As we approach the end of 2022, one cannot help but think about the past year and what resulted — especially in healthcare. I have been talking to healthcare leaders across the country, reading all predictions and healthcare news that I can access, and pondering on my own.
I am optimistic about our future as I look toward 2023, but I still find myself reviewing some of the most salient healthcare trends in 2022. My hope is that we individually consider how we can take action to impact some of these most pressing healthcare trends and processes from 2022 as we look ahead to 2023.
Pondering 2022
As I look back at the year that was in 2022, I realize:
- There is a great deal of disruption in all aspects of life.
- Access to healthcare services is not fair or equitable.
- Healthcare access and clinical outcomes are vastly different for populations and communities.
- Many in our communities are hungry or homeless.
- Professional care providers and healthcare administrators are often disillusioned with the healthcare system.
- Patients are disillusioned with the healthcare system, and, in particular, its lack of coordination.
- Innovation is all around us, but often not focused on “fixing” the root causes of employee concerns or frontline caregivers.
- Data to drive decisions are readily available, but, most often, data are not driving needed resultant actions.
- Technology solutions are disparate and just beginning to be perceived as a value add for clinicians and leaders.
- There is a fine balance between the desires of employees and leadership’s focus on employee wellness, team collaboration, and business performance.
- The value of nursing is being discussed and pondered by many across the country and MUST be quickly quantified and articulated.
Planning for 2023
As I look ahead to 2023, several topics are top of mind:
- We are personally responsible and accountable for our professional careers and personal health.
- It is our obligation to focus on wellness and to access preventative care services so that we can give our best selves.
- We must select an employer organization that can provide the balance of life and work that we personally desire and value.
- We must select a place to work where we can thrive, grow, and experience joy.
- We must be assertive in our feedback to leaders in our organizations.
- We must each give our best individual work and focus to our co-workers.
- We must educate ourselves on the leading models for teamwork and practice using them.
- We must continue to focus on partnerships and engage together to support healthcare organizations in using our mutual technologies and best practices to their fullest.
- Nursing is the most trusted profession and we as nurses must maintain and contribute to this honoring perception.
- We must capture our learning and broadly share the results and actions that work.
Thank you for taking the time to reflect with me. I am surrounded in my personal life and in my work by others who push the possible and educate me on all fronts. I am proud to be a healthcare leader and a nurse. These last few years have offered me, and many whom I interact with, a renewed perspective of what is possible. I am hopeful that there is one nugget in my learning that can trigger some action from within you.
Happy New Year to each and every one of you!
Additional Resources
The following references informed Nanne’s article:
- 3 HR Megatrends That Will Impact Organizations in 2023 | UKG
- Top 10 Healthcare Industry Predictions for 2023 | Forbes
- Three Pillars of Healthcare Technology Predictions in 2023 | Wolters Kluwer
- The Gathering Storm: An Opportunity to Reorder the Healthcare Industry | McKinsey
- The Future of U.S. Healthcare: What’s Next for the Industry Post-COVID-19 | McKinsey
