Expanding Access and Thoughtful Innovation at Lahey Hospital

Summary

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Expanding Access and Thoughtful Innovation at Lahey Hospital

Becker’s Healthcare Podcast
Release Date: January 27, 2026
Host: Madeline Ashley (B)
Guest: Dr. Susan Moffatt-Bruce (C/D), President of Lahey Hospital and Medical Center and Divisional President of Beth Israel Lahey Health

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Overview

This episode features an insightful conversation with Dr. Susan Moffatt-Bruce on the recent initiatives at Lahey Hospital and Medical Center (LHMC) and Beth Israel Lahey Health (BILH). The discussion centers around expanding patient access, implementing innovative healthcare technologies—including artificial intelligence (AI)—and addressing the evolving needs of both patients and healthcare staff in 2025 and into 2026.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Dr. Moffatt-Bruce’s Background and Role

• [01:02] Dr. Moffatt-Bruce shares her nearly 30-year career in healthcare, her expertise as a cardiothoracic surgeon specializing in end-stage lung disease, and her administrative leadership across hospitals and national organizations.
• Now President at LHMC, she also proudly serves as Professor of Surgery at UMass Chan Lahey, highlighting the institution’s new regional medical school.

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2. Major Initiatives and Achievements of 2025

• Patient Volume and Access Expansion
  • [02:18] “2025... was one of growth. We were very, very fortunate to have been able to take care of more patients and even more patients than we had anticipated.”
    (Dr. Moffatt-Bruce)
  • LHMC successfully expanded care to more patients than expected, with a focus on addressing increasingly complex and acute healthcare needs.
• Geographic Expansion
  • LHMC and Lahey Clinic expanded services into southern New Hampshire, extending beyond traditional Massachusetts boundaries to increase community access.
  • [02:58] “We were able to stand up and initiate clinics within southern New Hampshire so that we can care for more patients, be in more communities and increase the access, which we are very, very excited about doing.”
• Adopting AI and Technological Innovation
  • [03:40] Adoption of ambient AI has enabled seamless capture of clinical encounters for electronic medical records, allowing providers to stay engaged with patients.
  • [03:46] “The clinician can continue to be engaged with the patient... adoption of these really innovative strategies to really provide really thoughtful care is a really proud moment for us.”

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3. Priorities and Challenges for 2026

• Thoughtful Innovation and Safety
  • [04:47] Dr. Moffatt-Bruce stresses the importance of carefully selecting which innovative solutions to adopt, ensuring they are patient-centric while keeping staff wellbeing in mind.
  • Quote: “Making sure that we make thoughtful decisions as to which innovative strategies we adopt... so that they're really patient centric and keep our providers and our clinicians well.”
• Supporting Workforce Wellbeing
  • [05:14] A key focus is on attracting, supporting, and retaining healthcare staff amidst industry change and innovation.
  • Strategies must address both staff and community health and ensure staff are equipped to provide care.
  • Quote: “How do we keep our staff, our clinicians, our colleagues really well during a time when there is so much change in health care?”
• Balance of Priorities
  • [07:22] Dr. Moffatt-Bruce identifies balancing expanding patient care, managing costs, adapting to reimbursement pressures, and maintaining access as the toughest challenges.
  • Quote: “It's really the greatest challenge is the balancing of it all and trying to be proactive so that we can continuously provide the highest access of care.”

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4. Leadership Strategies in Times of Uncertainty

• Fostering Engagement and Open Communication
  • [06:25] “When we have times of uncertainty, we need to make space for colleagues to share challenges, but also opportunities. A lot of listening and a lot of engagement.”
  • Leadership at LHMC emphasizes collaborative problem-solving, open forums for feedback, and programs for staff to bring forward both challenges and innovative ideas.
  • Importance of Communication:
    [07:05] “Communication is such a huge part of this whole puzzle.” (Madeline Ashley)
• Retention and Empowerment
  • Creating programs for colleagues to “show up as their very best selves” and bringing forward both challenges and opportunities.
  • [06:56] “That really has been part of my leadership strategy and those of my colleagues that I have the good fortune of working with every day.” (Dr. Moffatt-Bruce)

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5. Opportunities for Organizational Growth

• Community Engagement and Home-based Care
  • [08:09] Extending care beyond traditional settings and into communities and patients’ homes is seen as a major growth opportunity.
  • Emphasizes leveraging innovation so patients can receive care “at the time that they need it and in the way that they want that care.”
  • Quote: “We have an opportunity to not only care for more patients in their communities and in their homes even, and in their place of living and work so that they don't have to come into the bricks and mortar, and that will take adoption of innovation.”

