Podcast Summary: Stabilizing Operations and Workforce at Henry Ford Health with Emily Moorhead

Podcast: Becker’s Healthcare Podcast
Host: Laura Deardle (Becker's Healthcare)
Guest: Emily Moorhead, President, Macomb Market, Henry Ford Health
Date: February 17, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode features a conversation with Emily Moorhead about operational and workforce stabilization at Henry Ford Health’s Macomb Market. Emily discusses her leadership journey, current and future initiatives to strengthen the health system, strategies for workforce sustainability, top priorities for 2026, and the practical and emotional challenges facing healthcare leaders today. The discussion emphasizes the importance of creating a culture of belonging, supporting frontline workers, adapting to changing patient expectations, and engaging the local community.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Emily’s Background & Macomb Market Context

• Emily Moorhead is the President of Henry Ford Macomb, serving a fast-growing and diverse suburban population in southeastern Michigan.
• Macomb County is noted as the third-largest in Michigan, with the health system offering a wide range of acute and ambulatory services.
• Emily has over six years with Henry Ford Health, having previously served as president in a more rural market (Jackson, Michigan).
• The workforce is largely comprised of people from the local community, fostering a culture where, as Emily says, "it's definitely not a job, it's more of a calling" (02:36).

Major Initiative: Operational and Workforce Stabilization (03:18)

• The main initiative is operational stabilization, with a strong parallel focus on workforce stabilization and sustainability, ongoing through 2026.
• Context: Healthcare is experiencing burnout, inconsistency, and shifting priorities.
• Emily has implemented a strategy of “slowing down to speed up”—focusing on the most impactful things, like staffing, throughput, discharge processes, and leadership visibility, rather than trying to do everything at once.
• Emphasis on reducing turnover, increasing retention, and cultivating cultures of belonging.

Notable Quote:

"We really do need to do a reset in healthcare... we've had to slow down to speed up... making sure that we're working on the right things."
— Emily Moorhead (03:18)

Workforce Support, Accountability, and Nimbleness (05:42)

• Focus on outcome-based metrics—celebrating even small failures and successes alike fosters learning.
• Leadership courage: It's vital for every leadership layer to “stop the line” and recalibrate if something isn't working.
• Slimming down initiatives, avoiding the “next shiny thing ... it's really easy to get very busy, but not necessarily making progress.”
• Ownership and follow-through are essential to prevent tasks from stalling.

Notable Quote:

"Baby steps is still progress. So we have to make sure that we're celebrating the things that we're doing around the patient experience, around staff engagement..."
— Emily Moorhead (06:50)

2026 Top Priorities: Financial, Workforce, Execution (08:13)

1. Financial Sustainability: Upcoming headwinds—reimbursement trends, access, insurance, changing cost models.
2. Workforce Resilience & Retention: The need for a stable, supported workforce.
3. Execution Discipline: Fewer, well-prioritized initiatives with clear accountability and metrics.

• Patient expectations are shifting as generational needs change, requiring the system to become more adaptable and consumer-focused.

Adapting Care Models & Resource Allocation (10:34)

• Traditional tactics of “do more with less” no longer suffice—prompting smarter care models and assessments when positions become vacant.
• The importance of matching skill sets to current needs. When staff leave, reevaluate rather than automatically refill.
• Courageously addressing waste and avoidable variation—for example, questioning the necessity of routine tests and care protocols.
• Advocates for shifting suitable care to lower-cost outpatient or home settings, leveraging technology and telehealth.

Notable Quote:

"We really want to make sure that people are getting care in the right location ... leveraging the home environment more, leveraging technology with telehealth opportunities..."
— Emily Moorhead (12:10)

Workforce Safety and Challenging Patient Behavior (13:56)

• A recent leadership forum highlighted widespread concern about aggressive patient behaviors.
• Increasing incidents of physical, verbal, and sexual abuse against staff; these are “never events.”
• Commitment to zero-tolerance policies for abusive behavior from patients.

