New Releases

Although many leadership concerns are universal across industries, healthcare presents unique leadership challenges. The complex environment, financial pressures, and life-or-death nature of the work are unlike anything else.

Exceptional Leadership describes the professional and personal skills and behaviors that managers need to lead successfully and thrive in healthcare's high-stakes environment. The book offers a leadership competency model based on four themes: well-cultivated self-awareness, compelling vision, a real way with people, and masterful execution. Each competency is covered in its own chapter that defines it, provides examples and advice, and outlines common skill deficits.

The third edition of this book has been revised to reflect contemporary issues and the latest research on leadership. Individual and organizational challenges faced in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic are discussed in several chapters.

This edition also includes updated coverage and research in the following areas: The opening case study that threads throughout the book, vignettes at the end of each chapter, self-reflection questions, and the self-development plan have also been revised and continue to offer opportunities for applying the competencies.

Exceptional Leadership encourages readers to take an introspective look at their actions, build on their strengths, and discover novel approaches to enhancing their healthcare leadership.

The COVID-19 pandemic and its repercussions underscored the value of strategic planning. Organizations with a sound strategic plan can quickly decide which initiatives to postpone, add, or prioritize to adapt to changing conditions.

Healthcare Strategic Planning provides guidance for every stage of strategic planning and implementation: analyzing the environment, crafting strategy, putting the plan into action, and assessing the results. It describes the crucial decisions that must be made and the preparatory steps that must be taken for effective planning.

This new edition contains the most recent research on strategic planning as well as updated best practices in light of current issues such as access to care, the national focus on health equity, and patient expectations in the wake of the pandemic. The authors have added new information on the importance of strategic thinking in management, effective stakeholder engagement, a seamless transition from planning to implementation, and ensuring strategic plan commitment.

A new section has been added to this edition that highlights key issues specific to healthcare strategic planning. Through seven concise chapters, this section covers:

• Financial-planning considerations
• Clinical and technological innovations
• Partnerships, mergers, and affiliations
• Intensifying competition
• Value-based care
• Physician enterprise
• Governance complexity

Each of these new chapters discusses its topic's history, organizational impacts, and strategic-planning implications.

Healthcare Strategic Planning equips healthcare executives with the skills necessary to prepare their organizations for inevitable changes and challenges and to navigate them successfully.

Healthcare organizations have a responsibility to address environmental and social crises because of the potential impact they may have on community health.

Environmental, Social, and Governance: A Framework for the Future of Healthcare explores the triumphs and lessons learned by healthcare organizations striving to improve the well-being of their communities. This collection of adapted and expanded articles from the journal Frontiers of Health Services Management explains the benefits of and approaches to applying environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles to healthcare organization management.

The book is divided into three sections that correspond to the three prongs of the ESG framework. Each chapter provides real-world examples to help clarify strategies and includes questions for reflection and discussion.

Topics include the following:

• Integrating ESG into operations
• Developing climate-smart initiatives for healthcare organizations
• Recognizing the effect of environmental factors on credit ratings
• Connecting medical caregivers with their community
• Exploring five principles that perpetuate inequity
• Creating and maintaining board diversity

At the end of the book, three case studies illustrate how healthcare organizations are successfully addressing the challenges posed by each of the three components of the ESG framework.

Environmental, Social, and Governance will help both students and practicing professionals recognize the value of the ESG approach to ensuring the sustainability of their organizations while protecting the communities they serve.

The Human Margin interprets new research on what today’s healthcare workforce really wants, finding that trust in leadership is at the heart of everything. Meese and Studer unveil the 10 building blocks most closely linked to creating and sustaining that trust. They drill down on each one, explaining the science behind the conditions that leaders must establish and sharing easy-to-grasp tactics that help leaders get there.

Topics covered include the following:

• Why the human margin—a thriving workforce that can give patients and each other their best—is as crucial as financial and operational margins
• Why trust in leadership (particularly senior leadership) is pivotal for individual, team, and organizational performance
• Why people really leave healthcare organizations (hint: it’s usually not about the money)
• Inexpensive ways to prevent burnout, increase motivation, strengthen relationships, and decrease turnover
• Why great middle managers are the keys to closing the “trust gap,” attracting and retaining talent, driving performance, leading people through change, and more
• How to rewire vital (and nonnegotiable) leader relationship skills such as communication, recognition, and team building
• Tips for providing the autonomy that employees crave when the solutions other industries offer (such as remote work) aren’t an option
• How leaders can help improve employee well-being by spotting red flags, starting crucial conversations, directing people to the right resources, and creating healthy work
• A new approach to leader development that is tailored to the precise needs and preferences of the individual
• How to move people through the “defiance, compliance, reliance” journey when initiating change

The Human Margin is a must-read for leaders at every level. It will shift your mindset on leading effectively in a world where so much has changed. And it will inspire you to start building the culture that today’s workforce craves and—even better—will move your team toward peak performance.

Cracking the Healthcare Leadership Code: How Purpose, Humility, and Accessibility Can Transform Your Organization will help leaders find their footing in this new healthcare landscape. The book describes how to attract and retain talent by reducing hierarchical communication, reinvigorating workers’ sense of purpose, and empowering them to do their best work. From there, the metrics related to achievement of organizational goals will naturally start improving.