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• [02:18] “2025... was one of growth. We were very, very fortunate to have been able to take care of more patients and even more patients than we had anticipated.” (Dr. Moffatt-Bruce)
• [03:46] “Adoption of these really innovative strategies to really provide really thoughtful care is a really proud moment for us here at Lahey and across Beth Israel.” (Dr. Moffatt-Bruce)
• [04:47] “Making sure that we make thoughtful decisions as to which innovative strategies we adopt in healthcare so that they're really patient centric and keep our providers and our clinicians well, that's gonna be one of the challenges...” (Dr. Moffatt-Bruce)
• [06:25] “We need to make that time in those spaces so that we can collectively and collaboratively create programs that allow people to show up as their very best selves, but also spaces that they can bring forward challenges and opportunities.” (Dr. Moffatt-Bruce)
• [08:09] “We have an opportunity to not only care for more patients in their communities and in their homes even...so that they don't have to come into the bricks and mortar, and that will take adoption of innovation.” (Dr. Moffatt-Bruce)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:02] – Dr. Moffatt-Bruce’s career and background
• [02:18] – 2025 recap: Expansion, access, and patient growth
• [03:40] – Innovation: Adoption of ambient AI
• [04:33] – 2026 priorities: Innovation and staff wellbeing
• [06:25] – Leadership approach: Engagement and communication
• [07:22] – The biggest challenge for 2026: Balancing competing demands
• [08:09] – Growth opportunities: Community and home-based care

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Summary Flow & Tone

The conversation is forward-focused, optimistic, and collaborative, emphasizing both achievement and the ongoing challenges in healthcare. Dr. Moffatt-Bruce’s responses reflect a commitment to thoughtful innovation, strategic leadership, and community engagement—anchored by both data-driven planning and compassionate, human-centered care.

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Transcript

[A]

Every year, Becker's annual meeting brings healthcare leaders together to unpack the most pressing issues facing the industry. And every year, those conversations shift in profound and unexpected ways. This April, more than 3,500 healthcare executives will return to Chicago for Becker's 16th annual meeting. 795 elite speakers will offer new lessons, new case studies, and predictions about what comes next. Join us April 13th through the 16th. For the agenda and event details, visit Beckershospitalview.com and click on the Events tab in the upper right.

[B]

This is Madeline Ashley with the Beckers Healthcare Podcast, and I'm excited to be joined today by Dr. Susan Moffatt Bruce, President of Leahey Hospital and Medical center and Divisional President of Beth Israel Leahey Health. Susan, thanks for joining me.

[C]

Thanks for having me. I'm very excited about being here today.

[B]

And I'm thrilled to dive into this discussion. But before we kick things off, do you mind sharing with our listeners just a little bit more about yourself and your background?

[C]

No, absolutely. And thank you again for the opportunity to be here today. I am the president currently of Leahy Hospital Medical Center. My background goes back almost 30 years now in health care. I am a cardiothoracic surgeon and my area of expertise is end stage lung disease. I'm also an academic administrator and have been in management of hospitals and healthcare systems as well as national organizations for the last 20 years. And I am very proud to be a professor of surgery at UMass Chan Leahy as we now have a regional medical school here at Leahey Hospital and Medical Center. Wonderful.

[B]

What an incredible background. I appreciate you sharing that with us. So let's dive right in. First of all, happy 2026. Excited to kind of chat with you today just about all the things happening at your organization, but want to backtrack it just a tiny bit to 2025. So could you share maybe the most important initiative that you personally led in 2025, what you did and maybe what the results were there something that you're really proud of from last year?

[D]

Yeah, I think that's a really important question as we come into the new year in 2026. You know, 2025 for Lahey Hospital and.

