Collard sits down with Corrin McCloskey, vice president of heart & vascular and oncology services at Tanner Health in Carrollton, Georgia, to explore what it actually takes for leaders to belong in a new culture…and why that belonging is the foundation of everything else. Corrin brings her background in executive coaching, strategy, and physician leadership to a conversation about what that looks like in practice: building trust before pushing strategy; finding sponsors, not just mentors; crossing silos with confidence; and knowing when to lead with your skills rather than your expertise. Listeners will learn: Why belonging is not a feel-good concept but a direct driver of leader effectiveness and team performanceHow new leaders can earn trust and build connection in a new culture The difference between mentors and sponsors, and why sponsors matter more as leaders move upWhy breaking down silos starts with personal security and a willingness to share, not just collaborateWhat leaders get wrong when they expand their scope, including the expert trap and the right-thing-wrong-way problemWhat the next generation of healthcare leaders needs to look like, and why culture-focused may matter more than credential-focusedThis is a conversation for any leader who has ever walked into a new role, a new team, or a new organization and wondered how to make it work without losing themselves in the process. About Corrin McCloskey: Corrin McCloskey is a healthcare executive, executive coach, and national speaker focused on leadership, culture, and change management in healthcare. She serves as vice president of heart & vascular and oncology services at Tanner Health, where she leads strategy, growth, and service line development. Passionate about helping leaders build trust and navigate complexity, Corrin frequently speaks on physician leadership, organizational culture, and leading change in healthcare. Over the past year, she has expanded her national speaking presence and contributed thought leadership focused on creating healthier, more sustainable healthcare systems. https://www.linkedin.com/in/corrinmccloskey/ https://corrinmccloskey.com/

In this episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast, host Quint Studer sits down with Mark Clement, retiring president and CEO of TriHealth in Cincinnati, and Dr. Chris Reilly, industrial psychologist and founding partner of Sperduto & Associates, to pull back the curtain on one of the most intentional and successful CEO succession processes in healthcare. Clement spent 11 years leading TriHealth from the 26th to the 97th percentile in team member engagement and building the most trusted, most preferred healthcare brand in Cincinnati. He did not leave succession to chance. He started planning from day one, built a structured multi-phase process, engaged the board at every stage, and partnered with an industrial psychologist to assess and develop five internal candidates over a decade. The result: a seamless, board-endorsed promotion of COO Terri Hanlon-Bremer as his successor, with all five candidates still in the organization and stronger for having gone through the process. Dr. Reilly brings the assessment science behind the process to life, walking through how Sperduto & Associates uses structured interviews, psychometric testing, 360 feedback, and development planning to evaluate readiness and fit, not just current performance. Together, Clement and Reilly make the case that succession planning is not a one-time event but a sustained leadership discipline. Listeners will learn: Why succession planning should begin the first year in the leadership role, not just when departure is imminentHow to structure a confidential, non-competitive internal succession process that develops candidates without creating political frictionWhat industrial psychologists assess beyond the interview, including problem-solving, self-awareness, personality fit, and behavioral patternsHow to engage the board across three phases: awareness, formalization, and endorsementWhy over 80 percent of TriHealth leadership appointments are promotions from withinAbout the culture-monitoring tool Clement created to help organizations preserve core ideology and continuously improve, modeled on the Built to Last framework This is a masterclass in succession planning for any healthcare leader serious about leaving their organization stronger than they found it. Mark C. Clement is the president and chief executive officer of TriHealth. He joined TriHealth as president in May of 2015 and took on the larger role of president and CEO in January 2016. TriHealth is a $2.1B integrated healthcare delivery system, made up of six hospitals and over 140 ambulatory/outpatient sites of care. Named as the highest performing accountable care organization (ACO) in the state of Ohio and one of the highest performing ACOs in the country by Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, TriHealth cares for more than 500,000 attributed lives. As Cincinnati’s fourth-largest employer, TriHealth has 12,000 team members, more than 700 employed physicians, and an independent medical staff of more than 1,800 physicians. Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, and jointly sponsored by CommonSpirit Health and Bethesda, Inc., TriHealth’s vision is to work together with physicians, hospitals, and communities to “get healthcare right” by delivering better care, better health, and better value while fostering physician and team member engagement. Mark also holds the position of CEO at all of TriHealth’s hospitals: Good Samaritan Hospital, Bethesda North Hospital, Bethesda Butler Hospital, and McCullough-Hyde Memorial Hospital, which all serve the tri-state region of Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky. With a focus on population health and improving the health status of those it serves, TriHealth is an award-winning health system frequently recognized by industry organizations such as U.S. News & World Report, Newsweek, IBM Watson, DiversityInc, The Joint Commission, the American Heart Association, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, and many more.   Dr. Chris Reilly graduated summa cum laude with dual degrees in mathematics and psychology. He earned his Ph.D. in industrial and organizational psychology from Bowling Green State University in 1989. In 2012, he was honored to be selected as a SIOP Scholar, one of the highest forms of recognition for contributions to the field of industrial and organizational psychology. Chris has worked as a consultant for organizations in the healthcare, national defense, avionics, food distribution, nuclear power, and consulting industries. He has published and presented a number of technical papers in the areas of employee engagement, work scheduling, performance measurement, and decision-making. Chris has been with Sperduto & Associates since 1991. He has consistently partnered with Quint Studer, co-founder of HPSG, beginning in 1996, on selection, performance management, executive coaching, and engagement. Chris has worked with clients throughout Europe, Central America, South America, and Canada on projects related to employee engagement, selection, team-building, talent management, and organization restructuring. He is a licensed psychologist and managing partner at Sperduto & Associates. Chris currently teams with Healthcare Plus Solutions Group® as an organizational psychologist

In this episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast, host Dan Collard continues the conference preview series for Rewiring Healthcare: Foundation to Future (April 28–29, Atlanta) with Kay Kennedy, co-founder of uLeadershipÒ and a leading voice behind the Human-Centered Leadership movement in healthcare. Kennedy shares updates on the newly released book, Human-Centered Leadership in Health Care: The Revolution Continues, published in partnership with the American Nurses Association. The book builds on the original theory of Human-Centered Leadership and extends it into practice highlighting real-world implementation, outcomes, sustainability, and research emerging from healthcare organizations across the country. The conversation previews Kennedy’s expanded role at the upcoming conference, where uLeadership will host breakfast and lunch breakouts, as well as a main-stage session. Together with colleagues Lucy Leclerc and Susan Campis, Kennedy explores what changes when leaders truly internalize the principle: it starts with you, but it’s not about you. When leadership becomes human-centered, how leaders spend their time, engage their teams, and make decisions fundamentally shifts. They also discuss the importance of staying “high touch in a high-tech world,” the power of peer connection and networking, and why bringing like-hearted leaders together accelerates learning and impact. Listeners will learn: How Human-Centered Leadership has evolved from theory to practiceWhat organizations are seeing when they implement the frameworkWhy leadership behaviors, not just intentions, must changeHow research, assessment, and reflection strengthen sustainabilityWhat to expect from uLeadership’s sessions at the conferenceThis episode offers a practical preview of a leadership approach designed to strengthen culture, connection, and care at every level of the organization. About Kay Kennedy, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, CPHQ, FAAN Kay Kennedy is a nurse executive, educator, and entrepreneur. By combining a love for nurses, patients, and quality improvement, she has led large nursing teams to create healthy work environments, satisfied patients, and consistent, high-quality care. With experience ranging from bedside nursing to chief nursing officer, she also serves as adjunct faculty at the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing at Emory University, MGH Institute of Health Professions, and the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing at Case Western Reserve University. She is the CEO of uLeadership, LLC, an internationally recognized professional development and research organization. Her passion as a leader is to ignite innovative problem-solving, develop others to be their best, and lead with empathy and service. Click here for speaking inquiries or to order books

