Your healthcare organization’s merger is complete. Now what?

While healthcare industry mergers are nothing new, the integration process has become more complicated. Increasingly complex operating models, financial arrangements, and IT infrastructures are making for a longer list of people, processes, and technologies that healthcare organizations must integrate to achieve their intended goals.  

The time is now to give your merger the best chance to succeed—and to succeed early. The key is to create and follow a detailed plan, clearly assign roles and timelines, and identify the milestones that must be achieved for success.   

The American Hospital Association and Guidehouse have created a 10-step “Operator’s Manual” for post-merger integration based on insights from experts at Guidehouse and leaders at both Henry Ford Health and USA Health, who collaborated with the firm on recent integration projects. Read our summary of the AHA Trail Blazers article below and download the full report for best practices and lessons learned from the field.  

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A successful integration starts with the end in mind, aligning the consolidated organization’s mission, vision, and values. That should be followed by a deep dive into understanding specifically what must be integrated, including processes, assets, and people. Leaders must pinpoint the internal resources available to execute the integration process and set up an organizational structure and integration plan, including roles, responsibilities, and an omnichannel communications strategy.   

“Everyone sees the potential of an integration, but it’s tough to achieve,” said Mark Korth, a partner at Guidehouse. “The end state should expand patient access to improved care, with caregivers and employees feeling a common culture and being part of one organization.” 

Developing an aggressive but realistic timeline is important—the integration process should be timely without burning out team members. Establishing performance metrics, monitoring progress, and empowering leaders at all levels with decision-making power will streamline this process and prevent delays.   

Health systems will know they’ve succeeded when patients have the same experience no matter what facility they visit within the consolidated system, said Dennis Butts, Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy and Network Development Officer at Henry Ford Health, which now has 13 hospitals after acquiring Ascension Michigan’s eight.  

“If you walk into any Henry Ford facility—legacy or otherwise—it should be the same experience for the patient,” Butts said. A physician advisory council and cultural integration team were key tools for managing change and facilitating a successful merger.  

For USA Health, which acquired Providence Hospital and its 14 clinics, it was critical that the newly consolidated organization’s operating model was supported by technology, rather than the reverse, said Tom Myers, the health system’s chief transformation officer. USA Health made it a priority for the integration to avoid disrupting patient care or impacting the patient experience. Rather, the entire process should be invisible to patients. 

“The work is never done. We can always do better,” Myers said. “But realistically, we’ll know the integration is complete when our team, our community, and our patients no longer remember Providence as not being part of the USA Health system.” 

Read the full report for a more detailed guide to post-merger integration, as well as case studies from recent mergers at Henry Ford Health and USA Health.