← Becker’s Healthcare Podcast
Becker’s Healthcare Podcast
Driving Growth and Excellence at St. Joseph's Health with Dr. Dustin Riccio
00:19:39
Loading summary
Transcript19 lines
- [00:02]
A
This is where healthcare leadership comes together. Becker's 16th annual meeting brings more than 3,500 hospital and health system executives and nearly 800 speakers to Chicago, April 13th through the 16th. This year's event includes keynote conversations with Dallas Cowboys legend Troy Aikman and former President George W. Bush. For the agenda and event details, visit Beckershospitalreview.com and click on the Events tab in the upper right. We're looking forward to hosting you in Chicago.
- [00:32]
B
This is Laura Deardo with the Beckers Healthcare Podcast. I'm thrilled today to be joined by Dr. Dustin Riccio, President and Chief Executive Officer at St. Joseph's Health System. Dr. Riccio, it's a pleasure to have you on the podcast today.
- [00:43]
C
Good morning, Laura. Thanks for having me.
- [00:45]
B
Now, I'm excited for our conversation because I know there's so much happening in healthcare and, you know, it'll be really fun to learn a little bit more about what you're doing at St. Joseph's and how you're thinking about the future. But before we dive in, can you tell us just a little bit more about yourself, your background in St. Joseph's Health System?
- [01:00]
C
Absolutely. So my name is Dustin Riccio. I am the president and Chief Executive officer here at St. Joseph's Health. The way I like to describe myself is, especially being in Jersey, is that I'm actually a Jersey boy. I grew up down on the Jersey Shore before, as I tell people, before it was the Jersey Shore and really great spot to grow up. I wound up going to Bucknell University and subsequently did med school up in Syracuse, New York. And at that time, really I was spending some time in getting acquainted with what the clinical realm was and I did my residency there. I got married at that time and wound up spending about 20 years up in, in the Rochester and the upstate area. I got my first attending job in Rochester, New York, and my wife and I raised a family there for really 20 years. And during that time I, I really took a liking to and a love for the administrative realm of medicine. And I started as a chair of the department, eventually became the president of a hospital in a smaller region within Rochester Regional Health, and eventually got to the point where I started looking to see what else was out there and was really happy to find a position that was available here in New Jersey. When a recruiter reached out and talked to me about the position that was opening up because of a retirement at St. Joseph's Health in Paterson, New Jersey, I looked at the opportunity. I fell in love with the place. When I came to interview for it. And the way the team here really wrapped their arms around me and the culture that is St. Joseph's Health, the mission of who we are and what we do, it really attracted me to the organization and I was fortunate enough to be offered the position and took the position back in January, January of 2024. I've now been in the role for two years and loving New Jersey, loving being back in this great state and also appreciative for the work that we're doing here and the purpose that I have in serving this role and serving this community at St. Joseph's so that's a little bit about me, Laura. That's my past 20 years in 30 seconds or less.
- [03:15]
B
That's amazing. I mean, and what a great career you've had going from the clinical side into administration and then being able to get back Jersey is just fantastic. And I love the way you describe the feeling that you had when you got to St. Joseph's and truly, you know, having that connection and feeling like you've been supported since you've been there. So that's amazing to hear. And you know, I'm curious, could you tell us a little bit more about the last year or so, an important initiative that you led? What did you do and what were the results?
- [03:43]
C
Well, yeah, maybe I'll, if it's okay with you, I'll extend it back even two years. Because I think that first year where I arrived here was even more important about setting up what we did last year. Because that first year for me was really a year of listening and learning and spent a lot of time with the entire constituents of our community. I spent a lot of time with our frontline team members. I spent a lot of time with our executives and our legislators and really getting an understanding. Even though I know New Patterson, growing up, even though I knew the landscape for the healthcare industry in New Jersey, I wanted to see where we were. And in doing that three to six month listening session and then doing a nine month strategy session on where we needed to go, it set up. Back to your question. It set up what the last year was and that was 2025. Because walking out of 24 into 25 was a function of executing on the listening session, getting in a buy in from the board, the community, the frontline team, as to what our vision was going to be, what our strategy was going to be. And then in January 25, we kicked off that strategic plan, we launched it and it has been probably the most important thing that we did last year. And why is that important? Because what we wanted to do was we wanted to recognize what I had Learned back in 24, that this organization really needed to expand itself from a growth standpoint. It needed to recognize the excellence that it was and how we needed to both get back there as well as build upon the great things that we were already doing. And then what I described to you about coming here in 23, when I was interviewing for the position, and how much I appreciated the culture and the mission and then expanding that culture, because our strategic plan launch isn't just about growing market share. Our strategic plan launch that we did In January of 25 was those pillars around growth, excellence, and culture. And what we tacked on there was what I keep saying to people, that fourth pillar. That fourth pillar is, hey, listen, we need to tell our story a little bit differently as to who we are at St. Joe's and I call that amplifying our voice. So what we did last year, in January, we launched that strategic plan with the pillars of growth, excellence, culture, and amplifying our voice. And back to your original question. I think that's the most important thing we did last year, and I think it's probably one of the most important things that this organization has done in the last several years.
