2010 2020 Strategic Plan
Our Northwestern Medicine Vision We aspire to be the destination of choice for people seeking quality healthcare and for those who provide, support and advance that care through leading-edge treatments and breakthrough discoveries. Our shared commitment to transform healthcare and to be among the nation s top academic medical centers will be accomplished through innovation and excellence.
Deliver Exceptional Care GOAL: Become a pre-eminent healthcare destination where patients receive the highest quality, scientifically driven and personalized care. Northwestern Medicine 2010 2020 STRATEGIC PLAN STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES 1.1 Deliver expert care in core service lines and niche clinical programs. We will build outstanding multidisciplinary programs of high impact that will be differentiated through innovation, cross-institutional collaboration and superior patient outcomes. Our combined expertise in these areas will help us to earn recognition as the provider of choice beyond the Midwest to ultimately draw patients nationally and internationally. Core service lines will include: Cardiovascular, with a focus on heart transplant, ventricular assist devices, valve disease, atrial fibrillation and aortic disease; Oncology, with an initial emphasis on brain tumor, hematologic, urologic and women s cancers; Neurosciences, which includes cerebrovascular disease, degenerative neurologic disease, movement disorders and neuro-oncology; and Musculoskeletal, which will address degenerative joint disease, joint replacement, spinal disorders and injury and scleroderma. These core programs will draw from a depth and breadth of shared expertise and will leverage existing and evolving strengths in research and education to develop our standing as a leading provider of care. Additionally, we will build renowned programs outside of our core service lines to serve patient populations requiring specialized expertise in niche areas so that we can provide unique and differentiated services that reflect our high standards of excellence. These niche service areas likely will include autoimmune disease, fertility preservation, pelvic floor disorder and solid organ transplant. 1.2 Invite, involve and respond to the communities we serve. We embrace community engagement and are committed to improving the health and welfare of the communities we serve as an integral part of our academic medical center mission. We will respond by aligning areas of our expertise with identified needs to help create a shared infrastructure in which we are a valued healthcare partner. We will continue to work collaboratively with our community partners and residents to design, facilitate and support replicable local initiatives that aim to address priority health concerns and improve education, prevention and treatment, such as our ongoing work to impact the growing diabetes epidemic among the medically underserved. 1.3 Exceed expectations for access, care coordination and service. We are committed to working together to provide a seamless and consistent experience for patients as they receive care and service from multiple entities throughout our academic medical center. We will create and sustain a culture of respect, compassion and courtesy for our patients and their families as well as for the physicians who refer patients to us for care. We value timely communication and coordination to ensure an inclusive and responsive collaboration among the patient, the hospital-based care team and the referring physician. As healthcare partners, our commitment to exceptional care and service combined with our outstanding academic reputation, will serve as hallmarks of a preferred healthcare destination. 1.4 Provide the highest quality, most effective and safest care. We are a trusted source for healthcare. The care we provide reflects the highest quality standards and is safe, reliable, effective and consistently delivered with a focus on the individual patient s needs. We will utilize technology as an enabler of leading-edge care that builds on the most advanced medical and scientific knowledge and brings cures to the bedside at the soonest and safest point possible. Collaboratively, we will create a central repository of information that will allow us to demonstrate superior clinical outcomes as evidenced through our core clinical programs. We will publish outcomes data that set the standard for excellence and demonstrate high-value clinical care. Our combined efforts to deliver exceptional patient care will help define and advance the national healthcare quality agenda. 4 5
Advance Medical Science and Knowledge GOAL: Advance the boundaries of medical science and clinical practice through the discovery, translation and dissemination of knowledge. Northwestern Medicine 2010 2020 STRATEGIC PLAN STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES 2.1 Create and foster a culture of excellence in education. In valuing and supporting the educational mission of the academic medical center, we encourage and reward educational excellence and embrace a shared commitment to attract the best teachers and learners. The priority we place on innovative healthcare education is demonstrated through research and assessment, sustained improvement in healthcare delivery and superior patient outcomes. A new Center for Simulation Technology and Immersive Learning will be created to support this goal. In an environment that advocates safe and effective patient-care practices, we will provide the full continuum of educational opportunities to healthcare professionals. Together, we will work to elevate the culture of education within the academic medical center and form an Educational Resources Collaborative that will focus on educational research and innovation and provide ongoing resources and support. 