As hospital systems develop their COVID-19 recovery plans, the financial impact of this pandemic is deep and far reaching. IT budgets are no exception. IT leaders are being asked to take salary cuts, furlough staff, and deal with a capital freeze for the rest of the year. This comes at a time when the demand for technology solutions is only increasing. And at a time when IT teams have performed at their peak in providing and supporting new solutions with agility and in record time.

In a recent Becker’s Hospital Review article, Hospital IT Spend Pivots to Mission Critical Projects: 7 Leaders on the Key Focus for the Next 12 Months, IT leaders covered telehealth, digital transformation, analytics, informatics, and of course the reality of cost reduction facing them and their organizations.

IT leaders have long faced the supply vs demand challenge. And they have long faced the need to reduce their budgets while meeting a growing user base and increased demand for technology solutions. The days of significant year to year budget and staff growth in IT are a distant memory.

As we look to the future after the COVID-19 recovery, some people talk about the “new normal” phase and others refer to it as the “re-imagine” phase. The latter certainly encourages us to think differently. Regardless, it will be with far less resources. So how does IT manage and ensure success in this ever more constrained environment? In some respects, it is back to the basics:

Staff – People are your greatest asset. Strategies to retain talent are now more important than ever. While you may have no choice but to furlough or lay off staff to achieve significant budget cuts quickly, be creative in reducing costs without losing staff. Avoid situations that create overtime for non-exempt staff and consider job sharing, perhaps for now even unpaid time off. With more use of videoconferencing you can save on local travel expenses. Don’t give up on professional development – consider using existing staff to help with education and look for creative ways to help staff learn and develop new skills.

Governance – There has never been a more important time to ensure your IT governance is solid. You need strong business alignment and partnership. You need to have clearly defined criteria, well-oiled processes, and effective tools for managing new requests. Solid IT governance will also provide the objective framework for regularly revisiting priorities and determining what to stop, start or continue.

Partnership – Only IT can own the infrastructure portion of the budget and make the case for critical capital investments and the associated operating expenses. But all user facing solutions must have an executive sponsor and business owner that works in partnership with IT.

EHR and ERP investments – Significant investments have and are being made in these core systems. They continue to be the foundation for any digital strategy. Yet many organizations do not fully utilize what is available or even understand what is possible. Partner with your vendor and learn from their leading customers to maximize your investment. Avoid investing in new one-off niche solutions unless your core system is clearly unable to address the need now or in the next year. Rather than ROI consider VOI – value of investment.

Innovation – Organizations cannot afford the “shiny object” syndrome. But they must continue to innovate. There must be a strong partnership and tight integration between IT and those responsible for innovation if it is not the CIO. Niche solutions to real problems must be integrated into core systems to truly get the promised benefit.

Application rationalization – Most IT organizations support hundreds if not thousands of applications. Now is the time to tackle this head on. But don’t stop at just application software. Consider the number of niche tools used in the infrastructure and security space. Is there an opportunity for consolidation and cost reduction there as well?

Outsourcing – Keep an open mind to where selective outsourcing makes sense. Can that core function or service be provided more cost effectively, more reliably, and with a higher degree of satisfaction through a managed service arrangement?

Vendors – They will be offering new solutions and want your time and attention. They too are trying to address the business downturn while adapting to the changing healthcare landscape and providing solutions. A level of scrutiny and a “show me” attitude is prudent. As always, there are key questions to ask any vendor when they pitch a product. What real problem does it solve? Is it a problem we must solve now? How does the solution help us prepare for the future? Can our existing core systems address the problem? If not, how does it integrate with our core systems?

I have heard many healthcare CIOs talk about what an opportunity and honor it is to be supporting their organizations during this difficult time. I applaud them all. They have accomplished much in a short period of time. I am confident they will figure out how to meet the challenges and continue to deliver in service to their organizations, their patients, their staff, and their communities.

Be well. Be strong. Be smart.

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