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Becker’s Healthcare Podcast
Adam Williams, VP of Payer Operations and Strategy at Tava Health
00:12:29
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- [00:00]
A
Welcome, everyone, to the Beckers Healthcare podcast series. I'm Mariah Muhammad, writer and moderator with Becker's Healthcare. I'm thrilled to have with me today Adam Williams, vice president of payer operations and strategy at Tava Health. Adam, welcome to the podcast. We're very excited to have you join us today to get us started. Would you mind please introducing yourself and telling us a bit about your background?
- [00:22]
B
Yeah, thanks for having me, Mariah. I'm Adam Williams, and I've spent the last couple decades working in healthcare administration in various capacities. You know, I've been fortunate enough to see the industry from a lot of different angles, as well as, you know, kind of dealing with the pain points of access, challenges to. To health care. I always kind of start these. These things with my why, and my why for me gets back to my dad. And my dad was very sick as a kid and ultimately ended up having a small bowel transplant. And from that whole procedure, it left us, you know, just riddled with a poor experience in the healthcare system. From a cost perspective, where we were, our family was millions of dollars in debt because of it. And I wanted to always try to find ways that I could help to make the experience better for others. And so, as I've looked at that, I always try to work at places where we can really make the experience better for all people. And whether that's a patient trying to access care or a provider trying to deliver the care, I've always gravitated towards roles where I can ultimately reduce that friction and improve the way things work. And so over the years, I found myself drawn more and more into health space, which is what brought me to Tava Health. And through it, you know, I feel like there's a great area here to improve quality. And ultimately quality does really matter for us at Tava. And so when someone gets connected to the right therapist or has a great experience, it can genuinely change their trajectory in life. And that's what led me to Tava. What I love about the work that we do is it's a combination of a great mission as well as operational problem solving. And so ultimately, on the surface, mental health often seems very relational, and it absolutely is between the therapist and the client that they're seeing. But you also have to support high quality of care at scale. And that's what we tried to do behind the scenes. And so I really enjoy clearing those roadblocks and creating an environment where therapists can focus on being excellent clinicians rather than just fighting with admin tasks or inefficient workflows. And so when you get to see those foundational pieces, right, everything else is able to get better. Right. The outcomes, the retention, the satisfaction for the, the provider and the client ultimately. And that's the impact that we can have at Tava.
- [02:57]
A
Wonderful. Thank you so much for giving us that information and background for you. What opportunities and headwinds do you kind of have your eye on right now as we head into the new year?
- [03:10]
B
Yeah, I think the way that we're thinking about it a little bit is we're kind of in an interesting moment in the mental health care space. Ultimately on the opportunity side, there's, you know, a growing recognition from employers, health health plans and even the general population that, you know, mental health isn't a secondary talking point anymore. It's central to our overall wellness. And so as that shift changes the conversation, it's beginning to look at it in a different lens. And so it's no longer, you know, should we support mental health? You know, instead organizations and health plans are asking, how do we do it? Well, and that opens up doors for companies that can offer high quality measurement based care and ultimately really improve the outcomes of the clients and create a better patient experience.
- [03:59]
And then I also think that there's a great opportunity within integration, so bringing mental health into the broader healthcare ecosystem. You know, traditionally it's sort of been siloed and now we're seeing more and more interest in trying to get behavioral health outcomes to physical health outcomes and workplace performance and cost savings. And those are all things that we can show improvement in Atava. And when that alignment creates.
- [04:25]
Room for thoughtful partnerships and innovation, you can really start to transcend that, that sort of landscape. But with that though, there's also these headwinds. Right? You know, we recognize that the mental health space is a super crowded space and there's a lot of noise. And ultimately not every solution is going to deliver the quality in the way that patients or providers either want or ultimately deserve. And so payers are asking for more account, more data, better outcomes. And ultimately they should. That pressure is increasing on us as well as others. You know, and then the other lens that we sort of look at, which is real, where we begin to sort of dive deep, is, you know, looking at provider burnout, you know, and so that is a real. Within the industry, therapists have to deal with very heavy caseloads. They're seeing dozens of clients a day. There's emotional labor that goes into it and there's also increasing administrative demand. And you know, if A provider in a solo practice, I often have to have 12 different point solutions in order to make my practice successful. And so we've got to find ways that we can support them well and find ways to improve the whole system for the provider as well. And so part of that, navigating the futures and just seizing opportunities, but it's ultimately being honest about the challenges and then addressing them head on and so removing as many of those administrative barriers that we can for providers and to make it a more seamless practice for them.
- [05:59]
A
Perfect. Yeah, thank you so much for giving us that information. And overall, how are you thinking about adding growth and adding value to your organization for this new upcoming year?
