Intro: The following SHSMD Podcast is a production of DoctorPodcasting.com.

Bill Klaproth (Host): On this edition of the SHSMD Podcast, we talk with the 24-year-old CEO of a Colorado hospital. Yeah, 24. What were you doing at 24? Shotgunning beers, reckless behavior, causing trouble. Oh, wait, that was me. Sorry. Anyway, I'm kidding. I'm kidding. Come on. Not really. Anyway, we're going to talk with Aidan Hettler, CEO of Sedgwick County Health Center, and hear his inspiring story and perspective of running a rural hospital and the challenges that he's facing. It's really interesting. He's very impressive. You're going to like it. So let's get to Aidan, right now.

This is the SHSMD Podcast, Rapid Insights for healthcare strategy professionals in planning, business development, marketing, communications, and public relations. I'm your host, Bill Klaproth. In this episode, Aidan Hettler, CEO of Sedgwick County Health Center. We're going to talk about his challenges running a rural hospital and his approach to healthcare administration. It's a cool interview. You're going to like it. So let's bring Aidan in. Aidan, welcome to the SHSMD podcast.

Aidan Hettler: Hi, Bill. Thanks for having me.

Host: You bet. So, when you graduated college a few years ago, did you have any idea that you, you would become the CEO of a rural hospital?

Aidan Hettler: No. When I was in college, I, I've always been someone who has an ambitious mindset and had ambitious or aspirations, but I didn't think that I would become the CEO of a hospital in my career, but I, always wanted to aspire for more and never knew I would get here. So.

Host: This is great. So you went to uh, Colorado State and you weren't going to, weren't thinking about the healthcare industry, were you? What were, what did you go to school for?

Aidan Hettler: Yeah, originally I had gone to school. I got my degree in business administration and had a dual concentration in supply chain management and organization and innovation management. So I had my sights set on being a supply chain management person and having that style of career for my whole life and then you know, an opportunity came along and um, I changed industries.

Host: How about that? So how did that opportunity come along? How did, did they find you? Did you apply? How did this happen?

Aidan Hettler: Yeah uh, it's a really unique story. So I have been living and working in Julesburg, which is where our health system is based, and I worked remotely for Lockheed Martin. So I started my career out of college in the aerospace industry doing Contract Management Administration. And, you know, in small towns, there's a very unique atmosphere.

And because it's so small, people are pretty tight knit and as I settled into the community, people had come to know me as, Aidan, as the business guy who works from home for Lockheed Martin. And serendipitously, whenever there was rumblings that there would be an open in the CEO position, someone with some internal ambitions at the health system reached out to me. And said, Hey, you know, you're a business person and we are going to need a CEO. What do you think about doing this? And um, while I was flattered by the ask, I tried to explain that I didn't think that I would be the right fit. And I, I had no healthcare background and I was only a few months, you know, at that time I was, I think, seven months out of school.

And I really tried to walk it back, but fortunately the person who had reached out to me, she was really persistent. And our first phone call that we had together ended up lasting two and a half hours. And we talked all about the health system and healthcare and being a leader and general business and in healthcare and what my thoughts were around leadership.

And we really hit it off. And at the end of that conversation, she encouraged me to apply for the role. And I, humbly declined, said, thank you very much, but I still just don't think so. But nevertheless, she was very persistent and just kept encouraging me to apply and I figured, okay, you know, I, I'll apply. And we'll just see what happens, but I was almost certain I would get rejected. Well, after I applied a few days later, I got a call from the board president and he said that they were interested in interviewing me. So then my mind progressed to. Okay, well, what's another interview going to hurt? know, all interview experience is good experience. So.

Bill Klaproth (Host): Why not? Let's follow it through.

Aidan Hettler: Yeah, so I had prepared myself for the interview. I put together this slide deck presentation and took what I knew about the organization, kind of framed their current state as I knew it as an external stakeholder.

And then used my view for leadership, which is servant leadership to kind of bridge the gap between the current state and where I perceived we could go in a future state. And it was really, it was a really great conversation that we had in my interview about servant leadership. We kind of defined that and how I envisioned embodying servant leadership for the people here and how that would respond to some of the needs that they had as a group of dedicated healthcare professionals.

And, evidently the interview, which was a very large panel interview. We had the whole board in there, which was five members and then all of our department heads. So it ended up being 17 people in the interview.

Host: Oh my.

