In this episode, Fairview Health Services CEO James Hereford joins Blake Madden to unpack what a real health system turnaround looks like when you inherit “zero trust” and six years of organizational drift. 

James walks through his unconventional path into healthcare, why lean management systems (not “lean tools”) became Fairview’s operating backbone, and how labor control, throughput, and supply discipline powered a $350M recovery without sacrificing quality, service, or engagement. 

James and Blake also dig into the economics of specialty pharmacy/340B, and where Fairview Health has been able to win with AI. You won’t want to miss James’ conversation about his biggest AI implementation failures, the need to give employees agency, and the mistake most orgs make when they fall in love with technology.

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Tom™ is the agentic AI that delivers orchestrated Primary Care as a Service, expanding  care capacity and patient engagement while reducing clinicians’ busy workloads.  

Tom serves as the AI member of a patient’s primary care team . Learn more at ⁠Lumeris.com/platform

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Fairview Health Services: https://www.fairview.org/

Follow James on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-hereford/

Follow Blake on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blakecmadden/

For expert analysis on healthcare M&A, strategy, finance, and markets, join 51K+ readers of Blake Madden’s Hospitalogy newsletter. Subscribe here: https://hospitalogy.com/

Like our episodes? Be sure to leave us a review, and share our podcast with colleagues.

Welcome to Claims Denied, a new podcast from Hospitalogy.

In this episode, Blake talks with Pete McCanna, CEO of Baylor Scott & White. Pete explains how legacy health systems are built like “castle walls” (supply-driven, organization-centric, and built to protect themselves), but this design fails customers who are outside the four walls. 

Pete walks through what it takes to transform a health system from supply-driven to demand-driven, which is essential in this new age of healthcare consumerism. 

Listen to hear why:

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Tom™ is the agentic AI that delivers orchestrated Primary Care as a Service, expanding  care capacity and patient engagement while reducing clinicians’ busy workloads.  

Tom serves as the AI member of a patient’s primary care team . Learn more at Lumeris.com/platform

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Baylor Scott & White Health: https://www.bswhealth.com/

Follow Pete on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-mccanna-784619104/

Follow Blake on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blakecmadden/

For expert analysis on healthcare M&A, strategy, finance, and markets, join 51K+ readers of Blake Madden’s Hospitalogy newsletter. Subscribe here: https://hospitalogy.com/

Like our episodes? Be sure to leave us a review, and share our podcast with colleagues.

Welcome to Claims Denied.

Join one man’s quest to learn everything there is to know about the business of healthcare.

Blake Madden and friends cut through the fluff to talk shop with influential healthcare leaders across innovation, strategy, finance, policy, and more.

Learn about disruptive health tech startups, hear war stories, stay up to date on emerging health system transformation strategies, and listen in to scalding hot takes on pressing topics and the future of the industry.

New episodes drop Tuesdays. Subscribe to get the latest!