I am committed to balancing the needs of all El Camino Healthcare District stakeholders in support of El Camino Hospital’s Strategic Goals:

• High Performing Operating Model:  Leverage sites of care and a high-performing operating system to achieve scale and sustainability
• Consumer, Payer & Employer Alignment: Enable a value-based network that spans the full continuum of care, with  personalized experience and results that exceed consumer, payer and employer expectations.
• Physician Integration:  Secure a network of integrated physicians to expand ECH's patient base, manage care across the continuum and enable transition from a hospital to a system of care.

These strategic goals are subsumed within the organization's "True North Goal" of Exceptional Personalized Experience and in service of the Vision: To lead the transformation of healthcare delivery in Silicon Valley.

Embedded within these statements are healthcare directions that indicate an evolution of El Camino Hospital’s direction from its priorities over the first 55+ years:  to focus on quality of care not just within the confines of the hospital campuses, but across the continuum of care.  Research indicates that patients are often at most risk in transition between care givers; El Camino Health must take a leadership role in integrating and coordinating care with physicians and other care givers throughout episodes of care.

The achievements we have made in service of this direction include:

El Camino Health Medical Network (ECHMN).  Through the purchase of San Jose Medical Group and other strategic hires El Camino Health has built a Primary Care Provider network which now delivers ambulatory clinic capacity with multispecialty and diagnostic offerings at 18 sites, including 3 urgent care centers.   In response to COVID-19 ECHMN began offering telehealth and virtual visits in April 2020.

With healthcare costs becoming increasingly unaffordable, as an institution we can no longer be committed only to quality. El Camino Hospital must also do whatever we can to make health care as affordable as possible.  El Camino has intentionally slowed price increases to below inflation and competitive hospitals' rate increases over the past decade.  El Camino Hospital average in-patient charges are generally at or below average for Santa Clara County.  While healthcare prices continue to be quite opaque, ECH is attempting to provide some increase in price transparency to help healthcare recipients become more active healthcare consumers.  In 2017 ECH launched its Self-Service Price Estimator.   The Finance Committee, which I chair, has also been investigating opportunities for greater clarity, detail and explanation of ECH bills.

We are first and foremost a community hospital.  In my time on the El Camino Healthcare District board we have increased by more than 4X our annual contributions directly to local organizations – including the to the maximum allowed by law for the district - to $11 million per year.  More important than the amount we spend is how we spend it.  Our community care investments are characterized by:

Aligning with tri-annual assessment of care gaps in Santa Clara County (the hospital spent more money to ensure a broader survey of the northern Santa Clara County citizens we serve)

Working closely with a broad range of community organizations providing expertise, not just money. We established a philosophy that we would: only contribute financially when we could also contribute our expertise, serve as a focal point, coordinating efforts among community organizations and work with organizations to improve their metrics, quality and accountability.

Toward the end, we were awarded the Outstanding Corporate Grant Maker Award at Silicon Valley Philanthropy Day by Association of Fundraising Professionals.  We were recognized for the value we provide to our partners:

“El Camino Hospital has taken a leadership role in facilitating close working relationships between its various community partners, to optimize their overall contributions to community health improvement.”

“El Camino Hospital has been at the forefront of corporate grant making, supporting innovative best practices models…The hospital takes an analytical and systematic approach to their Community Benefit efforts.”

“Like a well managed Venture Capital Fund, El Camino Hospital invests in social change for the betterment of the community…They collect meaningful data to assess program effectiveness, thus contributing to the body of knowledge in social innovation."

Among our notable community partners (p. 33):

Mayview Community Health Center

Sunnyvale Community Services

Santa Clara County Valley Health Center (Sunnyvale)

CHAC

South Asian Heart Center

Chinese Health Initiative

Avenidas

Teen Health Van

Columbia Neighborhood Center

Cupertino Union School District

Los Altos School District

Mountain View Los Altos High School District

Mountain View Whisman School District

Sunnyvale School District