Message from AHVAP President-Elect
My Holiday Wish for Healthcare: Simplicity, Clarity & Patients First
As we close out another year in healthcare, I’ve been reflecting on the many conversations, presentations, and meetings that have filled the past twelve months. While there have been many themes over the past twelve months, one theme has surfaced more than others — and it has inspired my Holiday wish for 2025. I wish for healthcare contracts that are simple, clear, mutually supportive, and—above all—patient-centered.
Over the last several months, I’ve seen examples of agreements that should be straightforward: one product, one service, one expected outcome. Yet the language, structure, and incentives become so complex that what should be a transparent partnership turns into somewhat of a fuzzy math problem. When it takes those who structure the contract hours performing complex calculations, those who sign onto the contract unsure what they behold themselves to and both sides walk away unsure of what success looks like, we have already drifted away from the patient.
A contract is more than a signature. It represents a shared commitment that a product will be supplied reliably by the industry partner and the provider will use the agreed upon products, it will be used in alignment with evidence-based practice, the use of these products center on what is clinically appropriate—not what meets a quota, and when evidence evolves, agreements can evolve with it.
All too often, when the evidence shows that using less of a product is in the best interest of the patient, organizations find themselves facing financial penalties, rigid volume expectations, or pressures to “buy to the contract.” In those moments, the question must be asked: Who is truly first? Because it doesn’t always seem like the patient.
This season reminds us that simplicity matters. Integrity matters. Doing the right thing matters. So, my Holiday wish is simple: That providers and industry partners work together to design contracts that are easy to understand, easy to execute, and aligned with what actually improves patient care. Agreements where success is measured not in units purchased or quotas met, but in outcomes achieved. If both sides can look in the mirror and say, “This contract supports what is right for patients,” then we’ve given each other—and the patients we serve—the most meaningful gift of all.
Happy Holidays.
Anne Marie Orlando, MBA, RN, RCIS, CVAHP™, FACHDM, PNAP, FAHVAP
President-Elect, Board of Directors
AHVAP
