1 of 10
Erica Techo
South Shelby Chamber Luncheon
Brookwood Baptist COO Greg Johnston speaks at the Feb. 4 South Shelby Chamber of Commerce Luncheon.
2 of 10
Erica Techo
South Shelby Chamber Luncheon
Leisha Harris and Sherry Cole at the Feb. 4 South Shelby Chamber of Commerce Luncheon.
3 of 10
Erica Techo
South Shelby Chamber Luncheon
Shari Hyde andRuss Hyde at the Feb. 4 South Shelby Chamber of Commerce Luncheon.
4 of 10
Erica Techo
South Shelby Chamber Luncheon
Denise Bradford at the Feb. 4 South Shelby Chamber of Commerce Luncheon.
5 of 10
Erica Techo
South Shelby Chamber luncheon
D'Awavlo Turnipseed, Jacqueline Gardner and Andrea Corley at the Feb. 4 South Shelby Chamber of Commerce Luncheon.
6 of 10
Erica Techo
South Shelby Chamber Luncheon
Kelly Cole and Shannon Bell at the Feb. 4 South Shelby Chamber of Commerce Luncheon.
7 of 10
Erica Techo
South Shelby Chamber Luncheon
Jim Thornton, Don Robinson and Donald Shirley at the Feb. 4 South Shelby Chamber of Commerce Luncheon.
8 of 10
Erica Techo
South Shelby Chamber Luncheon
Jordan Coggin and Shawn Callahan at the Feb. 4 South Shelby Chamber of Commerce Luncheon.
9 of 10
Erica Techo
South Shelby Chamber Luncheon
Marcella Baker and Paige Landry at the Feb. 4 South Shelby Chamber of Commerce Luncheon.
10 of 10
Erica Techo
South Shelby Chamber Luncheon
Bobbie Jo George and Allison Traywick at the Feb. 4 South Shelby Chamber of Commerce Luncheon.
The Brookwood Baptist Health partnership developed out of a change in health care, said Brookwood Baptist COO Greg Johnston.
Johnston discussed the partnership between Tenet Healthcare and Baptist Health Systems at the Feb. 4 South Shelby Chamber of Commerce luncheon. A change in the market, including increased insurance rates and increased costs, meant a new approach to health care was necessary.
“We [Baptist Health] started looking at, ‘Is this model going to work well for us in the future?’,” Johnston said. “And we do believe there is going to be more and more price shopping over time, and I think you may have made those decisions today.”
Before delving into discussion about the partnership, Johnston brought up the topic of Medicaid.
“You’re going to hear a lot about Medicaid during the next few weeks and months while the state legislature is in session,” he said.
From a hospital standpoint, Johnston said, there is no general fund money for reimbursement. That means most hospitals are funding their own Medicaid programs, he said, so most health care organizations support increased federal support of Medicare.
“This is very important to our economy and to the health of our community that we have a very well-funded and accepted Medicaid program,” he said.
Johnston said health care costs are currently growing at an unsustainable rate, and that factor combined with Baptist Health operating in one of the nation’s toughest markets, Birmingham. The opportunity of a partnership meant an opportunity to add value by creating a clinically integrated network.
“We really believe, if you look at the Birmingham market, there really isn’t a health care system that could provide a very, very coordinated way care to patients, and what we believe will happen will happen in the new world,” he said.
The new world, Johnston added, means passing the risk of keeping people well to health care. At this time, insurance companies carry that responsibility through premiums and managing rates, but they do not manage how health care is related
“The whole system, if you really think about it, is pretty broken,” Johnston said.
When health care providers rely on sick patients or those who need specific care to make money, he said, it can lead to unnecessary tests or treatment costs.
“Frankly we need to figure out how to reverse that so that we get paid for keeping you well,” Johnston said, “and not getting paid only when you need something.”
Baptist Health saw an opportunity in the Birmingham market to bring more integrated care, but they could not do it on their own. The partnership with Tenet was mutually beneficial, Johnston said, because it would have been difficult for Tenet to build a network without Baptist Health and Baptist Health benefitted from Tenet’s financial strength.
Moving forward, Johnston said Brookwood Baptist Health plans to create more affordable, accessible, accountable and coordinated care. Consumers want to know about cost, convenience and online resources when it comes to health care, and Johnston said they plan to focus on those points in their network.
“We think this is going to be a really strong asset of us coming together,” Johnston said, “is being able to figure out … how we can make this network of physicians and hospitals and digital imaging centers and surgery centers feel like it’s one entity to everyone so we can have that convenience everyone is looking for in the market.”
Johnston said people can expect to see Brookwood Baptist Health begin to roll out its branding efforts in the spring.
The next luncheon will be March 4 at Columbiana First Baptist Church from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. No RSVP is required, and it is $12 per person.