Aidan Hettler: But it was, great. I mean, it lasted about an hour and a half. We walked through my presentation, had great discussions about, just managing people and relationships and things like that. And evidently they must've liked me and what I had to say. Because a year and a half later I have been serving faithfully as their CEO and it's a privilege every day to serve in this role.

Host: What a great story. So you obviously did work for the interview. So even in the back of your mind, you had to have a little inkling like, okay, I'm, well, let's see what happens here. I'm going to put work into this because you came prepared with a slide deck, you said, and long conversation. So at some point you might have said, maybe I'm starting to like this idea. Is that right?

Aidan Hettler: Oh, definitely. Well, it was interesting because my whole life, I feel like I've served my community in some way. I grew up volunteering alongside my grandparents and my parents. We were involved in the Lions mainly, and then I was part of a Leo club, which is underneath, the youth version of the Lions and and then in college, I served my community in various ways whether it's through, the housing and dining or Dean Student Leadership Council, et cetera.

So when I had moved to Julesburg, I had been looking for a way to get involved with this community and serve them. I would have never imagined that it would have been in this capacity. But yeah, as I started to think about this role, I thought, this is a fabulous opportunity to really try and make a big impact in this community and do something really good.

So I looked at it from that perspective and then I looked at it from the lens of my whole life I always enjoyed being a leader for academic activities or at work. And I knew when I was going through college that I wanted to get to a leadership position because I felt like I really care about understanding people and serving them and making sure that they're equipped and empowered to do their very best work.

So I felt like, this opportunity kind of aligned in that way as well. So two really big values for me, giving back to the community and being an empowering leader were checked off in this and I love being challenged by my work and learning new things all the time, and this job certainly presented that too. So yeah, like you mentioned, I started to think about it more and how it really aligned with who I felt I was at the time and who I am today and where I wanted to go. And it, did feel more like a natural fit, even though it was a quantum leap, you know, in my career trajectory,

Host: Right. Yeah. So ultimately when they offered you the job, why did you say yes? There had, you had to have some moment, like, am I really doing this? Am I really going to do this? This, I, this is not what I thought or prepared for. Am I really doing this? What made you say, ultimately say yes?

Aidan Hettler: Definitely. And I think you perfectly captured my internal dialogue. I think I just looked introspectively and said, I, think I can do this. One of the biggest things that they were needing was, so I'm the fifth CEO that they've had in five years.

Host: Oh,

Aidan Hettler: Or was at the time, you know, now we're outside of that timeframe, but the staff here and many of them have been here a long time. I think it really had some emotional trauma from going through so many different leaders and perhaps feeling abandoned. I don't think everyone felt that way, but that's a really hard thing to go through. So when I did receive my offer, I thought at minimum, I felt like I could be someone for these people to rely on and, work to really understand them and be a partner and support them.

And I knew that, forming these relationships with them would help me learn the things that I clearly didn't know about healthcare. And fortunately it has worked out that way. You know, I've formed great partnerships with my staff and they helped me fill in the gaps for what I didn't know.

So when that offer came in, I was hopeful about the journey that I thought I would be embarking on. And fortunately, it has come to fruition that way. So I decided to take the leap.

Bill Klaproth (Host): Take the leap.

Aidan Hettler: And it was a scary one cause I thought, this is a, we're the largest employer in the County. So, and we have 135 ish, give or take employees. It's always kind of fluctuating up and down and that's a lot of people who directly rely on this place for their income, for their livelihood, for supporting their families. And then indirectly, these people who work directly for us have partners and children and other family members that rely on this.

So the reach is so far. So I was concerned about, well, if I take the leap, there's a lot riding on this. This place has to succeed. And from a personal standpoint, don't think it was a selfish one; I thought, well, if I do this and this doesn't go well, how am I going to explain that on my resume if I had to go and find another job, someone's going to say, well duh kid, what on earth were you thinking? So, but nevertheless, I felt like it was the right fit for me, for what I could offer. And I, felt like I was hungry to learn what I didn't know. And I'm still learning every day. I think that's the beauty of this industry and this kind of job. Right?

Host: For sure. Absolutely.

Aidan Hettler: So, I ultimately landed on yes, accepting and a year and a half in, here we are.

Host: Yeah.

Aidan Hettler: And I think it's going really well, you know, of course there's bumps in the road, like any job and any adventure.

