Continuous Value Management in Healthcare: Elevating Safety, Cost, and Efficiency With a Staff-led Approach

There are international pressures on healthcare delivery because of increasing demand and rising costs. Maintaining quality while containing costs is a challenge in both privately and state funded services.

Dr Cameron Stark. Visiting Reader and Part-Time Lecturer, University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI), Scotland. Cameron is a Module Leader on UHI's Postgraduate teaching on healthcare quality. He graduated in Medicine from the University of Glasgow, and holds Masters degrees from the University of Glasgow, and the University of Leicester, UK. Cameron was a Consultant in Public Health Medicine with NHS Scotland for 29 years. He was the Quality Improvement Science lead for NHS Highland when it was the pilot site for the introduction of Value Management. Cameron has co-written or co-edited eight previous textbooks and has published over 60 papers in peer-reviewed journals.

Kay Cordiner is the Senior Operational Manager for Acute Urgent and Unscheduled Care at Raigmore Hospital, NHS Scotland, where she leads strategic priorities across NHS Highland. A trained nurse with over 20 years of experience in critical care and acute medical admissions, Kay brings deep clinical insight to her leadership in high-pressure healthcare environments. She previously managed key unscheduled care services including the Emergency Department, medical admissions, ambulatory care, bed flow, and GP out-of-hours. Internationally, Kay serves as faculty for the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (USA), coaching value management initiatives with organisations such as Hamad Medical Corporation (Qatar), Northwell Health (New York), NHS Scotland, and Western Health and Social Care Trust (Northern Ireland). She also contributes to the Efficiency Improvement Collaborative with the Center for National Health Insurance in Saudi Arabia. Her work has been published in the Harvard Business Review, BMJ, and Routledge, and she is a frequent speaker at quality improvement and patient safety forums worldwide.

Dr. Poonam Gupta, Senior Improvement Advisor, Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom. Dr Gupta's work has spanned India, the Middle East, and the United Kingdom, allowing her to gain valuable insights and contribute to healthcare improvement on a global scale. Dr Gupta was previously Head of Quality Improvement at the Heart Hospital of Hamad Medical Corporation in Doha, Qatar. She was the Program Director for Value Improvement in the Heart Hospital and led work on Value Management. Dr Gupta trained as an Improvement Advisor and Patient Safety Executive with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in Boston, USA. Her commitment to improving healthcare systems is further evidenced by her numerous publications in international peer-reviewed journals, covering a wide range of topics related to healthcare quality improvement and patient safety. Beyond her research and advisory roles, Dr. Gupta plays an integral part in the healthcare community. She serves as an Assistant Deputy Editor for the ISQUA Journal. Dr. Gupta's dedication and contributions have earned her more than 15 awards for various Quality Improvement and Patient Safety (QIPS) initiatives. She has been a speaker at both local and international forums dedicated to quality improvement and patient safety, where she shares her insights and experiences with fellow professionals.

Jeff Rakover, Director, Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) Jeff's research at IHI focuses on defining and improving value delivered by healthcare systems through a focus on measurement, management, and innovation. He also has worked in areas including improvement for obstetrical care, ambulatory safety, and behavioral health. Jeff, along with Kay Cordiner, Brian Maskell, Kedar Mate, and others, was part of the initial team that developed the value management approach in health care. Jeff holds a Master's in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government (2012) and graduated from Harvard College in 2006.