Podcast Summary: Becker’s Healthcare Podcast

Episode: Sarina Rodriques, Associate Vice President of System Lab Operations at Rush University System for Health
Date: January 25, 2026
Host: Scott Becker

Episode Overview

This episode features Sarina Rodriques, Associate Vice President of System Lab Operations at Rush University System for Health. The discussion centers on laboratory system trends in U.S. healthcare, workforce sustainability, the strategy behind insourcing lab technology, governance in laboratory operations, leadership development, and advice for emerging healthcare leaders.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Background & Mission of Rush University System for Health

• Sarina’s Role:
  • Oversees lab operations across the Rush University System in Chicago.
  • Drives strategies for workforce strength, quality, and regulatory governance.
  • Leads initiatives for insourcing laboratory technology and standardizing operations under the “One Rush One Laboratory” model.
• Rush’s Dual Mission:
  • Not just focused on patient care, but also education, research, and health equity.
  • Growth in both tertiary/quaternary care and ambulatory footprint.
  • Emphasizes scalable, flexible enterprise lab operations for system-wide impact.
• "We are deeply committed to community access...a core program of why I was brought into Rush is to advance the one Rush One Laboratory model, standardizing to improve safety, efficiency, compliance while still allowing some flexibility around that academic setting." – Sarina Rodriques [01:13]

2. Top Trends Shaping Laboratory Leadership

• a. Workforce Sustainability
  • Goes beyond recruitment: Focused on fatigue, risk, competency, and long-term viability.
  • Overtime-reliant models are unstable—need for stable leadership coverage across all shifts.
  • Local leadership remains vital even in a system setting.
  • "We’re focused on fatigue risk and competency, depth leadership coverage across all shifts and long-term viability of staffing." – Sarina [03:30]
• b. Reference Lab & Insourcing Strategies
  • Reviewing which tests to insource to improve quality, access, and growth.
  • Balancing in-house vs. reference lab testing; impacts turnaround time and value-based care.
  • Strategic for both inpatients and ambulatory populations throughout the region.
  • "Wherever we can, we are looking at strategies to insource testing back in house. We think this will help create better access, growth and improve quality." – Sarina [05:12]
• c. Governance
  • Driving structured governance for test utilization, technology, blood management, and quality.
  • Inclusion of broader stakeholders: clinicians, pharmacists, not just lab professionals.
  • Moving away from fragmented, site-based decision-making.
  • "We want to move away from fragmented onsite-based decision making towards structured governance for test utilization..." – Sarina [05:37]

3. Current Priorities and Excitements for 2026

• Building Infrastructure
  • Creating new workforce models and updating operating standards.
  • Emphasizes workforce stabilization, clear expectations, and regulatory alignment.
• Skill Mixing & Certification
  • Illinois isn’t a licensed state for laboratorians, but hiring certified techs is still important.
  • Diverse skill mixes—combining certified techs, lab assistants, and others to meet coverage needs.
  • "Creating skill mixing where we utilize certified techs versus different skill mixes...we need them all." – Sarina [07:21]
• Growth & Support
  • Rush’s investment in labs enables system-wide support and growth momentum.
  • "I love that Rush invests in their programs...really proud of that, and it has given us the momentum to continue to grow and invest in our laboratories." – Sarina [08:10]

4. Leadership Development & Lifelong Learning

• Advice for Emerging Leaders
  • Communicate data and financials effectively to executives; be data-driven.
  • Draws connection between staffing, quality, risk, and cost to tell compelling stories.
  • Early investment in leadership development and governance is key.
  • "Being a data driven leader is so critical...if you can connect volume data to staffing models, quality, risk and cost, you really build credibility and influence." – Sarina [09:01]
• Sustainable Performance & Systemic Solutions
  • Burnout and turnover usually signal system-level strain, not individual failures.
  • Importance of collaborative, curious, and adaptable leadership willing to challenge the status quo.
  • "Burnout and turnover are rarely individual failures. They're usually signals of system strain. Leaders who address this proactively, they'll protect both people and their patients." – Sarina [10:26]
• Challenging Legacy Models
  • Encourages openness to change and challenging existing workflows for better outcomes in today’s healthcare environment.

Noteworthy Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "We have a strategy for ambulatory growth looking at things like turnaround time, where testing is performed, should it be performed locally at the point of care, and also just that total cost of owning our laboratories." – Sarina [04:23]
• "Strong infrastructure and capable leaders at every level...those investments, they are critical to being able to deliver the value." – Sarina [09:46]
• "Leaders who listen well build trust across disciplines...they’re willing to challenge legacy models, really have better outcomes." – Sarina [10:41]

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Career Background & Role at Rush: [01:13]
• Current Lab System Trends: [03:30]
• Workforce Sustainability and Insourcing: [03:30-05:18]
• Governance Models and Stakeholder Engagement: [05:18-06:05]
• 2026 Priorities—Infrastructure and Workforce: [06:21-08:18]
• Advice for Emerging Leaders & Lifelong Learning: [08:43-10:50]

Tone & Language

Sarina Rodriques speaks with strategic clarity, practical focus, and an educational spirit—she blends laboratory systems expertise with a passion for leadership development, workforce sustainability, and patient-focused outcomes. The conversation is collaborative, insightful, and forward-thinking.

This episode offers actionable insights for healthcare system leaders, laboratory professionals, and anyone interested in the evolving landscape of healthcare operations, underscoring the importance of governance, innovation, and investment in people.