In this episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast, host Dan Collard continues the conference preview series for Rewiring Healthcare: Foundation to Future (April 28–29, Atlanta) with healthcare leader, author, and longtime HPSG colleague Regina Shupe. Shupe will deliver two main-stage sessions at the conference, and this conversation previews both, starting with a timely focus on rewiring how healthcare organizations care for their caregivers. Drawing on nearly four decades in healthcare, Shupe reflects on the toll that passion, grit, and commitment can take on teams, and why the pandemic served as a catalyst for rethinking team well-being. She challenges leaders to go deeper than traditional employee rounding by pairing meaningful questions with practical support tools already available in many organizations, including employee assistance programs, Code Lavender, intentional pauses, and Schwartz Rounds. The discussion then turns to the emergency department, where Shupe is widely known for her work on leadership, flow, and culture. She previews a session focused on rewiring ED operations through intentional flow strategies, non-negotiable goals, and leadership development tailored to today’s realities. From door-to-bed time to trust-building and “love leadership,” Shupe makes the case that emergency departments must be treated as an organization-wide strategy, not a standalone problem. Listeners will learn: Why caring for caregivers requires deeper, more intentional leadershipHow to rewire employee support without adding complexityWhat effective ED flow looks like in today’s environmentWhy patients still expect speed, clarity, and compassionHow leadership development must adapt for newer, less-experienced leadersThis episode offers a practical preview of two sessions designed to strengthen teams, improve flow, and create environments where caregivers and patients can thrive. Click here for conference information and registration. Regina Shupe, DNP, RN—author of Rewiring the Emergency Department: Innovative Solutions for Modern Emergency Care—serves as an advisor, speaker, author, and thought leader for Healthcare Plus Solutions Group®. She brings greater than 30 years of nursing leadership and healthcare operational leadership with expertise in emergency services. She is an innovative healthcare leader driven by the correlation between positive team culture and improved patient outcomes. She leads transformative organizational change by leveraging proven clinical, operational, and leadership development.   She holds a doctor of nursing practice degree. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau International and the Emergency Nurses Association. She holds a certification in LEAN for Healthcare.   Click here for speaking inquiries or to order books.

In this episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast, host Dan Collard continues a special conference preview series for Rewiring Healthcare: Foundation to Future (April 28–29, Atlanta) with longtime HPSG colleague and nurse coach Lisa Reich.  With nearly four decades in healthcare and more than 15 years of coaching experience across hospitals, clinics, critical access facilities, and behavioral health settings, Reich brings a grounded perspective on what truly transcends care environments: human connection. While technology, workflows, and roles continue to evolve, the moments that matter most for patients and for teams are still deeply human.Reich reflects on the concept of “rewiring” and why small, intentional shifts often produce better outcomes than wholesale change. Drawing from her work on patient rounding in Rewiring Excellence, she explains why practices that once worked may need adjustment, not abandonment, and how focusing on outcomes instead of habits leads to more meaningful interactions.   The conversation previews Reich’s upcoming conference session, Caring Connection, which explores how empathy, compassion, and kindness move from words on a slide to behaviors people can feel. She outlines the specific “message makers” and connection points that create memorable moments, whether delivered by a nurse, environmental services team member, food service staff, or leader.  Listeners will learn: Why human connection still differentiates care in a technology-driven worldHow small rewires improve outcomes without adding burdenWhat makes compassion visible and felt, not just statedWhy caring connection applies to every role, not just clinical staffHow leaders can design environments where connection can thrive This episode sets the stage for a session focused on the human moments that patients and teams remember long after the task is complete. Learn more about the conference at www.rewiringhealthcare.com