- [06:18]
B
I love that. And I think it's so critical to have that kind of vision into, you know, where you want the health system and organization to be and how the people are functioning within it. And to your point, in looking at amplifying your voice, having that excellence and the culture in place, what does that look like in the last year as you're, you know, unveiling that to the team and then actually seeing them make changes in how they're thinking about the organization and how they're talking about it, you know, what did that look like? And how are you seeing that actually come to fruition?
- [06:51]
C
Yeah. And going one layer deeper, Laura, is on the growth standpoint, it really is about recognizing what the community needs are and how we're expanding into those communities. And we've defined those into nine different strategic areas. The primary is really around primary care. There is a dearth of primary care where we are currently at, as well as in some of the markets that we want to be in. Right. And we want to build out our primary care strategy and have been spending the last year plus in doing that. In addition to that, we have also defined eight additional specialties and subspecialties that we need to grow in that the community needs. And we believe that we are providing and can provide more of. And then lastly is our ambulatory. Our ninth strategic growth area is around our ambulatory focus areas and that's ambulatory surgery. That's our ambulatory campuses and how we can actually grow that to serve the community better. But the excellence in culture piece are how we're doing that is taking those listening sessions again. And we are recognizing the high quality that we have within our clinicians and the care that we offer. And we are seeing how we can double down on that. I will typically call it the trophy case. But what we're really pushing the team to do is to say, hey, you guys are doing a great job here. We believe that we are the market leaders in several different components of clinical care. We were fortunate enough, based off of the work that the team did even prior to my arrival to receive two leapfrog a grade ratings in last year. And it's actually something that hasn't been achieved at this campus ever. Right. And so letting the team recognize that and building on that excellence, those excellence initiatives is how we're building out that pillar from a cultural standpoint, re engaging our team differently. The culture that I described to you when I walked in the doors back in 23 is exactly what I want to build upon. And the human capital aspect of what we do here at St. Joseph's Health is so critical. And if you were here, you can actually feel it. It is about living the mission. It's about recognizing what the Sisters of Charity is St. Elizabet Elizabeth's created back in 1867 with an 11 bed hospital and providing to the community that we are doing today across three different campuses now. Right. And the team knows that. They know what it means to do that and they live the mission every day. And we are investing in that both from an employee engagement standpoint as well as out within the community. And that has been actually critical for us to get buy in on the strategic plan as well as to advance the growth initiatives. Right. So that growth, excellence and culture. And then I heard you very specific specifically ask about what does it mean to amplify our voice. It's doing what you and I are doing today, right. It is about continuing to be humble, but also letting our communities know and letting the entire state know that we were actually a high quality organization that serves a challenged group population within Patterson, but also is expanding outwards so that people can feel exactly the culture that I'm describing to you. And that means getting in front of of the communities. That means getting in front of our legislators. That means getting in front of our payers and that means getting in front of our team members to say we are doing this really well and I need you to speak a little bit more loudly about that work. And that has really caught on here. It's why I'm doing what I'm doing. It's why I'm spending that time in front of the community, in front of the legislators, in front of the team members to continue to carry that message a little less humble, not bragging somewhere right in the middle.
- [10:29]
B
I love that, you know, and that's such a critical way of really branding and having yourself out there within the community and just really being proud of everything that you do. So I love it. I think looking ahead into the next year, what are some of the big priorities and headwinds that you're focused on for the next 12 months or so?
- [10:48]
C
What we are looking at in 26 is how do we keep our foot on the gas. We kicked off that strategic plan, we launched it back in January 25th and we actually saw a lot of big wins in those nine different areas that we described. That I described to you, not everything was a win, right. And what we did is even in the Last part of 25 is we said, hey listen, there's a lot of changes that are coming within our industry, within the administration that we need to be cognizant of and how do we actually evolve our strategic plan to make sure that the organization is successful moving forward. So we made that evolution at the end of 25 and into 26. But really what I am focusing on right now is at the same time where we're putting out fires, that we are also keeping our foot on the gas. And that foot on the gas means growth, excellence, culture, amplifying our voice and supporting our team to do exactly that. It means getting in front of our federal, our state and our local governments to let them know what the administrative changes that are happening on an industry wide level and how they are impacting us. And in addition to that, it also means holding others accountable for that. Right? Making sure that the payers know what the challenges are going to be coming forward and that we need to be recognized as an entity within Northern Jersey, if not the region. And then it's getting in front of our patients and our communities and letting them all know all the stuff that we are doing so that we can continue to drive volume as well as a great patient experience. So if you were to ask me in simple words, it would, I would Say we need to keep our foot on the gas. We cannot take what happened in 25, which was a big win for the organization. Those growth initiatives, we need to double down. We have the flywheel going now. We just need to spin it a little faster.