Host: Yeah. Well, let's talk about those bumps. What kind of challenges have you had and has your age presented any challenge at all?

Aidan Hettler: That's a great question, and people do ask that pretty often about the age. And age related challenges, I would say, have not come up. And I think that there are a few factors that kind of have led to that happening that way. The first is, I think we have a very unique staff here in that after the years of turmoil that they had with other leaders who were older and were supposedly bringing it all to the table, had been everywhere, done everything, would have the answers; I don't think that they felt heard, and I think that they were just ready to take on what was needed to advance this place, strengthen our organization, and grow it. And fortunately, when I took this job, they were ready to support me in learning what I needed to learn. And I told them from the get out, you know, I'm not going to be afraid to raise my hand and say, Hey, I'm so sorry. I have no idea what you're talking about. Can you please educate me on this? Can you please help me orient so I can help you effectively in making this decision? So all that being said, because they were hungry for this stability, for this challenge, for growth, for everything, and their willingness to share their knowledge with me; I think it led very organically to strong relational foundations that allow us to do really good work, regardless of my age.

Host: Right.

Aidan Hettler: I think another way that I built up some credibility with my staff is I don't make unilateral and independent decisions. I mean, of course, there are isolated instances where you have to, but I much prefer taking the approach of, Hey, we've got a big decision to make, let's involve all these pertinent people and stakeholders and let's get input.

Because if we all have discussion around a big decision, decide what way we're going to go together, and then act on that; whether the outcome is good, bad or otherwise, we reached that conclusion together.

Host: Yeah. It's not just top down leadership.

Aidan Hettler: Right, right. And that is so not my style.

Host: Yeah, well, you said you come from the school basically of servant leadership.

Aidan Hettler: Yeah, yeah.

Host: So, that would totally fit into that. For anybody that is like, what does that mean, servant leadership? Can you give us your thought or what that means to you?

Aidan Hettler: Yeah. In a nutshell, servant leadership means that I'm going to come to work every day, ready to stand next to and support my team and my staff. And I need to be a tool in their tool belt to do their very best work. So it's really about showing up as a leader and supporting your staff so that they can operate at the top of their capacity and capability.

And also be there as a backstop and working with them to help prevent common issues of burnout too. And, how do we work together to problem solve this so that it's not all on one person's shoulders.

Host: Yeah.

Aidan Hettler: And I think there's different interpretations of what a servant leader is and what that means, but that's what I've with me in this role.

Host: Right. Okay. Well, thank you for sharing that. And it just makes sense when you say you came in trying to set basically a foundation, relationships, not coming in with somebody. I know all the answers. This is the way we're going, people. Coming as somebody that's going to stand side by side with people. Let me hear your ideas. Let me hear what you're thinking. We'll make this decision together. Let me hear you. Let me be that someone that you said, someone you can depend on. Somebody who's going to be here for you. It sounds like after four other CEOs, that's what they were looking for in basically the characteristics that you possess.

And then, hey, Aidan, we'll teach you the business of being a hospital. We just need that leader that we can depend on that's going to lead us in the right direction and treat us with respect and not have top down leadership. Would that be a fair statement?

Aidan Hettler: I think that's a beautiful summary of how this went.

Host: Wow. This is so cool. I love it. So, thank you for sharing your challenges. You said, listen, I'm, going to raise my hand if I don't know anything. I'm going to look to you for education. Has your age then also been a benefit that you're not coming in with 20 years of experience and this is how we do it, people? You're like, hey, let's do it together. So has your age ultimately benefited you as well?

Aidan Hettler: I think it has, and I brought this up and I've had the fortunate opportunity to have a couple of these conversations and written interviews and a couple other podcasts. And I have said that being young and not knowing everything has been an advantage. And I know on its face, that sounds really unconventional and would fly in the face of everything you would want and be looking for right? But I think what it really comes down to, and not that I, know all about leadership by any means.

But I think a large part of how leaders conduct themselves is, are you willing to learn what you don't know? And even if you know what you know, are you willing and open to receiving feedback or additional knowledge that may change what you know to meet the moment, right? So in that same sense, because I didn't know anything about healthcare, I had to take that fresh perspective.

And I didn't have any bias towards previous decisions that were made or, why did this here 10 years ago or so on and so forth. And if you ask my board, the board that hired me, they'll tell you that was a huge part of why they hired me. They liked the fact that I wasn't going to bring in and say, well, back at X hospital, we did it this way.

