Read the Conversation
Conversation highlights:
- The pandemic fundamentally shifted hospital management mindset toward embracing constant technological change and innovation across all areas of medicine.
- Centro Médico ABC has evolved beyond basic quality and safety standards to focus on four pillars: humanity in service, hospitality experience, efficient service delivery, and transparent value-based care.
- The hospital achieved ‘Magnet’ recognition as the only facility in Mexico with this distinction, demonstrating excellence in nursing standards and shared leadership culture.
- A comprehensive digital transformation program using an integrated EMR system will be operational across both campuses by year-end, enabling better data-driven decisions and improved communications with patients and families.
- The future of hospitals involves a hub-and-spoke model with specialty hospitals at the center, surrounded by ambulatory services and diagnostic clinics.
- Younger generations of patients will demand greater transparency, information access, and value demonstration, fundamentally changing traditional loyalty patterns.
EF: What are the two most significant achievements in Mexico's life sciences ecosystem over the past five years, and what should be the focus for the next four years leading to 2030?
JMZM: The pandemic fundamentally changed the way hospitals think about technology adoption. We realized that technology evolves constantly across all areas of medicine, from genomics to artificial intelligence in imaging diagnostics. If we are not incorporating these advances, we are not fulfilling our responsibilities. This mindset shift established a high priority on continuous learning and staying active with global changes.
The second major shift involves evolving priorities in our healthcare ecosystem. Quality and safety are no longer differentiators; they are minimum standards that create enormous risk if not met. We have moved toward creating an integrated experience built on four pillars beyond basic quality and safety.
First is humanity in service. Treatment is not just clinical. You must understand the patient, their family, and their social and economic circumstances. This requires extensive communication and different tools.
Second is the hospitality experience. Whether someone spends 30 minutes studying or four months in treatment, we create environments that adapt to unique needs and manage the emotional uncertainty that comes with hospital visits.
Third is efficient service delivery. We are moving toward a value-based care system adapted for Mexico's unique challenges, including the lack of integration between public and private sectors. Our objective is not minimum cost but fair pricing with transparency about what we deliver.
Finally, our relationships with third-party payers have improved significantly over the past three to four years. Better communication and openness have helped all stakeholders understand each other's concerns, which is critical when serving individuals with high uncertainty who believe their insurance covers everything.
EF: How has your digital transformation program progressed, and what impact do you expect it to have?
JMZM: Five years ago, we began an ambitious digital transformation program. The challenge was that comprehensive solutions available in the Mexican market are extremely limited. We do not have access to solutions like Epic or Meditech that are available in the United States, and other options are extremely expensive.
We analyzed alternatives in Europe and South America and eventually chose a solution from Philips. We have been collaborating with them for a couple of years on a very ambitious installation program that should be operational in both campuses by the end of this year.
This system will allow us to capture all the benefits of data and information technology for better decision-making. It will also facilitate incorporating other interfaces into the system. This will give us the foundation to provide the best experience in the near future. We will be able to incorporate innovative technologies, provide effective communication with physicians, patients, suppliers, and third-party payers, and find opportunities to be more efficient while delivering value to all stakeholders in our integrated ecosystem. The clinical aspects are getting extraordinarily strong. There is an opportunity to improve the ‘revenue cycle’ integration, particularly within Mexico’s fiscal framework.
EF: What skill sets and cultural changes are you prioritizing to prepare for the future of healthcare?
JMZM: There is no silver bullet. We need a comprehensive approach that started years ago with a cultural modification to ensure the patient is at the center of everything. We are enormously proud to have achieved Magnet recognition a couple of years ago. We are currently the only hospital in Mexico with this designation, though others are pursuing it. This recognition integrates several critical elements for future success.
First, talent must meet certain standards, specifically in nursing. Magnet requires more than 80% of nurses to have a professional degree. We used to have only 40% and worked hard to support our nurses' professional development. This signals that talent across all areas, from nursing to technicians, must have strong professional backgrounds.
Second is shared leadership, which allows staff to make decisions collaboratively. This is one of the most difficult challenges in healthcare because of the multiple stakeholders involved. To achieve the best results, you need to combine knowledge, discussion, and the right attitude.
