Why margin management should start with the front line

Delivering care safely and efficiently, in a way that protects the health system’s margin, is the job of everyone who works in a health system.

Frontline staff, those who are in patients’ rooms and interacting with patients every day, play a significant role in managing costs and efficient operations. Day-to-day clinical decisions shape supply, pharmaceutical, and linen use; overtime; and even throughput. Cumulatively, these choices impact financial performance and cost sustainability. Yet many organizations struggle to meaningfully engage frontline staff in cost reduction efforts.

It’s not for a lack of trying. Many organizations educate frontline staff on financial priorities and even post financial data where staff can see it. But they’re often encountering one of several common pitfalls that keep those efforts from changing behavior.