In this episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast, host Dan Collard sits down with Quint Studer to launch a new short series previewing the upcoming conference, Rewiring Healthcare: Foundation to Future (April 28–29, Atlanta), and to explore why healthcare must rethink how leaders are developed in today’s environment. After years of workforce disruption, turnover, and rapid change, healthcare organizations are operating with thinner experience pipelines and leaders who are being promoted into complexity they were never trained for. Studer and Collard make the case for rewiring—not abandoning what worked in the past, but giving leaders permission to change how leadership development, training, and learning actually happen. At the center of the conversation is Precision Leader Development™, a personalized approach inspired by precision medicine. Rather than one-size-fits-all leadership training, leaders are developed based on how they learn, what skills they need now, and the realities of their role, experience level, and environment—making development more usable, focused, and sustainable. The conversation also explores why in-person connection still matters, the “magic in the hallways” that virtual platforms can’t replace, and how the conference is designed to be accessible, practical, and immediately applicable—including hands-on post-conference working sessions that help teams turn learning into action. Listeners will learn: Why traditional leadership development models no longer workHow Precision Leader Development personalizes growth instead of overwhelming leadersWhy rewiring is about permission, not replacementHow connection and community drive resilience and performanceWhat makes Rewiring Healthcare: Foundation to Future different from typical conferencesThis episode sets the foundation for a conference built around real-world leadership, practical learning, and sustainable change. For conference information and registration: https://rewiringhealthcare.com

In this episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast, host Dan Collard sits down with Regina Shupe, a veteran emergency department nurse leader and author of Rewiring the Emergency Department: Innovative Solutions for Modern Emergency Medicine, to explore what emergency care needs now: steadier leadership, redesigned systems, and cultures where caregivers can truly thrive. With nearly four decades in emergency medicine—as a frontline nurse, ED leader, national coach, and now author—Shupe brings a hard-earned perspective on why many traditional fixes no longer work. Today’s EDs face unprecedented clinical, operational, and emotional strain, often with less experienced teams and leaders who were never trained for the complexity they’ve inherited.   Shupe makes a strong case for rewiring—redesigning leadership behaviors, flow, and culture so reliability and compassion can coexist. She reframes burnout as a system alarm, not a personal failure, and introduces “love leadership” as a practical strategy for building trust, psychological safety, and sustainable performance in high-pressure environments. Listeners will learn: How to diagnose whether ED systems are helping or hindering team successWhy leadership redesign must come before operational fixesHow to improve flow without sacrificing compassion or safetyWhat leaders get wrong about burnout and how to address it systemicallyWhy consistent leader presence is one of the most powerful tools in the EDThis conversation offers grounded, real-world guidance for ED leaders who want to create environments where caregivers feel supported and patients receive the care they deserve. About Regina Shupe, DNP, RN Regina serves as an advisor, speaker, author, and thought leader for Healthcare Plus Solutions Group®. She brings greater than 30 years of nursing leadership and healthcare operational leadership with expertise in emergency services. She is an innovative healthcare leader driven by the correlation between positive team culture and improved patient outcomes. She leads transformative organizational change by leveraging proven clinical, operational, and leadership development.  She holds a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau International and the Emergency Nurses Association. She holds a certification in LEAN for Healthcare. Regina is the author of Rewiring the Emergency Department: Innovative Solutions for Modern Emergency Care, Advance Your Emergency Department: Leading in a New Era, and multiple articles.  From candy striper to healthcare executive, she has dedicated her life to caring for patients, families, team members, and physicians. As a nurse, she enjoyed the intersection between the heart and science, healing patients from the inside out. As a leader, she is able to see the positive correlation between the experience of team members and the experience of patients. She believes when we intentionally design meaningful and memorable experiences for team members, physicians, and patients, we are able to heal as well as truly transform healthcare.