- [12:32]
B
That makes a ton of sense. And, you know, I really appreciate you talking through that because it is a time of a lot of uncertainty, a lot of changes, and I think a lot of leaders across the board are trying to figure out how to keep. Keep their teams focused and results driven, process driven, while at the same time looking into the future, too, and building for the future, which is a hard thing to balance. And so from your perspective, when you're, you know, working with your teams, your leadership teams, and then, you know, communicating out to the frontline staff as well, how do you really kind of walk that line and make sure that you're thinking about the right things? What are the results? What are the impact that some of these things are making, you know, for the organization?
- [13:15]
C
I would say that the pace of change is truly breakneck within healthcare. And unfortunately, a lot of the change hasn't necessarily been all that positive. And what that means in my mind is that we, when I say we, I mean the executive team and myself and really the entire organization is we need to communicate better. I've been saying this now for, I don't know, 15 years, but I used to think I was a really good communicator until I got into the executive space, right? And then. And I've tried to iterate towards better, if not great as a communicator over the past 20 years, within administration. And at a time right now where the pace of change is so fast, it is so necessary for myself to be a better communicator. It is so necessary for our executive team to communicate better, right? And I don't mean just simply sending out emails, but getting in front of the team to make sure that, number one, they know that the direction that we are going, right? They know that we are executing on the commitments that we made to them, to the communities and to all other constituents that interact with St. Joseph's Health. And then lastly, is listening to them as they give us feedback as to the direction that we are going, right? Because that is the feedback loop that needs to happen. And that is what makes up a great communication plan. It is not simply just sending an email out and saying, we did this. It is following that communication loop, getting the closure from the team, from the community to make sure that we are headed in the Right direction and then evolving that, as I described with what we did at the end of 25, not just based on the administrative changes, but what we were hearing back from the team, what we were hearing from the community. Is it perfect? No. But at the same time, that level of communication is something that I am challenging myself to do better on. I am challenging our executive team on. And I believe that that will be the critical component for the success that we need at this organization, as well as within healthcare, to execute on those growth plans and bring better services out to the community.
- [15:28]
B
That is so helpful to understand. And thank you for digging a bit deeper there. It's just really fascinating times that we live in and certainly helpful to get your perspective on how you're dealing with all of this now. What do you think the hardest thing you'll have to do in the coming year will be?
- [15:43]
C
The hardest thing that we're going to have to do is to maintain the pace that we are currently at. I talked about keeping our foot on the gas, but I also recognize that from a strain perspective that, listen, there are. There are workforce challenges that are out there. There are reimbursement challenges that we have at an industry level and where we are organizationally right now as we continue to pull this organization up, that pace of change is really challenging. Right. And that change doesn't just. I don't mean just from a growth perspective, but I also mean in the organization, at the executive level and actually building up what our. Our middle management team is currently doing. That pace of change in an organization has to be balanced. And that is one of the hardest things that I am going to do at, from a leadership standpoint. And then I would say that pace of change, married with the challenges that are coming through from an administrative standpoint that are going to impact us financially are two of the things that I Gives me some level of anxiety on a daily basis. But I absolutely believe that these are some things that we can take on both from a change standpoint and a change management standpoint, and deal with the industry level, the administrative changes that are coming down to us, not just from a reimbursement standpoint, from a regulatory standpoint as well. And if we bring those two things together, balance the pace of change with the administrative and the industry changes, then we will be successful. But that is going to be very hard.
- [17:23]
B
Absolutely. I think it's, you know, so critical to have that type of focus that we were talking about earlier in the conversation because, you know, this balance, and especially from the financial standpoint in change management, too, is never easy. But before we wrap up here, I wanted to ask about growth too. Where do you see some of the best opportunities for organizational growth over the next couple years?
- [17:47]
C
Thanks, Laura. I would reflect back on that question and I would say that really covered a lot of it already up to this point. And really what organizational growth in my mind comes down to is execution, right? And from a growth standpoint, we talk through what those areas are. From a primary care down through the specialties and subspecialties and into that ambulatory care space, we need to execute in that realm. From an excellent standpoint. If we want to grow, we need to create a great patient experience and we need to let people know all the great work that we are currently doing and make sure they know that we are two of the safest hospitals in the nation. From a cultural standpoint, we need to make sure that the team is bought into the growth that I just described to you and that we are investing in the human capital and continue to invest in the human capital so that the culture can continue to grow here and our organization can grow. And lastly, I keep reiterating it, but we need to continue to tell our story a little bit differently. We need to let people know that we are expanding and that we are bringing additional services out to the community, that we have created a marketing plan that we are launching in a brand refresh that's coming out there to describe all of the things that I just talked to you about. We need to execute on growth, excellence, culture, and amplifying our voice. And then this organization will continue to become what we know it can be and even greater in the future.
- [19:12]
B
I love that. Thank you so much for joining us on the podcast today. This has been such a fascinating conversation. I really appreciate you digging deep into some of the cultural things you're doing, as well as how you're thinking about growth and development. And I look forward to continuing the conversation as well at our 16th annual meeting in April. I know you'll be speaking on a panel and it'll be great to connect there and keep the conversation going.
- [19:33]
C
Laura, thank you so much. I really appreciate the time.