2.2 Become a respected source of knowledge in distinct interdisciplinary research areas. In areas where we are or aspire to be a national leader, we will identify and develop a prioritized group of distinctive interdisciplinary research programs. Initially, we will focus on the points of intersection for our multidisciplinary core clinical programs and research involving nanotechnology, degenerative and regenerative medicine, genomics, gender differences, outcomes research and bioengineering. In these select areas, we will lead in the discovery and dissemination of new knowledge that advances science, healthcare quality and clinical practice. 2.3 Accelerate the translation of scientific discoveries into breakthrough healthcare solutions. We will utilize our strengths in basic science and translational research to transform discovery and innovation into improved clinical outcomes and better overall health for our patients. We will leverage our research strengths in minimally invasive technology, implantable devices, imaging, robotics, stem cell biology and personalized medicine to offer novel therapies and treatments. We will rapidly implement and expand evidence-based practices to provide our patients with individualized care using the latest scientific breakthroughs in the treatment of their medical conditions. Additionally, we will build on our relationships with industry partners and schools throughout Northwestern University to create and share knowledge. We will further evolve as learning organizations, which will expand our ability to create new value in the delivery of care. 6 7
Develop People, Culture and Resources GOAL: Attract, develop and retain top talent in a culture that values innovation, excellence and the highest levels of scholarship and provides the resources to support continued growth and success. Northwestern Medicine 2010 2020 STRATEGIC PLAN STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES 3.1 Recruit, develop and recognize world-class talent in healthcare, medical education and research. All entities that are a part of Northwestern Medicine highly value a culture of excellence. People are our most critical resource and across our academic medical center, the medical and research faculty, nurses, employees and medical, educational and organizational leaders all serve important roles in defining, planning and executing our shared vision. The ongoing emphasis on professional development within a positive and enabling work climate will provide the support and resources necessary for a diverse workforce to develop and excel. Development of the medical and scientific faculty will be enhanced through intensive mentoring programs and methods to increase knowledge sharing, collaboration and recognition. Faculty and employee development and advancement across entities will be supported by both institution-specific and collaborative training as well as integrated talent reviews. We will work to accelerate internal and external recognition of faculty and staff achievement and work together to ensure that the recruitment of world-class medical and research faculty, including those in our areas of strategic focus, is coordinated, efficient and effective. Through the development of an integrated faculty recruitment plan, we will help accelerate the hiring of top talent to key positions and expand our capabilities in strategic areas while supporting clinical growth, research strength, medical education and diversity. 3.2 Invest effectively in facilities, infrastructure and programs to achieve priority strategies. By achieving the financial goals of our Long Range Financial Plan, we will generate the resources to achieve our vision for the academic medical center. Allocation of those resources will be aligned with our strategic priorities to ensure world-class research, medical education, clinical excellence and the facilities and infrastructure to improve the patient experience. Requests for capital expenses will be prioritized and earmarked for strategies that advance our most critical goals, meet an acceptable level of risk and provide adequate returns to fund our future needs. We will maintain strong financial reserves in accordance with leading practices in investment management to provide the stability and flexibility to fund capital expenditures, bond covenants and contractual agreements. Superior levels of operating performance along with measurable improvements in quality and productivity, greater external funding and stewardship of assets will be critical to our ability to invest in our future. 3.3 Utilize best practices to achieve new levels of collaboration, management and productivity. We will adopt leading business practices. We will become experts in process improvement techniques that result in both individual and collaborative benefit. Access to timely and complete financial information across the academic medical center is essential as we will be accountable to one another for our combined success. We will approach our shared responsibility for best business practices in a transparent fashion, disclosing and effectively managing conflicts of interest and sharing financial information with our community to build trust and enhance accountability and stewardship of our collective resources. 8 9
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