Latest / Becker’s Healthcare Podcast / Building Sustainable Rural Health Care at Newman Memorial Hospital with Tom Vasko

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Building Sustainable Rural Health Care at Newman Memorial Hospital with Tom Vasko · Becker’s Healthcare Podcast

• 0:01
  Every year, Becker's annual meeting brings health care
• 0:04
  leaders together to unpack the most pressing issues
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  facing the industry.
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  And every year, those conversations shift in profound
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  and unexpected ways.
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  This April, more than 3,500
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  healthcare executives will return to Chicago for Becker's
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  sixteenth annual meeting. Seven ninety five elite speakers
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  will offer new lessons, new case studies, and
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  predictions about what comes next.
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  Join us April 13 through the sixteenth.
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  For the agenda and event details, visit beckershospitalreview.com
• 0:33
  and click on the events tab in the
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  upper right.
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  This is Scott Becker with the Beckers HealthCare
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  podcast.
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  I'm thrilled today to visit with a leading
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  and brilliant
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  chief executive officer.
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  We're joined today by Tom Vasco.
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  Tom is the CEO of Newman Memorial Hospital.
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  He's gonna talk just a little bit today
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  about what trends he's watching, what he's most
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  focused on, and and a lot more.
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  Tom, can you take a moment and tell
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  us a little bit about yourself, your career,
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  and about Newman Memorial?
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  Yes. Thank thanks, Scott. You know, and thank
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  you for having me. It's always a pleasure
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  to be here.
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  Definitely a unique background shortly with me. Spent
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  a lot of time in urban health care
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  and then ventured out to rural,
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  rural health care to understand the fragmentation of
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  between urban and rural health health care. And
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  what a what an incredible journey, you know,
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  it's been. And so I I currently serve,
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  as the CEO, as you mentioned, New Memorial
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  Hospital, which, you know, is a critical access
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  hospital in rural
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  regional health system now that that crosses Northwest
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  Oklahoma that has been caring for its community
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  for more than a century. Public trust, so
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  independent,
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  independent system and and growing network of primary
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  care clinics across multiple rural markets with you
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  know, we have a really strong focus on
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  keeping care local while intentionally building
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  regional partnerships to kind of expand that access
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  to specialty services. And, you know, I'd say,
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  Scott, at our core, we're, you know, we're
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  a very mission driven organization that everything we
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  do is grounded in community,
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  supporting our clinicians and empowering local teams and,
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  you know, collaboration with our regional partners to
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  create stronger and and more resilient health care
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  systems. And and I think, you know, our
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  our true philosophy is, you know, really simplistically
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  put, you know, align people, culture, and strategy
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  because we truly believe that when teams, you
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  know, feel the ownership and communities
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  truly feel heard, you know, performance follows. But
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  I think I'll close with you know, I
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  think the future of health care belongs to
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  organizations that honor local identity And and while
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  on tech, you know, integrating the system capabilities
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  like we've seen with Newman, I think more
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  importantly, combining our mission and innovation and operational
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  discipline is to deliver that care, you know,
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  that's that's compassionate and sustainable.
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  It's really the work that we're doing every
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  day at Newman, and it's just been an
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  incredible rewarding
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  journey to help build platforms and and allow
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  real health care to thrive.
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  And and let let me ask you this
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  question. I recently looking at your your website,
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  your
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  post, and it seems like
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  and and and maybe this is a reflection
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  of rural health care. The amount of open
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  jobs that you're trying to hire for currently
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  seems significant.
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  And that's a good thing. It means that
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  the health system's thriving and needs people.
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  At the same time, does that speak to
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  sort of the challenges of staffing in rural
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  areas today?
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  We're seeing throughout the country, some places closed
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  down labor and delivery and other things. Not
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  because they want to, because they don't have
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  the OB GYNs and and and the team
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  to do it safely and greatly.
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  What does hiring look like in the rural
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  rural today?
