It was a training camp that even the most elite athletes struggled to endure: Camp Hale, a WWII winter training ground in central Colorado. The valley floor alone sits at an elevation of 9,200 feet, while the elevation of the mountain ridges where the U.S. Army trained skiers in combat reached nearly 13,000 feet.
It’s a place where world champion boxer Joe Louis once fought two rounds in an exhibition match — and became winded. But the U.S. Army was betting big on a team of hand-picked, elite skiers to give the United States a competitive advantage in WWII.
Charles Minot Dole, president of the National Ski Patrol, recognized that the Army needed soldiers who could navigate cold-weather, high-elevation terrain. He envisioned a mountain division of the Army that would train a group of champion skiers, mountain climbers and mountaineers for battle.
That vision ultimately led to the formation of the 10th Mountain Division. Today, it is recognized as a strategic innovation for the U.S. Army. Dole’s vision — and the Army’s willingness to act upon it — gave our country a competitive advantage during WWII.
As I stood in the Colorado Snowsports Museum in Vail, Colo., several years ago and came across an exhibit for the 10th Mountain Division and its mantra, Sempre Avanti, or “Always Forward,” it struck me that the same tenets that brought Dole’s vision to life could be applied to healthcare — and to healthcare finance in particular.
Just as Dole knew the Army’s traditionally trained troops would not perform well in a winter attack, it will take an innovative spirit and decisive action to tackle our toughest challenges in healthcare.
As HFMA’s new report Curing payment confusion indicates, hospitals are losing the battle to create a financial experience that doesn’t confuse, confound or enrage patients. And it’s not because hospitals haven’t invested in new technologies and redesigned billing statements to increase transparency. “The reality is that the average patient has no idea how healthcare works,” one leader shared. As an industry, we need new ways of making medical billing less confusing for patients. Progressive organizations are leading the way.
We’re also facing the greatest challenges of our careers on a number of fronts — from disruptors entering the market to reimbursement pressures, changing consumer demands, aging populations and facilities and increased labor costs — all while coping with increased government regulation and scrutiny.
These pressures are daunting. Indeed, there are some in healthcare finance who aren’t confident they have the stamina to lead their teams to a successful outcome. Amid relentless financial pressures that ramped up during the pandemic and remain today, these leaders are battle-weary.
But if we can be “mountain tough,” like the 10th Mountain Division, and power forward in executing our best ideas, we can make a lasting difference in strengthening the financial sustainability of organizations that improve health and healthcare.
Sempre Avanti.
