Groundbreaking Cejka Search Healthcare Perspectives Study Reveals the First in a Series of Findings from the Viewpoint of Physicians and Administrators: "Top Priorities for Today's Healthcare Leaders"

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Apr 26, 2016, 09:00 ET

ST. LOUIS, April 26, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- A groundbreaking Cejka Search study of more than 1,600 practicing physicians and healthcare administrators in the U.S. finds the two groups closely aligned on the highest and lowest priorities for healthcare delivery in a post-reform environment.

"The findings show that physicians and administrators alike place high priority on patient-centered interaction and care-team collaboration in order to achieve quality care in an era of shrinking per capita healthcare resources," said Cejka Search President John Gramer.

The top ten physician behavior traits believed to be the most correlated with provider success in the new healthcare environment.

Patient Communication and Collaboration Emerge as Highest Priorities

"Effective patient communication" emerged as the number one priority for both physicians and administrators, defined as "explaining medical information, such as care plans, medications and patient responsibilities, in a way that patients understand and improves patient compliance." In addition, both groups ranked "collaboration with advanced practitioners and other providers" as part of the top three priorities. The only difference in the top rankings was "being viewed as a partner in patients' long-term well-being," number three among physicians, and "customer service orientation" ranked number two among administrators.

"Even where rankings differ, the emphasis is still the patient, with physicians focused on collaborating with patients to achieve long-term wellness versus episodic care and managers taking a broader view on overall patient satisfaction," said Paul Esselman, Senior Executive Vice President of Cejka Executive Search.

In terms of collaborating with patients to achieve long-term health, both physicians and administrators commented on the need for greater patient engagement and accountability, including:

Better patient understanding of their disease and the importance of compliance.
Complying with follow-up appointments, medication plans and other instructions.
Healthier lifestyle choices, including improved eating habits, regular exercise and refraining from smoking.

Business Acumen Traits Revealed as Lowest Priorities

Both groups also agreed on the bottom three of the ten healthcare delivery priorities measured. These were all traits related to business acumen, including: "working knowledge of health insurance requirements," "the ability to negotiate and influence health plans to cover procedures believed to be in the best interest of the patient," and the "use of technology to practice medicine more efficiently."

*Physician Ranking of* *Healthcare Delivery Priorities*	*% highest/high priority*
1. Effective patient communication	98.79
2. Collaborates well with advanced practitioners and other providers	92.61
3. Viewed as a partner in patient's wellness	90.80
4. Willing to accept opinions from colleagues & other clinicians	89.30
5. Customer service orientation	81.99
6. Effective change agent	74.51
7. Achieving quality outcome goals set by facility	71.83
8. Embracing technology for more efficient practice of medicine	70.07
9. Ability to negotiate with health plans to cover procedures believed to be in best interest of patients	57.17
10. Working knowledge of insurance requirements	51.10

*Administrator Ranking of* *Healthcare Delivery Priorities*	*% highest/high priority*
1. Effective patient communication	98.25
2. Customer service orientation	94.11
3. Collaborates well with advanced practitioners and other providers	93.62
4. Achieving quality outcome goals set by facility	91.49
5. Viewed as a partner in patient's wellness	87.32
6. Willing to accept opinions from colleagues & other clinicians	85.07
7. Effective change agent	84.06
8. Embracing technology for more efficient practice of medicine	78.29
9. Working knowledge of insurance requirements	56.00
10. Ability to negotiate with health plans to cover procedures believed to be in best interest of patients	51.00

About the Study

The Cejka Search Healthcare Perspectives Study^™ was conducted by Cejka Search, a leader in physician and healthcare executive search. Information was collected through 672 interviews with healthcare leaders and a survey of 949 physicians and healthcare administrators representing a wide range of medical specialties and practice settings from throughout the U.S. Behavior traits included in this release were selected based on healthcare leader interviews and force-ranked based on the percentage of respondents who rated the trait as "high priority" or "highest priority." For more information go to http://www.cejkasearch.com/healthcareperspectivesstudy.

About Cejka Search

Cejka Search is a nationally recognized physician, health care executive, advanced practice search firm providing services exclusively to the health care industry for more than 35 years. Cejka Search recruits top health care talent for organizations nationwide through our team of experienced professionals, award-winning recruitment technology and commitment to service excellence. Cejka Search is a Cross Country Healthcare, Inc. (Nasdaq: CCRN) company, a leading provider of health care staffing services in the United States. For more information, visit http://www.cejkasearch.com.

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SOURCE Cejka Search