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  Oh, yeah. And I think that's a, you
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  know, a great a great transfer of it,
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  you know, into into some of the trends.
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  And there there's six trends that, you know,
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  we're looking at,
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  very closely today, and and I think workforce
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  sustainability
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  is is a big one. You know? It
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  continues to be the most the most critical
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  issue. And I think that, your recruitment matters,
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  but retention
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  matters even more. Right? And and organizations
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  that invest in
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  culture, leadership development, and and clarity of its
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  mission,
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  you know, are seeing better engagement and stronger
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  results. And and, you know, the future belongs
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  to systems that treat people as their primary
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  asset, you know, intentionally align culture and strategy.
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  So we're we're forced to to really dive
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  in that and and, you know, to and
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  to take that and unpack that a little
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  bit, you know, providing an open day care,
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  on on campus that's no cost to employees.
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  So,
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  you know, single mom and dad or,
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  you know, can drop off, you know, little
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  little Johnny or Susie and and have lunch
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  with them,
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  each day. Or not we don't charge our
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  employees lunch,
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  each day, so they eat lunch for free.
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  Covering things like in a rural area, Scott,
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  where,
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  you know, medevac,
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  insurance is so expensive and cost cost restrictive
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  in working with, the evac services. That's now
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  part of our, you know, employment benefits package
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  or immediate investing in 04/2001. So you have
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  to be very novel to to really fight
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  back. But as you see, even in a
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  an organization that's grown sixfold,
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  that's our it's still our greatest challenge.
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  I mean, that's remarkable. Sixfold growth is remarkable.
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  And and talk about some of the pipeline
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  programs and what you're trying to do to
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  make sure
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  enough physicians, enough care, how much primary care
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  is moving to MPs and PAs?
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  And and it seems like many places are
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  doing that with great quality. Talk to us
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  a little bit about some of that transformation
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  in workforce and how you're managing.
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  Yes. Yeah.
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  It's it's, you know, one one of the
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  six six pillars. And so, you know, we're
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  we're we're obviously paying very close attention to,
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  you know, the access of expansion through virtual
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  care and and specialty partnerships with independent providers
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  and and even some of the the largest
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  systems.
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  You know, I think that we we talk
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  about, you know, telehealth, and we're still struggling
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  to get these extensions. You know, I think
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  it's time we just make that permanent, and
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  it's it's no longer a pilot.
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  You know, it's infrastructure.
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  And so, you know, I think the opportunity
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  now using it, you know, telehealth strategically to
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  bring higher acuity services and specialty care and
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  clinical expertise into into smaller communities,
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  you know, so patients don't have to travel
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  hours per care
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  is is huge, and it's a major focus
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  to us. So, you know, really truly building
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  scalable models that that keep that care local
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  while leveraging system capabilities. And I think an
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  example of that is, you know, we're we're
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  working side by side with a very, very
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  mission driven and and purpose driven organization that
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  shares a lot of synergies between
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  approach to health care, you know, with Mercy
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  and and their virtual care,
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  around ICU patients. And so it helps us
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  you know, we're doing general surgery already, but
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  we we'd like to to treat high little
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  higher of a acuity of care. And so
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  having that access to to Mercy's platform,
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  enables us to have, you know, the intensivist,
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  at Mercy coordinate and and work hand in
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  hand with our hospitalist and on-site and our
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  our our ICU nurses to keep care locally.
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  And then, hey. Look. If that if that
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  patient needs higher acuity of care,
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  the the continuity of care is already established
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  there with with, you know, our friends at
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  Mercy. So
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  leveraging some of those things, and then, of
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  course, you know, we've seen some expansion around
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  scope of practice with advanced practice and and
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  PAs, and it's so important that we utilize
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  those, you know, those those those folks and
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  and their abilities and and scope of practice
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  deliver care. And then we look at the
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  strike with with maternity health in ensuring that
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  we're leveraging
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  certified nurse midwives, you know, in the primary
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  care model as it's defined by CMS.