Healthcare leadership is louder and faster than ever—visibility is constant, pressure is high, and turnover is reshaping teams. This episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast focuses on why Tom McDougal’s book, Karma Doesn’t Need My Help:11 Weekly Lessons to Leadership Success and Peace, matters right now: it gives leaders a simple operating system to make better decisions under pressure without burning out. McDougal distills eleven short lessons leaders can put to work immediately: begin with the outcome you want and choose the response that gets you there (E+R=O); stop spending energy on things you don’t control; and redirect attention from rumination and score-settling to actions that move results. It’s a tool kit built for real-life conditions—night meetings, public scrutiny, and competing stakeholders—so you can show up steadier for your team and your patients.  What you’ll learn: A clear framework for Outcome → Response decision-making—E+R=O—that you can use in tense conversations, crises, and daily ops.How to conserve attention by dropping “karmic bookkeeping” and reinvesting time/energy where it affects outcomes.Weekly practices that turn highlights into habits (brief reflection prompts, one behavior to ship each week).Ways to coach your team to respond, not react. Building calmer huddles, cleaner escalations, and better handoffs.How these skills help with today’s realities: turnover, rapid change, and high-visibility roles. If you’re navigating competing demands and want steadier execution, this conversation delivers practical moves you can start on Monday. About the Author: Dr. Tom McDougal, author of Karma Doesn’t Need My Help: 11 Weekly Lessons to Leadership Success and Peace, retired in 2024 after operating hospitals for 23 years over a 33-year career. He conceptualized this book more than a decade ago but had to wait for early retirement to publish it to assure its honesty and authenticity. Dr. McDougal holds a doctorate in healthcare leadership, a master’s of science in healthcare administration, a master’s of business administration, and a bachelor’s in business management. He is also a life fellow of ACHE. Tom and his wife, Wendy, just celebrated their 32nd wedding anniversary and are the proud parents of Mary Ann and Madden.

Margins are tight, workforce stress is real, and AI has moved from buzzword to daily ops. ACHE Congress 2026 (March 2–4 in Houston, TX) is designed for this exact moment—with all-new content, a “Purpose in Motion” theme, and a program that promises up-to-the-minute insights and actionable takeaways you can put into practice right away. On this week’s podcast, David Bartholomew, FACHE, previews ACHE Congress 2026, discusses why this year’s Congress is one you can’t miss, and what attendees can look forward to. For example: Get a grasp on the big picture. Speakers like Cristian deRitis help CEOs cut through the noise, explore the economic context, and make smart strategic choices.See the future first. Listen to keynotes and futurist insights (Amy Webb) on the next 10–20 years—and what to do Monday. Make AI practical. Attend sessions by experts like Cheryl Pegus and Shiv Rao that delve into workflow, safety, and patient-experience impact (including ambient documentation at scale). Level up your leadership. Explore a deep bench of sessions on change, culture, and multigenerational teams (Adam Grant, Patrick Lencioni, Anne Morriss, Scott Hamilton, and more). Advance your career—at any stage. Check out an expanded Career Hub, plus larger applied workshops and a student administrative fellowship fair. Network with intent. Make designed connections by role and career stage; ~40% first-time attendees each year means fresh perspectives and new collaborators. Explore the Innovation Hub. It’s new this year and built with industry partners to tackle real operational problems together. This podcast makes it clear: if you need a reset, a roadmap, and a sense of connection to a that’s community moving the work forward, this is the room to be in.   The HPSG team looks forward to seeing you at  ACHE Congress 2026.  Quint Studer: Leadership Insights: Rewiring Leader Development—The Right Plan for the Right Person at the Right Time Tuesday, March 3, 2026 • 9:30am - 10:30am CTDan Collard: Genfluence: How to Lead a Multigenerational Workforce Tuesday, March 3, 2026 • 3:15pm - 4:15pm CT

In this episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast, Dan Collard sits down with Dr. Katherine Meese to unpack their new book, Genfluence: How to Lead a Multigenerational Workforce, new from ACHE Learn, a practical, research-grounded guide to leading across generations in healthcare. Rather than leaning on clichés, they explore how technology has reshaped expectations at work, why younger clinicians experience the environment differently, and what leaders can do right now to retain and develop talent at every level.  They move quickly from origin story to business case, connecting multigenerational leadership to retention, safety, and engagement. You’ll hear how disrespect drives toxic culture (and turnover), why communication gaps sit behind many sentinel events, and how reframing PTO and well-being improves team performance. They also preview the book’s myth-busting chapter (data that challenges doom-driven narratives) and explain why the patient belongs at the center of any workforce conversation. The episode introduces Control+Alt+Lead, a leadership “reboot” framework that starts with self-reflection, builds psychological safety for new clinicians to speak up, and shifts from succession planning to success planning so people can thrive.  