Becker’s Healthcare Podcast
Episode: Dr. Matt Boles, Chief Medical Officer at Salem Health Hospitals and Clinics
Date: February 23, 2026
Host: Laura Deardle

Episode Overview

This episode features Dr. Matt Boles, Chief Medical Officer at Salem Health Hospitals and Clinics, in conversation with host Laura Deardle. The discussion centers on Salem Health's journey through operational transformation, physician employment integration, cultural change, and future priorities amid challenging healthcare headwinds. Dr. Boles shares leadership lessons, innovative projects to improve efficiency and patient outcomes, and offers a candid look at the ongoing evolution of care delivery.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Dr. Boles’ Background and Salem Health Snapshot

• Dr. Boles is an anesthesiologist and long-time Salem Health leader, recently stepping into the CMO role after 35 years with the organization.
• Salem Health: Largest acute care hospital in Oregon (over 600 beds), Level II trauma center, serves a catchment area of about half a million, and operates one of the busiest EDs on the West Coast (>115,000 patients/year).
• The system is not a teaching hospital; "We have no residents or fellows at our…health system." (03:00)

Major Initiatives & Achievements

1. Transition to Employed Anesthesia Group

• Salem Health transitioned from contracting with Oregon Anesthesiology Group to employing their anesthesia providers due to recruitment and contract sustainability challenges.
• “It was a three year journey that just concluded this last fall. I learned so much culturally, professionally, personally, just to bring all of them from this fiercely independent, autonomous model...to be employed in a large health system.” (05:16)
• Retention: Nearly all group members stayed, reflecting strong culture and trust.
• Critical soft skills: “Hours spent on the back end of reassuring them about what does it look like to be employed.” (07:20)

2. Procedural Capacity Overhaul

• The organization faced a significant surgical backlog (thousands of patients).
• Rather than adding expensive new ORs, they optimized existing procedural space using lean management and data-driven approaches.
• Created a “procedural traffic control system” in Epic, tracking patient flow from referral to surgery, enabling targeted problem-solving.
• Introduced the “Patient Case Classification Window (CCW)”, aiming for all elective surgeries to be scheduled within 45 days of clinic.
• Current results: “Globally we are at about 67, 68% of meeting that target, which is a huge improvement from when we started this work.” (10:37)

Embracing Cultural Change

• Physicians and surgeons were brought into the change process using Lean principles; transparency and frontline engagement were emphasized.
• “We included our surgeons in on the problem solving...so it wasn’t so much the executive team selling it, it really was those that are impacted by this work.” (12:35)
• Simulation and direct involvement ensured buy-in, especially for workflow shifts and new technology adoption.
• Core pillar: “Respect for people” (18:48)

2026 Priorities & Headwinds

• Financial strains from stagnant government reimbursements, especially Medicaid, and rising labor costs.
• Independent physician groups struggle to remain viable, leading to increased requests for employment by the health system.
• “Our strategy absolutely is to make sure that these service lines are available to our patients, if that makes sense.” (15:21)
• Key challenge: Preserving essential community service lines (orthopedics, urology) amid economic pressures, not merely growing by acquisition.

Integrating Employed Physician Groups

• Approach focuses on placing patient needs at the core rather than competing with independent practices.
• Emphasizes “slowing down to go fast”, communicating transparently, individualized conversations, and visibility of goals and processes.
• “Sometimes you have to slow down to go fast and just walking through these numbers...keeping everything visible, good communication, follow through, etc.” (17:55)
• Leadership is relational: “There are humans behind all of these decisions...we really do honor that in all that we do.” (18:48)

Maintaining Mission and Culture Amidst Challenge

• Dr. Boles underscores the importance of staying true to the patient-centered mission.
• Cites the value of reconnecting with the “why” behind healthcare through activities like mentoring and section meetings.
• “How do we keep this fresh, how do we make this rewarding? How do we just remind ourselves that our patients are benefiting from what we do?” (19:38)
• Recognizes risk of burnout and the necessity of leadership focus on caring for caregivers as well as patients.

Innovation: Virtual Care and Beyond

• Post-pandemic, Salem Health is “reimagining” virtual care, with virtual nursing as a recent success—improving nurse satisfaction and patient experience.
• Next phase: Exploring how virtual models can enhance physician practice in acute care—not just replicating COVID-era telehealth.
• “We are taking a deep lean into that work, and we’re looking at what our nurses did to make that successful. How can we apply that to provider practices?” (22:17)
• Views this as an avenue for quadruple aim outcomes: better care, efficiency, provider and patient satisfaction.

Building Future Organizational Growth

• Highlights Medical Executive Committee (MEC) as an area for culture development.
• Focus in MEC retreat: Supporting advanced practice providers, recognizing their growing role, and fostering quality not just through metrics but via cultural leadership.
• Excitement around “driving the culture of quality” and empowering clinical leaders to shape improvement beyond traditional measures.
• “They want to drive the culture of quality. How do they improve that among our medical staff and care team, that was really exciting.” (24:41)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “It truly is an honor and a privilege to serve in this role. I was born in this hospital system. Both my kids were.” – Dr. Boles (03:25)
• “We have metrics, we have goals, we have targets, but this took a lot of those soft skills...so there was hours spent...reassuring them about what does it look like to be employed.” – Dr. Boles (07:20)
• “We could not, we meaning Salem Health, could not lose this vital service line.” – Dr. Boles (07:54)
• “We are actually underutilizing all of our procedural space across the health system...we were able to reimagine how we use this procedural space.” – Dr. Boles (08:55)
• “It just was critical to get them involved early on.” – Dr. Boles on cultural engagement (13:27)
• “Sometimes you have to slow down to go fast...” – Dr. Boles (17:55)
• “There are people, there are humans behind all of these decisions that we make.” – Dr. Boles (18:51)
• “Let’s not lose sight of why we’re doing this, and it’s for the patient.” – Dr. Boles (20:32)
• “We’re just scratching the surface on how can we apply [virtual care] to provider practices.” – Dr. Boles (22:22)
• “They want to drive the culture of quality...not so much in the traditional sense...but to drive the culture among our medical staff and care team. That was really exciting.” – Dr. Boles (24:41)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:17] Dr. Boles’ background and Salem Health overview
• [03:50] Most important recent initiatives led by Dr. Boles
• [05:15] Transition to employed anesthesia group: process and impact
• [08:38] Procedural capacity overhaul and use of technology
• [11:47] Approaching cultural transformation and staff engagement
• [14:01] Top priorities and headwinds for 2026
• [17:18] Lessons learned integrating physician groups into employment
• [19:28] Maintaining mission and combating burnout
• [22:00] Innovations in virtual care and the next frontier
• [23:44] Organizational growth: Medical Executive Committee’s evolving role

Tone and Style

Dr. Boles comes across as candid, humble, and relentlessly patient-focused. He emphasizes collaboration, cultural respect, and the “soft skills” required for true organizational transformation—never shying away from naming the complexities and human side of healthcare leadership.

This episode offers an insightful roadmap for navigating today’s healthcare challenges—combining operational rigor, cultural sensitivity, and relentless focus on patient outcomes as pathways to success.