Across the nation, rural healthcare facilities are navigating distinct challenges, including limited resources, staffing shortages and stretched finances, as they care for underserved communities.
Len Lacefield, CEO and owner of Strategic Medical Consultants, said he believes improving leadership can be a differentiating factor between success and crisis.
That’s why Lacefield, who has worked in healthcare for over three decades, started a new course through Canadian Valley Technology Center, called the Rural Healthcare Leadership Training Academy. The 11-week class, which is now open for enrollment, was born through conversations with Oklahoma Commissioner of Health Keith Reed, he said.
“The clear issue is that the leadership in rural healthcare is not equipped to perform at the level that medicine is becoming a challenge and changing,” Lacefield said. “What we do is we get in the water, and we feel it getting hot, but we don't choose to put an ice cube in it or turn the temperature down.”
An article from the National Rural Health Association’s Rural Health Voices blog states that leadership that fosters communication and unity across disciplines is crucial for maintaining smooth operations in rural healthcare.
When employees are engaged, they drive performance, innovation and growth. Gallup found that 70% of the variance in a team’s engagement is related to management.
Lacefield said he sees this data as an opportunity.
“What are we doing to charge ourselves with accountability so that we can be leaders that people want to work for?” Lacefield said.
The course will be taught online. Topics covered include budgeting, data management, healthcare operations, strategic planning and community and public relations. It will also have meetings where participants can discuss the challenges they face and potential solutions.
Lacefield said the course’s goal is to strengthen the capabilities of current and emerging healthcare leaders, equip them with practical tools and help them build a network of peers to share best practices with.
Often, individuals associate leadership with people working in the C-suite. Lacefield said he disagrees – which is why the course is open to any health care professional.
“We just steer the boat,” said Lacefield, who recently served as CEO at Clinton Regional Hospital. “We're supposed to encourage, give vision and equip. Leadership is done on the floor, on the ground.”
Lacefield said he plans to keep enrollment to 20 people per section. Oklahomans interested in taking the course can register by calling 405-222-7552 or emailing ACCD@cvtech.edu. The cost per enrollee is $145.
“I would hope that folks really can wrap their arms around what they're struggling with on a daily basis and recognize that it's real and recognize there's a solution,” Lacefield said.
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