Six nationally ranked health systems, including Henry Ford Health System in Detroit, have formed the Evolve Health Alliance, a unique human resources alliance that will work collectively to address key functional areas to improve the diversity, well-being, and engagement of their respective workforces and, ultimately, improve patient care.
The other health systems in the alliance are AdventHealth in Altamonte Springs, Fla.; Artium Health in Charlotte, N.C.; Intermountain Healthcare in Salt Lake City; Northwell Health in New Hyde Park, N.Y.; and OhioHealth in Columbus, Ohio.
The alliance and its members operate hospitals, outpatient facilities, and other care sites throughout the United States. Since the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, these organizations have shared ideas and best practices so each can more effectively support their individual workforces in the ever-changing health care environment.
Now, these organizations will collectively develop new resources so each is better positioned to take on some of the most pressing issues their workforces face today and into the future.
“Collaboration is key for health care systems to successfully adapt to changing conditions and prepare for the future,” says Heather Brace, senior vice president and chief people officer of Intermountain Healthcare, who also serves as co-chair of Evolve Health Alliance. “We know this alliance will help us evolve policies, practices and initiatives that ultimately benefit our patients and the communities we serve.”
Included in the initial phase of information sharing are: best practices regarding initiatives that focus on the well-being of employees; workforce data and analytics insights into how human capital programs and operations can be redefined; collaboration to enhance innovation and implementation of diversity and inclusion programs; ad hoc reciprocal agreements to help address staffing needs; and enabling human resources teams to remain ahead of the curve amid continuously changing external factors.
Additionally, the collective organizations will collaborate on leadership development programs where members from each organization are able to participate in skills development programming at other alliance member organizations. These shared development opportunities among clinical and non-clinical staff, as well as administrative and operational teams, will enable an exchange of ideas, processes, and best practices that will benefit each organization.
A trigger point in forming the alliance came during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when Northwell Health and Intermountain Healthcare worked collaboratively to address each system’s projected staffing shortfalls due to surges in the number of patients coming to their care sites. To meet demand, Intermountain deployed 48 team members to Northwell, which later reciprocated. Positive staff feedback led to the idea of forming a broader alliance.
“Health systems around the country relied on each other’s expertise during the pandemic in ways we had not experienced before,” says Maxine Carrington, senior vice president and chief people officer at Northwell Health. “We knew clinically that we were stronger together in advancing patient care, but we also recognized the benefit of collaborating with innovative and like-minded health systems to better prepare our workforces for the future. We are eager to work with our colleagues to push health care boundaries to meet our goals.”
