Resilience & Success in an Uncertain World

This past year has demonstrated how deeply impacted anesthesia can be when faced with a disruption of “normal business.” This preconference will target tools for thriving amidst tremendous change and how to come out a stronger organization on the other side.

Learning Objectives for AAE PreCon

This PreCon will provide you with the knowledge to:

  1. Assess operational and financial strategies to help your organization succeed in the midst of unprecedented challenges.
  2. Develop financial strategies and opportunities associated with the current environment.
  3. Formulate strategies for effectively conducting business remotely.
  4. Identify security risks and mitigation strategies necessary to avoid breaches.

 

PROGRAM

9 - 10 a.m. CST
Building Resilient Operations for Critical Times

COVID-19 severely impacted anesthesiology practices, both administratively and clinically. This session will show how two anesthesia practices approached both administrative and clinical operational challenges through their real life stories. The speakers will share their best practices and lessons learned as they managed the COVID-19 surges. This session will provide practical strategies for redeploying staff, and preparing for shifting restrictions and changing workloads across the peak of the pandemic through to the recovery.

Learning Objectives

This session will provide you with the knowledge to:

  1. Create adaptive staffing for administrative and clinical functions during dynamic change.
  2. Build fluid and concise communications for various teams during a crisis.
  3. Respond to changes in supply chain and equipment redeployment mandates.
  4. Better address provider and staff anxiety around policy and operational changes.

 

10 – 11 a.m. CST
A Legal Update on COVID-Related HR Challenges

This session will provide attendees with an updated understanding of new and sometimes temporary Federal and State regulations developed in response to COVID-19 and its impact on the workforce.

Learning Objectives

This session will provide you with the knowledge to:

  1. Describe the changing HR employer obligations enacted under Federal COVID-19 regulations.
  2. Develop steps for implementing and communicating with employees the new and sometimes temporary changes to HR policies.
  3. Describe the differences between large and small employer responsibilities as they relate to both Federal and State COVID-related legislation.
  4. Describe how to deal with other COVID-related HR challenges.

 

11 a.m. – Noon CST
When Your Dollars and Cents Get Infected

This session will provide attendees with tools and methodologies for estimating and reporting forecast revenue projections due to business interruptions by crises like COVID-19. Attendees will also learn about potential resources for short-term working capital to bridge revenue shortfalls.

Learning Objectives

This session will provide you with the knowledge to:

  1. Project future revenues, expenses, and working capital needs given business interruptions, such as COVID-19.
  2. Develop clear and concise reports to inform stakeholders and promote clear alternatives for decision-making.
  3. Identify temporary sources of working capital to bridge revenue shortfalls due to business interruption.

 

1 – 2 p.m. CST
Security Breach: You’ve Now Lost Your Practice. Why?  

While you might think your billing company or hospital are covering your HIPAA needs, there are other exposure points. Get specific examples and guidance to help you identify the activities and controls that need to be in place to avoid ransomware, million-dollar fines, publicity, and loss of your hospital contract.

Learning Objectives

This session will provide you with the knowledge to:

  1. Identify essential policies and practices.
  2. Provide practical tools and tips to assist in mitigating risk and fines.
  3. Describe the legal and practical impact of a data breach.
  4. Describe your rights and responsibilities upon discovery of HIPAA breach and how to respond.

 

2 – 2:30 p.m. CST
What’s the ‘New Normal’?

Given the new political environment, this session will discuss expectations of upcoming legislation and how they may affect anesthesia in the coming years.

Learning Objectives

This session will provide you with the knowledge to:

  1. Identify what changes may be coming to healthcare, and the impact on anesthesia, based on current political agendas.
  2. Formulate an action plan to lead your group and physicians for long-term success.

 

2:30 – 3 p.m. CST
Resilient Leadership: The Role of Well-being Professional Performance

Change. Workload. Uncertainty. Stress. Personal and professional adversity. The role of a healthcare leader includes an increasing dose of all of these negative realities, and then some. This session examines the topic of resilience, methods for overcoming adversity, avoiding and addressing burnout in ourselves and our organizations, and the role of well-being in leadership and professional performance.

Learning Objectives 

This session will provide you with the knowledge to:

  1. Apply tools to increase their resilience, adaptability, and leadership response in times of stress, adversity, and change.
  2. Create an action plan to increase well-being and enhance resilience.
  3. Identify their personal purpose, and develop an action plan to deploy it in your day-to-day leadership.

 

3 – 4 p.m. CST 
Optimizing Remote Culture & Productivity

This past year, organizations across the country had to quickly adapt to conducting business remotely.  This session will review tips and techniques to help participants in the new virtual environment, both personally and as organizational leaders.

Learning Objectives

This session will provide you with the knowledge to:

  1. Lead a productive virtual meeting.
  2. Maintain the office culture of teamwork and camaraderie while working in different locations.
  3. Keep yourself on track and productive in a new work environment.

 

4 – 5 p.m. CST   
Organizational Resilience: Stories from the Front Lines

Organizational resilience is the ability of an organization to anticipate, prepare for, respond, and adapt to incremental or disruptive change—not only to survive but to thrive. This involves assessing and supporting your leadership, people, process, and products. COVID-19 has revealed much about how well our organizations were prepared for a seismic disruption and there are many lessons learned.

Learning Objectives

This session will provide you with the knowledge to:

  1. Describe what healthcare has learned about organizational resilience over the last year of the pandemic.
  2. Evaluate how to create resilience from an organizational, financial, and cultural perspective.
  3. Describe the leadership roles that anesthesiologists can step into during times of institutional stress.
  4. List lessons learned and what we need to carry to the next pandemic and/or crisis.

 

5 – 6 p.m.
Breakouts

Networking and peer interactions are the core strength of the anesthesia practice management community. To this end, the two 30-minute sessions are designed to allow attendees to pose their individual questions to their peers and receive ideas and formulate action plans.