Talking Healthcare

Climate change has a direct and increasingly damaging impact on both the health of communities and healthcare delivery. Luckily, the healthcare sector has many opportunities to reduce its negative environmental impact while contributing to better health for all. We have taken the occasion of Earth Day - 22 April - to record a special episode of our podcast focusing on the role of hospitals in relation to environmental sustainability, a natural fit with their leading role in their communities and as champions of health. At the IHF World Hospital Congress 2023 in Lisbon, the plenary session on sustainability in healthcare triggered a lot of queries from the audience. In this episode, we are delighted to welcome two healthcare leaders who will speak at our IHF Congress 2024 to answer some of these questions, in particular: Cost is perceived as a barrier, but does going green help to reduce operating costs and how do we ensure it is a budgeting priority? Often "sustainability" is viewed as an issue about buildings and energy - how do we balance the conversation to include clinical care? Data doesn't need to be a barrier: how can hospital leaders approach measuring and benchmarking as part of their strategy?

The IHF Awards dates back to 2015, when the programme was launched at the 39th IHF World Hospital Congress in Chicago. In this episode we featured Alder Hey Children NHS Foundation Trust, winner of the 2023 Excellence Award for Healthcare Workers Wellbeing - an award that recognizes outstanding achievements in ensuring the wellbeing of healthcare workers through innovative projects, programs or services. Alder Hey Children NHS Foundation Trust's winner programme stands out for supporting and offering care for all staff. It is a service that is led by staff for staff, using compassion as a framework. Dr Lawrence Lai, Honorary Member of IHF, sat down with Dr Jo Potier, Associate Director of Organisational Development at Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust. Listen now and be inspired by Alder Hey Children NHS Foundation Trust's commitment to connect people to each other and to promote a culture that helps staff thrive at work.

As part of our Big Data Roadmap - a roadmap that leads you step by step through the design and delivery of a strategy to use Big Data in your healthcare organization - this episode focuses on the key issues relating to data collection for hospital leaders. Dr Sujoy Kar, member of the Big Data SIG steering committee sat down with Joseph Thekkath from the Joint Commission. Together, they adress questions such as what's the purpose of collecting data? How do you quantify it? What is the role of emerging technologies? Listen to this episode to learn more about all of this!

International Women’s Day is celebrated on the 8th of March each year – a campaign to raise awareness of gender inequity issues. In this episode, Dr Sangita Reddy from Apollo Hospitals India sat down with Dr Sawsan Abdel-Razig and Dr Pascale Anglade, both from Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi and long-standing members of the Women in Leadership SIG steering committee. Dr Sangita Reddy shares with us some inspirational stories on how women's equity has come to occupy such an important place in her life. She talks about the importance of creating a strong and supportive ecosystem and of having a transformative purpose in life – among many other things.

Across the IHF’s network, we believe that well-managed hospitals improve health outcomes for everyone, everywhere. Strong leadership skills are fundamental to healthcare management. And, in an increasingly international setting, benefitting from shared knowledge and experience can transform organizational performance. Since 2019, the IHF has offered an annual programme for selected young executives to improve their management and leadership skills, and to network internationally. Between February and September participants attend a series of masterclasses in key healthcare leadership areas. Small group work to complete topical assignments are an opportunity for the selected young executives to share their insights across our global community. The capstone experience for participants is attending the annual World Hospital Congress, where they graduate to the YEL Alumni network. In this episode, Taylor Johansen (YEL 2021), sat down with other YEL Alumni to talk about their experience and about how the programme helped them in their career journey.

In partnership with Healthcare UK, this 3-part podcast series will showcase the best of British innovation in our UK NHS services in the run-up to IHF’s World Hospital Congress in Lisbon in October. The Healthcare UK team, part of the Department for Business and Trade, works jointly with the Department for Health and Social Care and NHS England to empower UK healthcare providers to do business overseas. This final episode covers innovative approaches to care in the community and digital health in the UK. It showcases successful innovations that have had a positive impact in the UK and the hurdles and challenges faced along the way. If you want to hear more, come and meet Healthcare UK at the World Health Congress, where they are running the symposium ‘Bridging the mental health care gap: lessons for hospital and healthcare leaders’ and the roundtable discussion ‘How innovations in early diagnostics and intervention solutions are being implemented into the NHS and improving the efficiency of cancer care in the UK’.