What you’ll learn: A clear business case for multigenerational leadership (retention, safety, engagement)Why technology (not stereotypes) drives many generational differencesPractical ways to reduce disrespect and strengthen communicationHow to apply the Control+Alt+Lead framework Where Genfluence fits into ACHE Congress and your leadership development roadmapSmart, usable, and grounded in real fieldwork, this conversation offers leaders a path to keep great people longer and take better care of patients in the process. About Dr. Katherine A. Meese and Dan Collard Dr. Katherine A. Meese and Dan Collard are co-authors of Genfluence: How to Lead a Multigenerational Workforce (ACHE Learn 2026). Dr. Meese has fifteen years of experience in healthcare management, leadership and research, and is an award-winning scholar and author in organizational behavior, well-being and leadership. Most importantly, she is on a mission to use science to help healthcare leaders keep their people and keep them well. She is the author of five books including The Human Margin: Building the Foundations of Trust with Quint Studer. Dan Collard’s thirty-one years in the industry include hospital and health system operations, technology start-up transactions and consulting. He has been described as a “change agent, builder, mentor and developer of others.” His lens-of-the-operator view continues to guide his leadership practice. Dan is the cofounder of Healthcare Plus Solutions Group and the coauthor of Rewiring Excellence: Hardwired to Rewired and Rewiring Leadership in Post-Acute Healthcare.

In this episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast, Quint Studer talks with Christine Schuster, Craig Nesta, and Michael Tracy from Emerson Health about a simple idea with big impact: build your own leadership pipeline and protect it, even in lean years. They walk through Emerson’s end-to-end approach: paid summer internships embedded in real operating units, a structured mentoring lattice (direct manager, peer “buddy,” senior leader), and a one-year administrative fellowship that moves emerging leaders from classroom theory to hands-on management and, often, into first-role leadership. You’ll also hear how partnerships and a clear values stance keep the organization nimble while developing people who share its mission. What you’ll learn: How Emerson structures paid internships (mid-May to mid-August), embeds students in practices, and supports them with a manager + buddy + senior mentor model.What its one-year administrative fellowship includes (early operational ownership, standards and accountability, and coached “reps” before promotion). Why Emerson protects development dollars during budget pressure and how that stance ties directly to performance and culture.Practical tactics for recruiting nationally and creating visible on-ramps from intern, to fellow, to first leadership role.How partnerships (e.g., regional systems and specialty providers) complement the internal pipeline to keep the organization agile.Smart, repeatable, and ROI-minded, this conversation is a playbook for any system serious about growing leaders who fit the culture and stay. Christine Schuster, RN, MBA, President and Chief Executive Officer, Emerson Health Christine (Chris) Schuster has served as Emerson Health’s president and CEO for two decades, following CEO roles at Quincy Medical Center and Athol Memorial Hospital and earlier service as COO for Tenet’s Saint Vincent Healthcare (Extended Care Division). She serves on multiple regional health and business boards and advisory groups and has been recognized by Boston Magazine among the “Most Influential Bostonians,” along with honors from the Boston Chamber, Massachusetts Health Council, and ACHE. Chris holds an MBA (with honors) from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a BS in Nursing from Boston University. Craig Nesta, JD, MBA, MS, Vice President, Emerson Practice Associates; Administrative Fellowship Director Craig Nesta oversees Emerson Health’s physician practice enterprise and directs the system’s Administrative Fellowship Program, leading national recruitment, placement, and mentoring. He brings 25+ years in healthcare administration, with prior faculty roles at Boston University School of Public Health and Stonehill College. A longtime accreditation leader, he served the Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education—including as chair of the Accreditation Council—and is a past board member of AUPHA. Craig is a fellow of ACHE, HFMA, and MGMA. Michael (Mike) Tracy, Administrative Director, Emerson Health Mike Tracy leads multi-service-line operations at Emerson Health. A Boston College graduate with an MHA from Virginia Commonwealth University, he began at Emerson as a summer intern, returned for a yearlong Administrative Fellowship, and advanced through roles including Practice Manager and Senior Practice Manager to his current post. An active member of HFMA’s MA/RI Chapter, Mike serves on the chapter’s board and has chaired the New to Healthcare Leadership Conference planning committee.

