Healthcare is navigating one of its most challenging eras. Yet, progress is still happening in meaningful ways across the country — leaders are focused on clinical breakthroughs, strengthening their teams and expanding access or closing critical care gaps.

In the midst of financial pressures and uncertainties, workforce shortages and shifting patient expectations, it can be easy to overlook what’s working. But it’s equally important to highlight bright spots and real improvements. The Becker’s Healthcare Leadership Council — a group of forward-thinking system CEOs — is committed to both candor about industry headwinds and recognition of what’s going well.

In this column, some council members share recent wins from their organizations. Their stories show that even now, health systems are advancing access, quality, innovation and community impact in ways that matter deeply.

Question: Even in a time of enormous headwinds in healthcare, what’s a recent success or bright spot you’ve seen in your organization?

Amy Perry, President and CEO, Banner Health (Phoenix)

Banner is staying true to our 10-year strategic plan and vision. Every day, our 60,000 team members are delivering on our mission to make healthcare easier so life can be better. Our focus on technology, including AI, is creating solutions that reduce repetitive, manual tasks that give our clinicians more time with patients.

Our oncologists can now review a cancer patient’s detailed clinical history in hours instead of days, and we’ve reduced the hours spent on charting — which for many, meant time after hours. We are growing our premium-based reimbursement models so we can invest in preventive care and chronic disease management.

Bradley Haws, CEO, University of Iowa Health Care (Iowa City)

When facing pivotal times, we are often faced with a dichotomy: How do we keep the best of what we do? And, how do we change where needed and necessary?

I don’t think any of us would say we can keep doing the same things in the same ways in the future. We are seeing increased cancer survivorship, innovative clinical cures and growth in patient experience. And, we see escalating costs, staffing challenges and barriers to patient access.

As we saw during the pandemic, I see committed, aligned teams working for the benefit of those that we serve and groups committed to providing excellent care at the lowest appropriate cost.

I see teams committed to the challenge and dedicated to the innovation of a new way to meet the demands coming our way.

The key is recognizing that we can avoid the false dichotomy and do both.

Damond Boatwright, President and CEO, Hospital Sisters Health System (Springfield, Ill.)

Despite headwinds, we’re experiencing three critical wins: talent pipeline strength, values-driven retention results and improved margins.

Youth interest in healthcare careers in our community is surging — our high school “bootcamps” have waiting lists, scholarship programs are full and enrollment in our nursing college is at an all-time high. This momentum, together with our laser focus on our core values, cut turnover by over 30% while creating greater trust in HSHS during an era where trust in our industry is waning. Additionally, performance enhancement and stewardship initiatives are engaging colleagues at all levels to position us well for sustainable growth.

Kevin B. Mahoney, CEO, Penn Medicine (Philadelphia)

Across today’s healthcare landscape, hospital closures are hitting communities harder and more often. Recently, a health system shut down in the Philadelphia suburbs, leaving the local community without two emergency rooms and vital services.

In response, Penn Medicine accelerated plans for a family medicine residency program to train 26 displaced physicians-in-training at our nearby Chester County Hospital. These residents will complete inpatient training at our hospitals and continue providing outpatient care at two clinics serving roughly 24,000 patients annually. We were proud to have moved fast to preserve both crucial care and primary care training pathways.

Patrick Hwu, MD, President and CEO, Moffitt Cancer Center (Tampa, Fla.)

Amid the many challenges facing healthcare, one bright spot has been leaning into purposeful expansion that brings cancer care closer to patients across Florida.

Earlier this year, we opened Moffitt SouthShore in South Hillsborough County, offering medical oncology, infusion, radiation and other essential services to patients without the need for travel to our main campus. Construction is also underway on our Speros campus, north of Tampa in Pasco County. Opening in 2026, the campus will house an outpatient treatment center, state-of-the-art proton therapy center and a research hub dedicated to discovery and innovation.

These projects are designed to ease the patient journey today while accelerating breakthroughs that will shape the cancer care of tomorrow.

Robert C. Garrett, CEO, Hackensack Meridian Health (Edison, N.J.)

For the first time, one of our hospitals — our flagship Hackensack University Medical Center — was included among the top 20 hospitals in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. I had a goal to achieve this within 10 years of the formation of Hackensack Meridian Health. Our teams completed this extraordinary goal a year early, and it’s entirely because of their commitment to excellence and putting patients first.

The bottom line is we are achieving our mission to transform healthcare by improving quality, innovation and patient satisfaction while making care more convenient, timely and affordable.

Wendy Horton, PharmD, CEO, UVA Health University Medical Center (Charlottesville, Va.)

A recent bright spot at UVA Health has been our breakthrough in improving patient flow and reducing length of stay — a metric that for years felt immovable. Achieving this required high-level strategy, system redesign and relentless communication. We restructured inpatient unit geography, enhanced our discharge lounge, implemented flash rounds, redesigned case management and removed long-standing barriers that slowed progress.

One standout change: our transfer center leader now shares daily updates with unit leaders and medical directors, enabling coordinated plans for every patient. Seeing the entire team rally, the scorecard turning green and patients directly benefitting has been deeply rewarding — a clear sign we are doing the right work for our teams, our patients and our community.

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