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  And and to to bring those cost levels
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  down with lower volumes, so these OB models
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  sustain in rural health.
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  Fantastic. And and and take a second, Tom.
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  You look at 2026.
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  You you you guys are so important in
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  filling so many gaps in health care. Oklahoma's
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  a growing state again, isn't it? Is it
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  a growing state overall again with Oklahoma City
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  growing so much and and Tulsa?
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  What is what is the demographics of Oklahoma
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  look like?
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  Yeah. So I I would I would you're
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  absolutely correct. You know, it's it's definitely growing
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  Oklahoma City, but we are seeing, you know,
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  some some reduction in population in the rural
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  areas,
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  Oklahoma, where, you know, oil and gas and
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  and some of the, you know, the agriculture
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  is, you know, declining. We're we're seeing less,
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  young farmers in in
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  in our country and the commercialization
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  of of those types of industries. And so,
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  you know, we
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  we are seeing a little bit of a
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  decline in our in our populations, in our,
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  you know, in our rural area. And so,
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  you know, for example, I mean, in in
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  Shattuck,
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  we're 1,200 people.
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  I always joke, to my friends in the
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  city, we don't have a stoplight, which is
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  really cool. It makes makes traffic nonissue. And
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  and so,
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  but our county is only 3,600.
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  So imagine, you know, that the whole county
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  of Ellis County is is just 3,600 people.
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  That's amazing. So what happens is the same
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  story throughout America is that so many people
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  are moving to the top thirty, forty, 50
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  metro areas, and the rural areas
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  are are being challenged. And if you don't
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  have health care in the rural areas, it's
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  really the death knell of the rural area.
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  So thank God for critical access hospitals and
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  people that do what you do.
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  Take a moment, Tom. What are you most
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  focused on and excited about as we head
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  into 2026
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  now? Oh, yes. I I think it's a
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  really exciting year. I think that we've seen,
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  you know, a ton of change in in
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  legislation.
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  And and I think it's important, Scott, as
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  health care leaders look. As we mentioned, we
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  started the call. We face a lot of
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  challenges and but, you know, positivity,
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  is really the key. And and not to
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  dwell on the negative is is really to
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  see it as as a challenge. But, you
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  know, I think overall, really focused on building
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  sustainable health care, you know, health care platforms
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  that combine our mission and our our operational
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  discipline and and and embrace that and and,
• 9:51
  we know with deep community connection. You know,
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  I think what that means really for us
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  is continuing to strengthen
• 9:57
  local access.
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  Well, like, as you mentioned, integrating, you know,
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  regional partnerships and expanding service lines like we
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  have and, you know, investing in our people,
• 10:05
  you know, so they can deliver, you know,
• 10:07
  consistent, you know, clinical excellence. And but I
• 10:09
  I think what what really, Scott, what excites
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  me the most
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  is watching teams
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  truly step into this ownership mentality at Newman.
• 10:16
  And and, you know, over the past year,
• 10:18
  we've been very intentional about aligning culture
• 10:22
  with strategy and and clarifying expectations and empowering
• 10:25
  leaders at every level and and building infrastructure
• 10:28
  that supports growth without losing community roots. Right?
• 10:31
  And and, you know, I think when that
• 10:32
  happens, momentum follows. And and, you know, but
• 10:35
  over this last six to eighteen months,
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  you know, I'm really especially proud of how
• 10:39
  our organization has evolved from operating as a
• 10:42
  traditional rural hospital into functioning more like an
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  integrated
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  regional health care platform that you know, really,
• 10:47
  to put that in perspective, like we mentioned,
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  you know, 1,200 people, no stoplight, and a
• 10:51
  county of 3,600. But when we looked at
• 10:54
  some some metrics yesterday,
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  In 2025, we cared for patients from 18
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  different states
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  and a 174
• 11:02
  towns and cities with nearly
• 11:05
  nearly 40,000
• 11:07
  new unique encounters.