IHF's Young Executive Leaders is an annual programme for selected young executives to improve their management and leadership skills and network internationally. Between May and November, participants attend a series of masterclasses in key healthcare leadership areas. Small group work to complete topical assignments are an opportunity for the selected young executives to share their insights across our global community. The capstone experience for participants is attending the annual World Hospital Congress, where they graduate to the YEL Alumni network. In this podcast, YEL 2023 Working Group 7 discussed the issues related to attracting, recruiting, and retaining skilled staff. They also covered the strategies for risk mitigation in the HR area related to challenges such: • ensuring an effective and efficient workforce, ready to adapt to new challenges • efficient upskilling of the current workforce, • prevention of wage theft by individuals and organisations alike

In partnership with Healthcare UK, this 3-part podcast series will showcase the best of British innovation in our UK NHS services in the run-up to IHF’s World Hospital Congress in Lisbon in October. The Healthcare UK team, part of the Department for Business and Trade, works jointly with the Department for Health and Social Care and NHS England to empower UK healthcare providers to do business overseas. This second episode discusses pilot testing of innovations and how they are implemented and scaled-up in the NHS. The speakers also discussed how products are currently being tested, how their impact is measured and then adopted into the NHS. We’ll also cover what we can learn from failures in this process. If you want to hear more, come and meet Healthcare UK at the World Health Congress, where they are running the symposium ‘Bridging the mental health care gap: lessons for hospital and healthcare leaders’ and the roundtable discussion ‘How innovations in early diagnostics and intervention solutions are being implemented into the NHS and improving the efficiency of cancer care in the UK’.

In partnership with Healthcare UK, this 3-part podcast series will showcase the best of British innovation in our UK NHS services in the run-up to IHF’s World Hospital Congress in Lisbon in October. The Healthcare UK team, part of the Department for Business and Trade, works jointly with the Department for Health and Social Care and NHS England to empower UK healthcare providers to do business overseas. This episode gives an overview of the ecosystem of NHS innovation. Speakers also explained how the NHS designs, evaluates and regulates innovations, how research can be translated into practice, and how our UK entrepreneurs are working with the NHS with their innovations and can share these globally. If you want to hear more, come and meet Healthcare UK at the World Health Congress, where they are running the symposium ‘Bridging the mental health care gap: lessons for hospital and healthcare leaders’ and the roundtable discussion ‘How innovations in early diagnostics and intervention solutions are being implemented into the NHS and improving the efficiency of cancer care in the UK’.

Cybersecurity in healthcare has a unique set of challenges due to the type of information at risk and the consequences on patient safety. Hospitals and healthcare organizations are vulnerable targets of cyberattacks which represent significant danger for patients and hospitals’ ability to continue their operations. In this episode, John Riggi, National Advisor for Cybersecurity and Risk, at the American Hospital Association, sat down with Ligia Kornowska, Director and leader of innovation at the Polish Hospital Federation, to discuss the issues and challenges of cybersecurity in healthcare. John also provided responses and recovery solutions to these cyber threats.

IHF's Telehealth Special Interest Group aims to create exclusive thought-leadership products on the use of telehealth in hospitals, raising awareness amongst the IHF’s Members (and beyond) on the imperatives and advantages of harnessing digital technology in healthcare systems. Sponsored by Teladoc Health, this SIG focuses on navigating the future of telehealth for hospitals and health service providers. In this episode, Ed Percy, HHS Vice President EMEA at Teladoc Health, sat down with Sonia Roschnik and Dr Hesham Abdelghaffar to shed light on the role of telemedicine in the transition to net-zero healthcare. They discussed opportunities, challenges, and practical implications for hospital leaders of using telemedicine to reduce the carbon footprint of their hospitals.

IHF's Big Data Special Interest Group focuses on the imperatives and advantages of harnessing big data and analytics to improve performance in healthcare systems. In this episode, we invited members of the Big Data Steering Committee, to shed light on the use of big data in healthcare. Using the expertise, knowledge and insights of members of the Big Data SIG, we discussed the challenges, opportunities and practical implications for hospital leaders on using big data in decision-making.

This year, the IHF is bringing the 46th edition of the World Hospital Congress to the beautiful city of Lisbon in Portugal. This is the second time this prestigious event will be held in Lisbon, but for the first time, it is being co-organized by a Consortium of three local hospital leadership associations. In this episode, Linda Clark, Director of Professional Development at IHF, interviewed the Presidents of the three associations to share updates and developments in organizing the Congress and what attendees can expect in Lisbon.