Notable Quote:

"It is rare for a day to go by on our safety huddle not to hear about someone being hurt at work ... Those should be never events."
— Emily Moorhead (14:17)

Difficult Decisions Ahead (15:38)

• The toughest challenges: Making difficult, sometimes unpopular decisions to protect staff safety and sustain the organization.
• Commitment to enforcing administrative discharge policies for abusive patients.
• Will need to stop some longstanding practices or services when necessary.
• Engaging with community leaders reveals trust issues—regaining community trust is critical.

Notable Quotes:

"We have to be comfortable and I have to be comfortable making difficult, unpopular decisions."
— Emily Moorhead (15:38)

"How do we regain that trust of our consumers... that we are their partner in health?"
— Emily Moorhead (17:51)

Leading Change: Communication and Culture (19:11)

• Emily emphasizes open, honest communication and culture building.
• Executive leadership established a unified vision and clear intentions for 2026, with department-specific plans aligned accordingly.
• Departments were challenged to focus (not 500 things at once!), and progress is tracked with leading and lagging indicators.
• Transparent reporting ensures everyone is aware of the collective direction and progress.

Staff Empowerment and Recognizing Contributions (21:50)

• Emily shares a story of job-shadowing a food service worker to reinforce the value of every staff role.
• The interaction underlines the importance of making staff feel “loved and supported”—critical for morale and patient outcomes.

Memorable Moment:

The food service worker confides, “I'm so nervous walking around with you because you are so important and I am not.”
Emily’s response: “You are one of the most important people here and I just so very appreciate you ... you do make a difference.” (21:50–23:15)

• This story epitomizes how small acts of recognition contribute to a culture of belonging and motivate teams.

Opportunities for Growth (24:55)

• With a rapidly growing and aging county population, Emily sees opportunities in:
  • Advanced Care: Cardiac, neurosurgery, spine care.
  • Primary Care: Upstream prevention to decrease unnecessary ED visits.
  • Balanced Growth: Ensuring complex care is available locally, while lower-acuity cases shift to outpatient or urgent care settings.

Notable Quote:

"We are never going to be a quaternary center ... But here at Macomb, we're really making sure that we're focusing on a lot of high complex surgeries ... cardiac is a huge growth opportunity ... prevention and moving the care upstream is the wave of the future."
— Emily Moorhead (25:24)

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• "It's definitely not a job, it's more of a calling." — Emily Moorhead (02:36)
• "We really do need to do a reset in healthcare... making sure that we're working on the right things." — Emily Moorhead (03:18)
• "Baby steps is still progress." — Emily Moorhead (06:50)
• "We really want to make sure that people are getting care in the right location ... leveraging the home environment more, leveraging technology with telehealth opportunities..." — Emily Moorhead (12:10)
• "Those should be never events. It is never okay to be hurt at work." — Emily Moorhead (14:17)
• "We have to be comfortable... making difficult, unpopular decisions." — Emily Moorhead (15:38)
• "How do we regain that trust of our consumers... that we are their partner in health?" — Emily Moorhead (17:51)
• (Empowering food service staff): "You are one of the most important people here and I just so very appreciate you." — Emily Moorhead (21:50–23:15)

Important Segments & Timestamps

• 01:06 – Emily introduces herself and describes the Macomb Market mission
• 03:18 – Operational & workforce stabilization initiative overview
• 05:42 – Supporting frontline teams and building resilient culture
• 08:13 – Top 3 priorities for 2026: Finance, Workforce, Execution
• 10:34 – Adapting resourcing and care models for sustainability
• 13:56 – Addressing patient aggression and workforce safety
• 15:38 – The hardest decisions ahead for leadership
• 19:11 – Communicating change and building trust in teams
• 21:50 – Story: Empowering frontline staff
• 24:55 – Growth opportunities for the Macomb Market

Summary

Emily Moorhead’s leadership philosophy at Henry Ford Macomb centers around purposeful prioritization, visible and courageous leadership, staff empowerment, cultural belonging, and adapting to changing healthcare landscapes. She candidly addresses the dual challenge of operational stability and workforce retention, emphasizing a nimble approach to care delivery, open communication, and recognition of every role’s impact within the health system, especially amid formidable industry headwinds.

For anyone leading or interested in healthcare, Emily’s practical insights and heartfelt stories provide both a blueprint and an inspiration for navigating complexity and building resilient, patient-focused organizations.