Radio Advisory

Health system margins have recovered from record lows, but the median margin remains just over 1%, leaving organizations with little room for error. Sustainable margin isn't simply the biggest number an organization can generate. It's the ability to reliably fund operations, reinvest in the future, absorb unexpected shocks, and avoid destabilizing cuts. In this episode, host Rae Woods speaks with Advisory Board experts Chelsea Needham and Clare Wirth about why leaders need to stop managing revenue cycle, workforce, operations, and growth as separate priorities and start treating them as an interconnected margin system. They explore the ripple effects of common margin initiatives, the opportunity costs behind strategic decisions, and the questions leaders should ask before approving their next financial improvement effort. Listen to learn how health system executives can build margin that is not only stronger today, but more sustainable over the long term. We’re here to help: Expert Insight | 5 assumptions executives make about revenue cycle (and what to do instead) Expert Insight | 6 strategies to improve your operating margins and financial resilience E-book | 5 Provider Strategies to Help Improve Your Margins | Optum Episode | 303: The hard truths behind the fight for commercial volumes Episode | [Encore] How data savvy strategic planners will define the next era of health system growth 2026 Strategic Planning Survey A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.

For years, healthcare leaders have debated whether the industry faces a true physician shortage or simply a physician capacity problem. But as physicians near retirement, workforce fatigue persists, and organizations struggle to recruit providers fast enough to meet growing demand, that debate is taking on new urgency. In this episode, hosts Rae Woods and Abby Burns sit down with Advisory Board expert Daniel Kuzmanovich to revisit a prediction they made nearly a decade ago: that healthcare could avoid a physician shortage if organizations redesigned care delivery and deployed care teams differently. Together, they unpack what has changed in the physician workforce since then, why advanced practice providers may be healthcare's greatest untapped source of clinical capacity, and how leaders should balance workforce strategy, care model redesign, and AI investments as they plan for the future of care delivery. We’re here to help: Expert Insight | 5 ways hospitals can build a more flexible physician workforce Report | Solving the CV clinician shortage without sacrificing margin Research | Provider operations Tool | Clinician Supply Profiler Sponsor link: 2026 Strategic Planning Survey A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.

While most health plans have at least begun testing AI tools to improve operational efficiency, a far smaller number have moved beyond pilot stage. The challenge is not merely adopting AI – it is deciding which processes to reimagine and which solutions merit investment; doing the work of embedding solutions in end-to-end workflows; measuring success; and, crucially, establishing the organizational alignment needed to generate value at scale. In this episode, host Rae Woods sits down with Troy Anderson, Vice President of Payer Solutions at Optum.ai, and Sally Kim, Advisory Board health plan expert. They talk about why payment integrity and member experience are rising to the top of health plans’ priority list for deploying AI, and how regional plans can learn from larger organizations, focus on proven value, and avoid costly mistakes in the early stages of investment and deployment. We’re here to help: Expert Insight | How health plans can tackle rising administrative costs Webinar | How health plans are using AI to deliver a better member experience Webinar | The AI arms race: How health plans are responding in payment integrity Episode | Ep. 313: Inside Sutter Health's playbook for scaling AI Episode | Ep. 228: Avoiding ‘pilot purgatory’ in remote patient monitoring Research | AI in healthcare: Evaluating promising use cases Research | Health plan strategy Get in touch | Simplifying healthcare with AI | Optum Playbook | Your playbook for developing an AI governance strategy Ready-to-Use Resource| How to take a problem-first approach to AI Playlist | Explore Radio Advisory’s Tech & AI playlist for expert insights on innovation and the future of healthcare A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.

Healthcare organizations may be investing in AI, but many struggle to advance use cases beyond a single specialty, site, or workflow. At Sutter Health, leaders approached AI not as a series of technology pilots, but as a systemwide operational challenge. They set out to ensure that investments in AI centered on supporting clinicians across the enterprise before, during, and after patient visits. Today, more than 6,000 clinicians use ambient listening technology, generating more than five million clinical notes. Reaching that level of adoption required much more than selecting the right tool. In this episode, host Rachel (Rae) Woods speaks with Dr. Veena Jones, Chief Medical Informatics Officer at Sutter Health, about what it takes to move beyond siloed experimentation and actually scale AI across an enterprise. They explore how thoughtful governance, meaningful multistakeholder feedback loops, and a “good enough to scale” mindset can turn promising technology into a sustainable capability that supports clinicians and patients. We’re here to help: Case Study | How Sutter Health scaled AI to support clinicians system-wide Episode | Ep. 228: Avoiding ‘pilot purgatory’ in remote patient monitoring Playbook | Your playbook for developing an AI governance strategy Research | AI in healthcare: Evaluating promising use cases Ready-to-Use Resource | How to take a problem-first approach to AI Subscribe to The Daily Briefing, a must-read newsletter for thousands of healthcare executives across the nation. A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.

Health systems across the country started calling Advisory Board with the same question: Why are our volumes down? In this episode, Abby Burns, Clare Wirth, and Vidal Seegobin walk through what happened after our research team dug into the data to find out whether those concerns were isolated incidents or part of a broader national trend. What they found raises a much bigger question than whether volumes are down today: What if they're not coming back the way we've assumed they would? Together, they debate the forces reshaping demand, from affordability pressures and coverage losses to site-of-care shifts and changing patient behavior. They also explore what the findings mean for health system growth strategies and why organizations may need to shift their focus from capturing volume to competing on access. We’re here to help: Podcast | 303: The hard truths behind the fight for commercial volumes Playlist | Provider Strategy and Financial Outlook Expert insight | What’s really behind the drop in hospital volumes? Report | Which services are most at risk of leaving the hospital? Research | Market trends and growth strategy Tools | Get in touch with a representative to learn more about Advisory Board's Market Intelligence tool Sponsor link: Webinar | Building financial sustainability in specialty pharmacy A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.