Fortunately, newer generations are more eager to collaborate than baby boomers, who were more lone riders. But collaboration requires a framework supported by an organizational culture that recognizes achievements and opportunities. The challenge with new generations who move fast and want to grow is creating an environment where people can express opinions and ideas openly, and you implement many of them. The issue is not preparation, which is coming very strongly; it is about behaviors and interaction methods.
Being a not-for-profit organization creates a differentiating environment. People are not working for specific shareholders but for community benefit. When you combine professional challenges with a development environment and a purpose that goes beyond individual growth, it creates elements for continued success. This creates the proper environment for a Magnet organization.
EF: How do you balance providing the latest technologies and innovations while managing cost structures and payer relationships?
JMZM: Our principles put the patient first. When we invest in certain technologies that insurance companies sometimes do not feel comfortable with, like robotics versus laparoscopy, we try to start by offering the treatment at the same cost as laparoscopy to demonstrate benefits.
We document everything: shorter hospital stays, faster recovery periods, reduced readmissions. Through communication with insurance companies, we have been demonstrating the value of investing in new technology.
Some technologies are more challenging. We are discussing proton therapy equipment, which is very complex for specific radiotherapy applications. We have three magnificent conventional equipment pieces, but proton therapy costs are so high that it would be difficult for the hospital to manage alone. We are talking with foundations interested in donating equipment and creating solutions that could benefit not only us but also other hospitals.
When renewing equipment, we ensure the expected usage level will cover fixed costs. We have also been complementing our services with public organizations that benefit from this equipment. We don't try to recover complete costs from them; in many cases, we subsidize them. Being non-profit allows us to think about our investments, partnerships, and equipment in diverse ways, and not all decisions are taken based on the bottom line.
We view everything holistically. Our financials are sound, and this allows us to create models of cooperation and collaboration. This approach also helps with third-party payers. We work with other organizations and a group of physicians to help patients from our social programs.
For example, we've been working hard on proposing a value-based care model with competitive costs and guaranteed results in pediatric cardiology. We share our options with insurance companies for them to assess incorporation in their plans.
We're looking for out-of-pocket alternatives to support families with these problems. This has allowed us to show insurance companies that we're developing programs that benefit the population, and when discussing financials, they understand we're not primarily profit-driven, and our margins are reasonable for the market.
EF: What do you see as the future of hospitals, especially considering the rise of telemedicine and home care?
JMZM: We've been discussing this with leadership from Albert Einstein Hospital in Brazil and Houston Methodist in the US, and we see several key trends emerging. The evolution in treatment efficacy and efficiency will move many interventions out of traditional hospitals toward ambulatory services. Patients will come in and leave the same day, requiring us to think very differently about hospital design. The large hospital with huge wards might not be the best solution.
Also, artificial intelligence and younger generations' tool usage will enable smarter preventive medicine questions. There's growing health consciousness, and younger generations will be much more demanding of information and transparency. Whatever you do, whether ambulatory or hospital-based, you must give them comfort in managing their case. Then, cost considerations will drive rapid decision-making. If patients aren't convinced, they're getting a good deal, they'll move quickly to alternatives. Loyalty is changing. While we have patients who have been with us for years, younger generations will question more and try alternatives if something appears more appealing.
Combining these elements means preparing talent and physicians for change. The physician model in Mexico will evolve. You will not have family doctors who are pediatricians treating 40-year-olds. Younger generations will have different expectations for service from physicians, hospitals, and laboratories. Better diagnostic timing and increased health consciousness will allow some care to move outside facilities. Patients will prefer ambulatory care when possible, reserving hospitals for serious conditions.
I believe hospitals will evolve toward a hub-and-spoke model: specialty hospitals at the center, surrounded by ambulatory services, then clinics for diagnosis and basic services. This is not revolutionary. We see efforts in different clinic types in Mexico, but not in comprehensive sets. We are working on this evolution. We have received authorization for an ambulatory tower with a diagnostic center to complement our technology and physician knowledge as we move to the next stage.
EF: What final message would you like to share about the future of healthcare in Mexico?
JMZM: The environment is challenging, but there would be a wonderful opportunity if Mexico could adopt some practices from Brazil or other South American countries where the private and public sectors reach agreements for collaboration. I think this will eventually come because of the investment required and the needs. This is a sector that will continue changing, and as long as it keeps the patient at the center, along with the surrounding ecosystem, because families also need to be part of the equation, it's going to succeed.
