Show Notes – Michelle Mader

In this episode of The Architecture of Healing, host Chase Miller sits down with Michelle Mader Managing Director of Healthcare Strategic Advisory Services at Ankura, to explore the complexities of healthcare strategy, capital deployment, and the balance between mission and margin in today's healthcare landscape.

Michelle brings deep expertise in helping large health systems prioritize capital deployment—essentially deciding where, when, and how to invest limited resources. From mission-driven nonprofits to shareholder-focused for-profits, she explains how healthcare organizations are navigating unprecedented challenges, including tightening budgets, aging populations, and shifting state and federal regulations.

Michelle leaves us with a big idea: true transformation requires aligning financial incentives with patient access and outcomes—a shift every U.S. administration has wrestled with for decades.

She provides a fascinating historical lens, tracing healthcare's evolution from employer-sponsored benefits in the 1940s through Medicare/Medicaid in the 1960s, the access-focused era of the 70s–90s, and today's cost-control environment.

Whether you're a healthcare leader, strategist, designer, or simply curious about the forces shaping our healthcare system, this episode offers practical insights and big-picture perspective on how organizations can adapt, prioritize, and innovate in the face of rapid change.

What You'll Learn in This Episode

• Capital Strategy & Prioritization – how healthcare systems balance limited resources with seemingly unlimited demands.
• The balancing act of healthcare as both business and humanity — why financial viability is essential for mission-driven care.
• Legislation and state-level impacts — how policies in Indiana, Maryland, and beyond are reshaping reimbursement and provider strategy.
• Rising Costs & Aging Populations – why healthcare in the U.S. faces such persistent financial strain.
• Generational eras of U.S. healthcare — from post-WWII infrastructure expansion to today's cost-control era.
• Operational trends in cost management — standardization, service consolidation, and smarter use of fixed assets.
• Mergers & Acquisitions – how consolidation drives standardization but doesn't always lower patient costs.
• Technology's promise (and pitfalls) — why healthcare IT hasn't yet delivered cost savings, and how cybersecurity and financial reform must catch up.
• The Future of Healthcare Delivery – how shifting demographics, financial reform, technology, and new care models will shape where and how people access care.

About Michelle Mader

For over 24 years, Michelle Mader has been at the forefront of transforming healthcare organizations through comprehensive system-based strategic initiatives. Her expertise lies in planning for national, multi-state, and regional networks. Michelle crafts strategic and capital plans by analyzing and collating market, financial, regulatory, operational, and facility opportunities. By prioritizing financial viability and identifying positive investment indicators, she streamlines the development process for clients, accelerates funding approvals, and fast-tracks implementation.

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www.thearchitectureofhealing.com

The views expressed herein are those of the podcast guest and not necessarily the views of Ankura Consulting Group, LLC., its management, its subsidiaries, its affiliates, or its other professionals. Ankura is not a law firm and cannot provide legal advice.