In this special episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast, hosts Dan Collard and Quint Studer welcome the founders of uLeadership—Kay Kennedy, Lucy Leclerc, and Susan Campis—to announce uLeadership’s addition to the HPSG family of companies and to unpack the research and practice behind human-centered leadership. Kay, Lucy, and Susan share uLeadership’s origin story: three experienced nurse leaders who met in 2019, burned out by overachieving, work-all-day-and-night leadership, decided to study the kind of leader nurses would follow to the ends of the earth. Their IRB-approved research validated a framework that puts connection, well-being, trust, and excellence at the core—and gave rise to Human-Centered Leadership in Healthcare. They discuss real-world results from early client partners—higher engagement participation and scores, improved leader and staff retention, gains in patient experience (especially communication and teamwork), and even quality improvements—along with powerful moments from the road (a keynote that convinced a leader on the verge of quitting to stay, and a team that turned the framework into an award-winning poster). The team also talks about sustaining the gains (not “one and done”), building belonging as a strategic outcome, and how their book, Human-Centered Leadership in Healthcare: Evolution of a Revolution, helps leaders operationalize the behaviors, not just admire the ideas. Finally, the group looks ahead at what the HPSG + uLeadership partnership makes possible. Scaling a movement that helps leaders feel replenished, not overwhelmed, and equips them to create teams people want to join and stay on. About Kay Kennedy, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, CPHQ, FAAN Dr. Kay Kennedy is a nurse executive, educator, and entrepreneur. By combining a love for nurses, patients, and quality improvement, she has led large nursing teams to create healthy work environments; satisfied patients; and consistent, high-quality care. Kay has held multiple leadership roles, from the bedside to chief nursing officer. She holds an adjunct associate professor role at Emory University School of Nursing along with other adjunct appointments at Massachusetts General Hospital Institute of Health Professions and Case Western Reserve University. Her goal as a leader is to ignite innovative problem-solving, develop others to be their best, and lead by serving others. About Lucy Leclerc, PhD, RN, NPD-BC Dr. Lucy Leclerc is a dedicated nurse leader, nurse scientist, entrepreneur, and professor with over 30 years of diverse nursing experience. Early in her career, she spent time as a bedside nurse in high-risk labor and delivery before falling in love with nursing leadership as an officer and flight nurse in the United States Air Force Reserve. She is a lifelong learner and received her PhD from Medical University of South Carolina in 2010. She teaches all levels of nursing students, from undergraduates to DNP students. Her research focuses on generation of contemporary nursing-specific leadership models.  About Susan Campis, MSN, RN, NE-BC, NBC-HWC Susan Campis is a nurse executive, health and wellness coach, and entrepreneur. Susan is a nurse leader whose passion for coaching and mentoring others helped produce successful and engaged nursing teams throughout her career. As a nurse leader, Susan understands the importance of a safe and healthy work environment and worked to create a culture of excellence, trust and caring where her team could perform at their best, ensuring quality care and patient safety. Susan cares deeply for the health and well-being of healthcare professionals, and, as a health and wellness coach, her goal is to work with others to help them reach their full potential.