Author Kevin Joseph is a physician leader who is well versed in the interactions between doctors, administrators, and clinical staff. His broad perspective has molded his leadership philosophy, which is grounded in the power of discovering and sustaining purpose. Throughout the book, Dr. Joseph shares one of his guiding principles as a healthcare executive: break down the power gradient and put people first, which can shift the culture and result in improved patient outcomes and metrics.

Covered topics include the following:

• How to prioritize the avalanche of competing needs and demands that confront leaders
• How to reduce an organization’s power imbalances to minimize fear and encourage ideas
• How to inspire employees to change their perceptions of themselves, their roles, and their relationships with patients
• How flattening the power gradient begins with senior leadership
• Creative ways to boost engagement by meaningfully connecting with caregivers
• The importance of prioritizing cultural fit over skills when hiring
• The four types of feedback every leader should master
• Common missteps to avoid when creating an anti-burnout strategy
• Why 70 percent of a leader’s time should be focused on serving and supporting others
• Best practices that leaders can use to level up their communication

Myriad forces are shaping a new dynamic in the healthcare workplace, and organizations and their leadership must adopt a human-centered approach. Cracking the Healthcare Leadership Code shows readers the way.

Regardless of their position or level within an organization, all healthcare managers need to understand the financial effects of their decisions. Introduction to the Financial Management of Healthcare Organizations provides an accessible overview of financial management concepts and their application in a variety of healthcare settings.

The first section of the book lays the groundwork by covering the basics of financial analysis and reporting, generally accepted accounting principles, and the tax status of healthcare organizations. Subsequent chapters delve into the core topics of operational revenue, working capital, and resource allocation. The book ends with a discussion of contemporary issues and trends.

This revised ninth edition features current data, an economics appendix complete with terminology, and a new comprehensive case study at the end of the book. It also includes new or updated content on:

• The status of the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid expansion
• Fraud and abuse initiatives and settlements
• Payment reform, including value-based purchasing, pricing transparency, and surprise billing
• Healthcare reform efforts, including entitlement reform
• COVID-19 programs and relief accountability

As in previous editions, the ninth edition reinforces concepts through mini case studies, practice problems, and self-quizzes. A running glossary, a list of abbreviations, and lists of chapter key points further aid comprehension.

Introduction to the Financial Management of Healthcare Organizations will help healthcare managers and clinical students understand and apply core financial management principles. It will also help working managers brush up on their financial skills so they can face daily challenges with confidence.

Healthcare Leadership and Rural Communities: Challenges, Strategies, and Solutions outlines what it takes to manage care in a rural community and provides advice on overcoming the common challenges that healthcare executives confront. The authors provide candid insights gained from their experience as rural healthcare managers and their work with leaders in the field.

Published in collaboration with the National Rural Health Association, the book covers topics including the following:

• Measuring and managing rural care quality
• Developing strong relationships with physicians
• Managing communications and controlling the message
• Financing and funding rural healthcare
• Meeting demand for mental and behavioral health services
• Creating rural health clinics or federally qualified health centers
• Building trust with staff, patients, and the community
• Working with tertiary health systems
• Recruiting, retaining, and developing talent
• Working with community hospital boards
• Recognizing and addressing rural health inequity
• Responding to the rural healthcare crisis

Case studies provide an excellent starting point for discussions with healthcare teams, boards, providers, and local leaders on how to solve real-life difficulties and enhance cooperation.

All healthcare organizations are linked to their communities, but rural providers have particularly strong ties. This book emphasizes the need for collaboration to safeguard the futures of organizations and their communities.

A perfect storm of factors has come together that puts engagement front and center: a rapidly changing industry …a stressed-out, traumatized workforce…a major staff shortage…an unprecedented focus on the employee experience. Building meaningful relationships has never mattered more. Leaders must master the skills to connect with people in ways that unlock and encourage their highest performance.

In other words, it’s vital to engage team members’ upper brains, which control critical reasoning, judgment, and creativity. When that positive connection is lacking, leaders risk provoking their team members’ lower brains—which govern fear and survival behaviors—and create a toxic workplace that leads to poor performance, high turnover, and ultimately, less than optimal patient outcomes.

Research shows that an individual leader’s behavior is the most important predictor of a team’s success. Leading with Your Upper Brain helps you understand why. More important, it provides an innovative framework that helps you shift your behavior in ways that help employees tap into their upper-brain resources for growth, development, and higher cognitive function that drive higher levels of performance.

In Caring for Our Communities: A Blueprint for Better Outcomes in Population Health, author Mark Angelo shares the expertise he has acquired as a senior administrator of a large accountable care organization and a leader in population health and palliative medicine. He provides tactical guidance for developing effective population health programs, and he answers many questions about value-based care models. He also uses real-world examples and industry experts' views to clarify the concepts underlying value-based initiatives.

Topics covered include the following:

• The elements of value-based, population health-driven care
• Why health equity must be the focus of any successful value-based care approach\The structure and function of accountable care organization
• What the “payvider” model is and how it breaks down the silos between payers and providers
• How data and analytics are used to assess the health and needs of a population
• How to improve coordination and management along the continuum of care

Caring for Our Communities provides a road map for creating an equitable, outcomes-focused system, using the right resources to nurture the health of our communities.