The World Hospital Congress is the annual flagship event of the International Hospital Federation. The Congress is a unique global forum connecting leaders and decision-makers of hospitals, health services and healthcare organizations to share knowledge and good practices, exchange new ideas and innovations, and network with other senior executives from across the international healthcare community. This year, IHF will bring the 46th edition of the Congress to the beautiful city of Lisbon in Portugal. In this episode, Scientific Committee Co-Chairs Alexandre Lourenço and Artur Vaz talked to some of the members of the Scientific Committee, who shared their experiences behind the scenes and in formulating the programme.

The International Hospital Federation Awards dates back to 2015 when the programme was launched at the 39th IHF World Hospital Congress in Chicago. The IHF Awards have been recognizing excellence in hospitals and healthcare organizations around the world. In this episode, we featured Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, the winner of the Excellence Award for Health Services During Crises. This award recognises hospitals and healthcare organizations in a low-income country, or country during times of significant crises, for their excellence or outstanding achievements in delivering services despite the challenging environment. Dr Lawrence Lai, Chairman of the IHF Awards Committee, Honorary Member of the International Hospital Federation, sat down with Dr Khawaja Shehryar Nasir. Dr Nasir is the Assistant Director at the Quality and Patient Safety Department of Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre in Pakistan.

International Women’s Day is celebrated on the 8th of March each year – a campaign to raise awareness of gender inequity issues. At the IHF, our Women in Leadership Forum is joining this global conversation with a particular focus on inequities in healthcare leadership. In this episode, Lucy Clements, Health Integration Policy Lead from NHS Surrey Heartlands Integrated Care System, UK, sat down with Dr Sawsan Abdelrazig and Dr Pascale Anglade from Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi. Dr Sawsan and Dr Pascale have been researching and raising awareness of gender inequity in healthcare and in leadership for many years.

The International Hospital Federation Awards dates back to 2015, when the programme was launched at the 39th IHF World Hospital Congress in Chicago. The IHF Awards have been recognizing excellence in hospitals and healthcare organizations around the world. Last year, a new category was launched to recognize hospitals and health service providers who demonstrated excellence or outstanding achievements in ensuring the well-being and sustainability of healthcare workers through innovative projects or initiatives. In this episode, Dr Lawrence Lai, Chairman of the IHF Awards Committee, Honorary Member of the International Hospital Federation, sat down with Dominic Tung, Assistant Director for HR Wellness at Tan Tock Seng Hospital to discuss their programme which bagged the gold title for the Excellence Award for Healthcare Workers’ Wellbeing.

Since 2019, the IHF has offered an annual program for selected young executives to improve their management and leadership skills, and to network internationally. These young leaders are shaping the healthcare delivery of the future, and every year the skills and ideas that they demonstrate throughout the programme are truly impressive. In this episode, Leandro Luis sat down with fellow YEL alumni, John Kueven and Pritindira Sachdeva to share their experiences and reflections on being selected for the YEL programme.

Net zero in healthcare: how is it possible? What is the role of current and future healthcare leaders in driving the sustainability agenda? What are the bold and collective actions to take in line with the Paris Agreement and the UN SDGs, to minimize environmental impact and transform services? In this episode, Sonia Roschnik, Director of the Geneva Sustainability Centre sat down with Stephanie Allen, Rod Hochman, and Bertrand Levrat to discuss healthcare leadership and sustainability. About the Speakers: Sonia Roschnik Director, Geneva Sustainability Centre Stephanie Allen Global Health & Social Services Leader Deloitte LLP Bertrand Levrat CEO, University Hospitals of Geneva (HUG) Dr Rod Hochman President & CEO, Providence

In this special episode of the IHF's Talking Healthcare podcast series, participants in the IHF's Young Executive Leaders 2022 programme explore how international health organizations can facilitate the access of refugees to healthcare services. “At a time when 1 in every 88 people on earth has been forced to flee, we all believe that providing support when these crises happen and, afterwards, facilitating refugees’ access to healthcare services is more important than ever.” This episode was developed by Dina El-Maghraby (Saudi German Health Egypt and North Africa), Giulia Petrarulo (Unicancer France), Vanessa Ribeiro (Portugal), Mohamed Ameen (Saudi German Hospital Cairo), and Kean Villarta (Children’s Health System of Texas).