Healthcare CEO compensation--and the perks that go with it--has drawn criticism in the past year and as a result hospital executives will likely see quality-based metrics added to their packages this year, according to Becker's Hospital Review.
In the past compensation rates reflected the number of hospital beds, location and whether the hospital was a teaching facility--with large, urban teaching hospitals conferring the highest compensation, according to a 2013 Journal of the American Medical Association study, FierceHealthcare previously reported. Pay wasn't associated with outcomes or quality results.
But that will all change in 2014, Becker's noted, as hospital executives must now lead their organizations through healthcare reform and tough financial times. CEO pay is already the subject of a signature drive in California to add a ballot measure that would create a $450,000 annual compensation cap for not-for-profit hospital CEOs.
Becker's lists five CEO compensation trends to look for in the coming year. Among them: Expect hospital leaders and board members to create more stringent, quality-based metrics for compensation packages to boost their public image and improve patient outcomes.
In addition, CEOs must build a healthy relationship with the physician community, as physician alignment and physician recruitment are important aspects of hospital strategic planning and can now influence an executive's pay, Becker's reported.
"As hospitals and health systems look to affiliate and incorporate physicians within their marketplace and align them to their hospital, we are seeing a portion [of executive compensation] tied to how well they integrate and collaborate with medical staff," Paul Esselman, executive vice president and managing principal at executive recruitment firm Cejka Executive Search, told Becker's.
The article also predicted that C-suite executives would receive modest pay increases this year, boards would likely look to make sure compensation falls in line with the organization's goals and physician executives would receive larger payouts.
To learn more:
- here's the Becker's article