Home » About Us » Notes from the CEO

Notes from the CEO

Joseph D. McDonald, President and CEO, Catholic Health, is chair of the Board of Trustees of the Healthcare Association of New York State (HANYS).

A healthcare executive for more than 25 years, McDonald begin his career in Knoxville, Tennessee.

He joined Catholic Health in 2002, helping the Western New York healthcare system achieve statewide and national recognition.

He has been recognized by the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) with its Senior Level Regents Award for his contributions towards the advancement of healthcare management excellence.

On this page, Joe provides insight into the healthcare industry and describes his vision for the future of Catholic Health.

The Transition from Volume-Based to Value-Based Healthcare

January 2012

The problems of the U.S. healthcare system are well documented – soaring costs, low customer satisfaction, increasing problems with quality and restricted access to care. These issues are gripping the psyche of most Americans who worry about what their healthcare will cost and what level of quality they can expect.

Competition and Collaboration Reduces Costs

There is no single system that can take care of the demands of an entire region. As a formal ministry of the Catholic Church, Catholic Health must remain independent to fulfill its mission. It’s also widely proven that competition reduces costs, while monopolies drive them up. The delivery of healthcare services is elevated and costs are reduced when there is both healthy competition and collaboration, and when patients have a choice.

We Deliver the Right Care, in the Right Place, at the Right Cost

The School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at the University at Buffalo focuses on research, teaching and patient care to support its first two disciplines. The academic medical setting is important to the healthcare delivery equation, advancing research and educating new doctors.

Catholic Health, on the other hand, has developed a unique organization, a high performing healthcare system (HPHS), which is positioned to deal with the reductions the healthcare industry is facing, while maintaining high quality, nationally-ranked care for the patient – providing the right care, in the right place, at the right time, and at the right cost.

After decades of operating in an industry full of redundancies and unnecessary expenses, our efforts to control rising healthcare costs are impacting patients in a positive way. Today, Catholic Health cares for 40 - 50 percent of the marketplace, depending on the service line.

The system’s transformation hasn’t happened overnight, but over a period of several years that began long before the Berger Commission was created to respond to community needs for high-quality, affordable and accessible care. At a time when Medicare is the nation’s largest insurance program, reducing healthcare cost isn’t just an option, it’s a matter of survival.

Today, in this new paradigm, we are being recognized as a model for other state and national systems to follow. We have set the bar on quality and safety, controlling costs through delivery efficiencies, setting new performance standards and incentivizing providers to reward better quality care, not more care.

By re-balancing our focus – from a traditional hospital-based medicine model to a more accessible, lower cost, outpatient and sub-acute delivery model, we are adding value to every patient experience and gaining the highest state, federal and industry ratings for care in the region.

You Don't Need to be the Biggest to be the Best

Catholic Health is ranked the top integrated healthcare system in New York State, the third in the Northeast and 30th in the nation. It has again received the most 5-star and quality Excellence Awards of any Western New York health provider from HealthGrades®, the nation’s leading objective rating source studying patient outcome information based on federal Medicare data.

The Society of Thoracic Surgeons continues to recognize Catholic Health in the top 15 percent nationally for cardiac surgery performance with a “3 Star” award for quality, its highest rating. And according to the New York State Department of Health, the Mercy Heart Center has achieved the highest scores in cardiac care in the region, proving that you don’t need to be the biggest to be the best. (Catholic Health Awards)

Partnerships Save Time and Money

Catholic Health’s goal is to have our standard of care integrated at every stage and location of the patient experience, and that includes our physician partnership with Catholic Medical Partners (CMP). This network of 900 Western New York physicians shares our vision of a new and improved patient experience, one that saves time and money; while adhering to nationally-recognized practice standards.

A key component of this partnership is strong disease management programs through the creation of  “Patient Centered Medical Homes” at CMP. Administered by more than 120 nursing care coordinators placed in primary care practices, our attention is focused on patients with chronic medical conditions, representing 75 percent of the nation’s healthcare spending. By helping patients take a more active role in their own care, we are reducing hospital admissions and the need for more expensive intervention.

Electronic Medical Records Increase Efficiency

Care coordination between Catholic Health hospitals and CMP member physicians is facilitated by the area’s most advanced electronic medical records system.

With more than 75 percent usage compared to 25 percent nationally, this unprecedented level of communication allows physicians to speak in real time, reducing repetitive testing and properly managing treatments and medications, and ultimately bending the healthcare cost cure. Only 69 hospitals in the country have achieved this standard.

More Specialty Services Available to Patients

And by expanding our geographic footprint and creating partnerships with Mount St. Mary’s to the north and Bertrand-Chaffee and Cuba Memorial to the south, patients now have access to specialty services that didn’t exist or were geographically out of reach up until two years ago. It’s our goal to work with community hospitals to help strengthen their ability to care for patients rather than bring them to Buffalo unnecessarily; ultimately weakening their care systems.

By working together and changing the way we operate – to thrive in an era of healthcare reform – Catholic Health is empowered to give patients the kind of care they trust, and the kind of experience they value. As a result, we are prepared for the industry shift from a “pay for services” to “pay for outcomes” model; leading the region in healthcare reform.