- [06:13]
B
Yeah, for me, you know, growth isn't just about numbers. You know, KPIs or OKRs are great, you know, but ultimately it's creating value for the people at the center of our model. So our providers, our clients, clients and our partners, whether that be a health plan, an employer, or others. And that's how we're going to be able to build sustainable growth, not just in the short term spikes, but also long term. You know, a big part of our approach is focused on removing friction. And so if we can streamline the processes, make the workflows predictable, and reduce that administrative load on the therapists, then we're making a huge impact for those providers as well as the clients. And ultimately, you know, when providers feel supported and have the tools and are able to really focus on delivering the care that they want to, it's going to create better outcomes for everyone. And so when the clients also have a smooth experience, they'll stay engaged. And then, you know, when, when partners are able to see those outcomes, they, they're able to develop trust with, with Tava as well as others. And, and that leads to new opportunities. I also think it's a lot about how we use the data. You know, again, not using data for the sake of just dashboards, but using that data to not just understand but truly transcend how we're thinking about the care that we're delivering. And that will help us to make smarter decisions, improve the model of care, as well as communicate value to partners in a way that's clear and compelling. And then ultimately, when we think about adding value and being a reliable partner, it's really developing trust and building a great relationship with those that we try to partner with. And so when we show up consistently and deliver on our promises, we're going to make life easier for everyone that we work with, including organizations and employers. And that ultimately becomes our competitive advantage at Tava. The growth ultimately becomes a natural byproduct of doing all of those things really well.
- [08:17]
A
Yeah, absolutely. That definitely makes a lot of sense. And I guess with that, is there any risk or investment worth making for this upcoming year that can kind of help with the adding growth and adding value?
- [08:33]
B
Yeah, it's a great question. I. I think for us, you know, our biggest investment and. And honestly, our smartest risk is continuing to double down on quality. And so where that transcends in our world is that it ultimately means investing in our provider experience. Therapists are ultimately the backbone of everything we do at Tava, and when they're bogged down with administrative work or a very clunky system, everyone feels that, including the clients that they're trying to treat. And so every time we simplify a workflow or automate something that's a tedious task for them and give them back an hour in their week, we're actually investing in better outcomes. If we could free up their time and allow them the flexibility to see clients when they want to, it's going to increase their client satisfaction. And then ultimately, we're investing in our retention and reputation with these therapists. And so these are the kind of improvements that pay off across every part of our organization. And then we're also thinking about investing more in quality, not just in the flashes ways that you hear. You know, it's also a thing that we want to make sure is a force multiplier. So if we get quality right, whether that's clinical quality, provider support, operational quality, everything downstream will improve. And so it's the kind of investment that doesn't just help this year, but it also builds the foundation for the next five years. And again, if a therapist has a great experience, our clients are going to have a wonderful experience. And that ultimately is just going to lead to better outcomes for the system holistically.
- [10:11]
A
Wonderful. Thank you so much for giving that information. And, Adam, before I let you go, the last thing I wanted to ask you is where do you see the best opportunities for growth, I guess in this field or within your organization for the future?
- [10:27]
B
Yeah, I think looking ahead, I think our biggest opportunities come from the relationships we've already started to build. You know, whether that be with providers, health plans, or employers, they're all key parts of our ecosystem that we. We work in. And there's still a lot of room to deepen and expand those partnerships and relationships. You know, there's a large appetite among health plans for solutions that drive measurable behavioral health outcomes while ultimately reducing the cost holistically to the system. And, you know, the same thing is, is true for employers. You know, they're trying to support their people in a more meaningful way. And then on the provider side, we have a real opportunity and chance to create one of the best environments in the industry for clinicians to practice. So all three of these areas for us have growth potential if we continue to invest in them the right way. And then at the same time, you know, I think there's a large future for, you know, staying committed to our fundamentals. You know, so things that got us here, whether that be high quality of care, a strong provider support, you know, and ultimately clean and efficient operations, those are the exact things that will allow us to scale sustainably. You know, and there's always room for innovation, but again, that innovation sits on top of this, you know, great foundation that we've built on both quality and consistency. And so if we stay focused on what we can do best, keep the raising the bar on quality, we're ultimately going to be able to continue to build that trust with our partners, our health plans, and our employers, and that growth will just absolutely follow for us.
- [12:09]
A
Perfect. Thank you so much for those final thoughts. It's definitely been a very informative discussion. So again, I want to thank you so much for coming on Becker's Health Care, and I look forward to connecting with you again soon.
- [12:22]
B
Thanks so much, Mariah. I appreciate it.