• 11:09
  So as we mentioned, just in three years,
• 11:10
  we've grown sixfold, and our clinic footprint extends
• 11:13
  48 miles from our, you know, our our
• 11:15
  main campus.
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  That's one of my you know, our our
• 11:18
  biggest
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  highlights and things that I'm I'm so proud
• 11:20
  of the team about. But I think the
• 11:22
  other is really sticking core to clinical excellence.
• 11:24
  And so we were the first rural health
• 11:26
  clinic in the nation to earn joint commission
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  accreditation
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  and the first critical access hospital in Oklahoma
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  to achieve accreditation across all of the hospital
• 11:35
  and and clinical space spaces. So I think
• 11:37
  those those accomplishments reflect not just compliance,
• 11:41
  but a a culture of excellence and and
• 11:43
  aligning quality and safety and
• 11:46
  operations under one standard. So I think looking
• 11:48
  ahead
• 11:49
  in this bright future, I'm I'm really excited
• 11:51
  about continuing to scale these efforts and strengthening
• 11:53
  the integration, advancing clinical quality, and developing our
• 11:56
  leaders internally. And, you know, I really believe
• 11:59
  that future belongs to organizations that invest in
• 12:01
  people and honor local identity and leverage system
• 12:04
  capabilities,
• 12:05
  you know, to create these unique care models
• 12:07
  that are both compassionate and sustainable.
• 12:09
  You know, and and being part of that
• 12:10
  kind of transformation is what really truly energizes
• 12:13
  me every day.
• 12:14
  No. But I think that's so right. This
• 12:16
  concept of if you do great care in
• 12:19
  clinical excellence
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  and really take care of your people, a
• 12:22
  lot of other things tend to go well
• 12:24
  and and a focus on those things. I
• 12:26
  I I love that, Tom. Tom, you've had
• 12:28
  this great career. I I'm gonna ask you
• 12:30
  a question. The the the the guess question
• 12:32
  I have is,
• 12:33
  do you feel guilty
• 12:35
  as an LSU fan stealing the Ole Miss
• 12:38
  coach
• 12:39
  in the middle of the college playoffs or
• 12:41
  right near the college playoffs or not really?
• 12:44
  You you know, I'm a I'm a true
• 12:45
  I'm a true believer that, you know, our
• 12:48
  our paths are written.
• 12:49
  And I think when sometimes the the timing
• 12:52
  may not be right for everybody,
• 12:54
  but maybe that unique individual, it is. And
• 12:57
  I think we definitely have to be respectful
• 12:59
  of that. I guess it's a nice a
• 13:01
  nice way of saying, I'm super happy about
• 13:02
  that transition to Dallas here. So
• 13:06
  Fair enough. Fair enough. So, Evan, actually, say
• 13:08
  no. And a great fun for LSU. Great
• 13:09
  fun for Ole Miss. What a great season.
• 13:11
  And and Lane is fascinating to watch. Love
• 13:13
  him or hate him. He's freaking fascinating to
• 13:15
  watch. Talk about the advice you would give
• 13:18
  to emerging leaders.
• 13:19
  Yeah. I think that, you know, in in
• 13:21
  and the truth is, yeah, and I am
• 13:22
  I am very faith at our core, and
• 13:24
  I think a lot of the rural communities,
• 13:26
  you you see the communities around, you know,
• 13:28
  the faith and family and community is kind
• 13:30
  of the the three pillars. But, you know,
• 13:32
  I think I think the best performing,
• 13:34
  organizations
• 13:35
  in our in our nation and those that
• 13:37
  are very successful
• 13:39
  really would probably start by saying, like, look,
• 13:41
  lead with humility and purpose.
• 13:43
  And and health care is, you know, ultimately
• 13:46
  a people business. I mean, it's it truly
• 13:48
  is. It's no different than consumer products. And
• 13:51
  and I think that, you know, involving leaders,
• 13:54
  have to stay grounded in service, you know,
• 13:57
  to patients and teams and the communities that
• 13:58
  they serve.
