Three Strategies to Navigate Rural Healthcare Challenges

(6/28/2024)

Limited funding and resources amplify financial challenges for rural hospitals when compared to facilities located in more urban and suburban areas, forcing them to be more resourceful in terms of compliance. Due to these obstacles, an estimated 30% of rural hospitals in the U.S. are currently at risk of closing and leaving their communities with limited access to life-saving healthcare.

Limited funding and resources amplify financial challenges for rural hospitals when compared to facilities located in more urban and suburban areas, forcing them to be more resourceful in terms of compliance. Due to these obstacles, an estimated 30% of rural hospitals in the U.S. are currently at risk of closing and leaving their communities with limited access to life-saving healthcare. 

To address the common barriers these facilities face, our teams at Medxcel have found success in implementing the following strategies to keep costs at bay while driving future-oriented results.  Through targeted efforts like these, our teams have delivered $104 million in savings over the past three years to the facilities we serve. 

1. Proactively Address Needs to Avoid Unecessary Capital Expenditures   

Rural healthcare teams are often too overwhelmed with maintaining equipment and keeping up with ever-changing compliance standards to dedicate enough time and resources to implementing improvements and working toward big-picture goals. Counterproductively, operating in a constant state of catch-up mode can exacerbate financial challenges by creating a higher risk for emergency repairs and long-term costs. 

Focusing on low-investment solutions that address compliance concerns and create proactive resolutions is key to supporting rural facilities’ bottom line and establishing a stable hospital maintenance program. This starts with understanding the current state of operations and establishing a realistic plan with measurable goals to promote efficiency and keep up with routine repairs. 

Medxcel’s subject matter experts analyze the condition of facilities and make informed decisions based on a data-driven operations model to pinpoint opportunities to streamline processes, reduce redundancies, and ultimately lower future costs. Through this process, opportunities for savings within the facility are identified while reducing the need for capital investments in new infrastructure and technology. In addition, having a compliance partner ensures that dedicated experts have eyes on your facility, monitoring for updates and performing mock assessments. In doing so, a hospital’s ability to uncover deficiencies on site will strengthen your ability to make improvements prior to a survey, preventing regulatory mishaps and reducing the need for rushed and costly corrections. 

Creating consistency through planning and preventive maintenance allows healthcare teams to normalize costs from year to year and reduce expenses in the long run by generating a sustained state of readiness, extending the life of equipment, and reducing the risk of unexpected capital expenditures.

2. Focus on Internal Talent  

With limited staffing, rural facility workers often need to wear multiple hats, and leaders may turn to outsourced skilled labor to manage projects. This can create a larger financial strain on the organization due to contract fees and travel expenses. Additionally, external contractors may not be familiar with the life safety code requirements and healthcare-specific regulations, which can lead to facilities paying more after projects are completed to fix deficiencies. 

Medxcel focuses on training and educating our rural facilities on how to prioritize in-house labor to generate cost savings. Through strategic efforts to limit the need for outsourced contractors, our teams help reduce the cost of projects by as much as 80%. For example, when a hospital in Florida received a high quote for work to solve compliance deficiencies, Medxcel coordinated a joint effort with our regional resources to schedule and complete the repairs within weeks of the inspection report and at almost $200,000 less than the original repair quote.  

When healthcare organizations focus on training and growing their existing pool of internal talent, they can increase productivity, ultimately leading to long-term cost containment. In-house facility teams are able to gain more familiarity with their unique systems and increase operational efficiencies in their daily work over time to add value to the health system.

3. Create Partnerships with and Beyond the Community

Often when emergency situations like a flood or tornado arise, rural hospitals are experiencing it for the first time and without a resource on deck to assist. Collaborating with local agencies, nearby health systems, and partners on community and national levels can help rural healthcare teams navigate issues related to geographic isolation and limited resources. These partnerships open the door for access to more supplies and contingency plans to protect hospitals in the event of an emergency. Medxcel works with a nationwide network of vendors to ensure facilities are equipped with the right tools for successful daily operations and preparation for large-scale disasters.