[C]

Medical center and Beth Israel, Lahey Health as a whole was one of growth. We were very, very fortunate to have been able to take care of more patients and even more patients than we had anticipated. And I think that's a really important metric and outcome for us here in health care as the complexities and the access to care become even more challenging for patients. So we're really proud that Lahey Hospital Medical center was able to take care of patients more often to address more acute issues. And really importantly, Lahey Hospital and Medical center and Lahey Clinic as a whole is, is now moving into New Hampshire. So beyond our traditional boundaries within Massachusetts, we were able to stand up and initiate clinics within southern New Hampshire so that we can care for more patients, be in more communities and increase the access, which we are very, very excited about doing. And we'll continue to accelerate that going forward. I think the second most important initiative that we really leaned into in 2025 is really adding innovation and artificial intelligence to the work that we do here every day caring for patients.

[D]

One example would be the use of and the adaptation and adoption of ambient AI so that when doctors, providers, clinicians walk into a room, the patient's encounter is actually captured within the electronic medical record, but the clinician can continue to be engaged with the patient. So I think adoption of these really innovative strategies to really provide really thoughtful care is a really proud moment for us here at Lahey and across Beth Israel.

[B]

Lahey Health and now kind of looking, you know, forward and ahead this year for 2026, could you share some of the biggest priorities and maybe dive a little deeper into some headwinds you're keeping an eye on with all the uncertainties that we're seeing right now in the industry?

[D]

You know, absolutely. I think as we look into 2026 and we're always trying to look ahead in healthcare so that we can be predictive and thoughtful about the headwinds ahead. You know, trying to keep up with the innovation that we are being, we.

[C]

Have access to in health care is one of our challenges. Making sure that we make thoughtful decisions as to which innovative strategies we adopt in healthcare so that they're really patient centric and keep our providers and our clinicians well, that's gonna be one of the challenges because there are so many great opportunities for us to adopt innovation. We wanna make sure we do it thoughtfully and safely.

[D]

To that end, the other headwind that we will be focusing on is really how do we keep our staff, our clinicians, our colleagues really well during a time when there is so much change in health care? What are the strategies so that not only can we attract and recruit colleagues to healthcare, but how do we retain colleagues within healthcare? And so the workforce and the communities that we serve really need to be part of our strategic initiatives so that they stay well and are able to care for the patients when they actually need that care within our healthcare system. So those are kind of the two balancing acts, I think, that we need to. To really play off as we go forward and be really mindful and intentional about how we address that.

[B]

Yeah. And I was actually going to follow up with you there and just maybe ask if you could just share some of the strategies that you've been leaning on, just from a leadership perspective, working with your teams, things that you found successful during these times of uncertainty.

[D]

So these are times of uncertainty. And I think when we have times of uncertainty, we need to make space.

[C]

For colleagues to share challenges, but also opportunities. A lot of listening and a lot of engagement. From the leadership perspective, there is never enough time to spend with our colleagues. And. And so we need to make that time in those spaces so that we can collectively and collaboratively create programs that allow people to show up as their very best selves, but also spaces that they can bring forward challenges and opportunities.

[D]

That really has been part of my leadership strategy and those of my colleagues that I have the good fortune of working with every day.

[B]

Yeah. Communication is such a huge part of this whole puzzle.

[D]

Absolutely. Couldn't agree with you more.

[B]

Exactly. And this might be a kind of a big question here, but what do you think the hardest thing is if you had to just think about the entire year that you'll have to do this year and why?

[D]

So there are many headwinds ahead. And I think really the hardest thing is balancing it all and prioritizing caring for the patients and the communities that are continuing to be more complex.

[C]

We have rising healthcare costs and reducing our reimbursement and ability to care for. And then fourthly, how do we balance that with access to care across the care continuum? It's really the greatest challenge is the balancing of it all and trying to be proactive so that we can continuously provide the highest access of care. Yeah.

[B]

And just based off of this type of balance that you're working on right here, could you share where you see some of the best opportunities for growth at your organization?

[C]

So I think some of the very best opportunities for Leahey Hospital Medical center, as well as BILH as a whole, is really being able to extend into the community and beyond our traditional areas of care. I think that we have an opportunity to not only care for more patients in their communities and in their homes even, and in their place of living and work so that they don't have to come into the bricks and mortar, and that will take adoption of innovation. And I'm so excited about that so that patients can get the care they need at the time that they need it and in the way that they want that care.

[B]

Yeah. Well, truly so much on the horizon and you touched on technology and just growth at your organization. So I really appreciate you sharing all of this with me, Susan. And again, it's been such a pleasure chatting with you. Wishing you a happy and healthy new year. And I look forward to being in touch.

[C]

Wonderful.

[D]

Thank you very much for the opportunity. We very much appreciate it.