• 14:00
  We you know, the the day of titles,
• 14:01
  you know, they just don't they don't create
• 14:03
  trust. You know, I think presence does.
• 14:06
  And, you know, I think, you know, in
• 14:08
  invest deeply as we talked about in culture.
• 14:10
  You know, strategy matters. Absolutely. But culture determines
• 14:14
  truly whether the strategy will be successful or
• 14:17
  not, and being intentional about building environments where
• 14:20
  people feel heard and supported and accountable.
• 14:23
  Like we mentioned, I think that the teams
• 14:24
  feel ownership and understand the mission, you know,
• 14:27
  performance
• 14:28
  follows.
• 14:29
  And I think thirdly, you
• 14:31
  know, learn how to balance local leadership with
• 14:33
  system thinking. And today's health care leaders, you
• 14:35
  know, must be able to to honor community
• 14:37
  identity while integrating
• 14:39
  broader organizational capabilities. Right? And that means by
• 14:43
  embracing standardization where it improves quality and efficiency,
• 14:45
  but preserving the relationships
• 14:48
  that that trust, you know, that that make
• 14:50
  care personal. And, I think fourth,
• 14:54
  you know, commit operational discipline. Strong leaders truly
• 14:57
  understand that clinical excellence and financial stewardship and
• 15:01
  and workforce engagement are inseparable. And, you know,
• 15:04
  don't chase the volume for volume's sake, but
• 15:07
  build sustainable platforms that truly
• 15:10
  deliver, you know, the quality and access and
• 15:12
  stability over long term. And I think, Scott,
• 15:14
  you'll finally, you know, I'd say stay rational.
• 15:17
  Right?
• 15:18
  Spend time with the frontline caregivers.
• 15:21
  Be very visible in your community.
• 15:23
  Build partnerships with physicians and EMS and local
• 15:26
  stakeholders. And,
• 15:28
  you know, I think the most effective leader
• 15:29
  and what's really helped us be successful here
• 15:31
  is, you know, those that listen well, develop
• 15:35
  others, and create clarity in in these these
• 15:38
  times of of massive amounts of change. Right?
• 15:41
  And and, you know, I think if I
• 15:42
  could truly
• 15:44
  maybe summarize all that up, it's like we
• 15:46
  said, you know, align people to culture and
• 15:48
  strategy.
• 15:50
  And and when you lead with mission and
• 15:52
  purpose,
• 15:53
  invest in your teams, operate with integrity and
• 15:55
  discipline.
• 15:56
  You you don't just improve the performance,
• 15:59
  but you you truly are building organization
• 16:01
  that communities can trust for generations. And that's
• 16:04
  that's kind of what we're we're we're we're
• 16:05
  gunning for and achieving, I think, and the
• 16:07
  team is achieving here at Newman.
• 16:09
  Fantastic.
• 16:10
  Tom, what an amazing leadership career. You're you're
• 16:13
  doing fantastic work.
• 16:15
  We recognize you constantly at Becker's Health. We're
• 16:17
  big, big fans. Thank you so much for
• 16:19
  joining us today on on the Becker's health
• 16:21
  care podcast.
• 16:23
  Of of course. And and thank you to
• 16:24
  to Scott and your team. I you know,
• 16:26
  Becker's is always the the first thing that
• 16:28
  I read in the morning, and,
• 16:30
  you know, I think it's so important to
• 16:32
  I mean, you all keep us connected in
• 16:34
  dissemination of information, and and it's a true
• 16:36
  contribution to the health care ecosystem to see
• 16:39
  what our peers are doing and see what's
• 16:40
  working and not. And you you all just
• 16:42
  do such an exceptional job. And I'm I'm
• 16:44
  so grateful and honored to to be be
• 16:46
  on with you all this morning. Thank you,
• 16:47
  and look forward to seeing you in the
• 16:48
  upcoming conference here in in April.
• 16:50
  Tom, looking forward. Thank you so much as
• 16:52
  always. Thank you. Thanks, Scott.