CoxHealth VP gives inside look at health care

She simply started taking care of the people who take care of patients.

Kramer, vice president and chief nursing officer at CoxHealth, was the featured guest at Tuesday’s 12 People You Need to Know breakfast, held by Springfield Business Journal at the Clarion Hotel’s Newsroom Café.

Kramer joined CoxHealth in 1988 as a pediatric nurse and moved through the ranks, eventually transitioning into administration under the advice of now-CEO Bob Bezanson. Today, she oversees about 1,700 employees.

Part of her responsibility is managing CoxHealth nurses – and being innovative at a time when health systems everywhere are facing a nursing shortage.

In Springfield, that challenge is “definitely real, and it’s tough, and everything is showing that it’s going to get tougher,” Kramer said.

To better recruit and retain nurses, CoxHealth is looking at creating a clinical ladder, which financially rewards nurses who go above and beyond to promote other nurses, Kramer said. That can include educating future nurses or supporting colleagues. The health system also is investing resources in developing strong leaders that will improve nurses’ job satisfaction.

Nursing, however, is not the only challenge facing the industry.

The baby boomer generation is approaching an age that demands more health care, and in different ways than previous generations. For instance, Kramer said, more patients are requesting private rooms, a far cry from when rows of beds lined hospital wards. In response, CoxHealth plans to renovate its main hospital to accommodate more private rooms.

The advent of high-tech medical tools, while an opportunity, is another challenge. Kramer said CoxHealth has worked to be cutting edge, most recently with its purchase of a $1.6 million robot that assists in surgeries such as prostatectomies and hysterectomies.

“It’s very easy to become dehumanized in a high-tech environment,” she said. “We try to keep the human element.”

CoxHealth has done so by building an aviary and a healing garden for patients and inviting volunteers to play music for patients.

Fewer technological advancements could be an unfortunate consequence of socialized health care, if the U.S. heads that direction, Kramer said. On the flip side, she said socialized care could allow for more preventative services.

The next 12 People You Need to Know breakfast will introduce Jerry Henry, corporate director of research at Branson’s Herschend Family Entertainment Corp., on Sept. 16. Event details and registration are available at sbj.net.