And this is the only way. And, and there's, it's not that there's no validity to experience, right? There's a ton of value there. But experience shouldn't necessarily equate to rigidity and decision making. I think you need to be dynamic and pragmatic with your approach and meet the needs of the people that you're serving, whether that's your staff or the greater community or so on.

So yeah, in that way, I do think being young has been an advantage for me. Um, and I'll say in, in another sense that I've been really fortunate because of my age, I've had an outpouring from many seasoned leaders across Colorado and across the country too, saying, Hey, you know, if you need somebody to bounce ideas off of, if you need someone to call, if you need this, other CEOs, COOs, executive level people it's been amazing building this network of very capable and knowledgeable people so that when I have been stuck, in a certain situation, I can call and say, Hey, I'm thinking this. What do you think? Or should I think about this differently? So.

Host: So great to hear.

Aidan Hettler: Yeah, naturally, I've kind of been able to forge external pathways, and it's been really great.

Host: Well, our hospital industry is known for having great mentors and people leading the way. That philosophy is you climb up the ladder, reach behind, and pull the person behind you up with you. I mean, that's what this industry is all about. So happy to hear that. So, Aidan, you're in a rural hospital. We know that our rural hospitals in America are under distress. What are the biggest challenging challenges that you're facing at Sedgwick County Health Center?

Aidan Hettler: Yeah the challenges are large and multifaceted, so they range from local issues all the way up to federal level issues. So, locally, it's difficult to find the licensed and trained staff that you need to run a medical facility. And part of the trouble with finding these people is the places that they have to receive the education and training to become licensed is not close to here.

You know, at the closest, we've got nursing schools within an hour. But you know, for a medical school you're two and a half hours away, for a radiology technologist training program, you're also two and a half hours away. So those kinds of issues are difficult, finding people who possess the training and skills needed to do this.

And then even if you find people who are willing, getting them connected or the resources needed to go and get the education. Then after they get the education, get them to come back is pretty challenging. And fortunately, we've got some very ambitious local leaders at our regional junior college that I've been working with.

We're trying to overcome some of those by seeing if we can do like a remote nursing learning program. And then of course they'd have to travel for clinics and stuff like that. But I think that there are leaders who are willing and able to meet the moment in that regard. So we're working on it, right?

We're getting creative, we're lacing up our bootstraps, and we're getting to work. And then other challenges range from, the healthcare industry has a lot of challenges of its own, whether it's regulatory challenges and things like that. And really the regulatory challenges are interesting because a lot of times regulations are put out to advance how we deliver care, right?

You know, nobody makes a health care bill saying, boy, we'd really love to screw up how care is delivered today. So I think policymakers come in with these good intentions to solve an issue, but they don't understand, they don't always understand the boots on the ground and the impact that that's going to have.

So when regulatory mandates come down that require, say for example, that we report on social determinants of health for a specific payer group and in order for us to do that, we need to locate a person within our organization to do that. So you have to shuffle around job responsibilities and add on to someone's already heaping plate.

And then after you identify who's going to do that, how are you going to train them to do that? And then after they're trained to do that and they're actually doing the job, how are they going to flex to meet the regulatory changes as they come after the initial requirements came out because regulations change all the time and they improve.

But meeting that moment can be really difficult in rural because again, you come down to the people issue of we don't have that many people. And then if you do have to make a new position and bring someone on, you have to first get lucky enough to find someone who is a good fit to do that. And then you have to take on the cost burden of doing that.

And we usually do not get any reimbursement for meeting these regulatory requirements. So a lot of health care leaders talk about the increase in administrative burden of health care, and that's a real thing. We have these regulations come out, they want data so that they can make decisions, they being policy makers and other interested parties.

But that puts a financial exacerbation on the health system because we have to put out more money to hire another person and then everybody gripes about, well, why is the cost of health care so high? Um, it's a really interesting, and I'm not griping about it, it's just, it's the cyclical process that I think when we make policy and when we advocate for policy, people really need to sit down and say if we ask health systems to do this, what is the implication?

How are they going to find the right person, educate that person, pay for that person? And how are we going to make sure we're getting what we really want?

Host: Right.

Aidan Hettler: So that's one of the other challenges.

Host: So you talked about staffing issues, geography, location and then trying to get these people to come back and then regulatory challenges. You mentioned administration, administrative burden, all of these regulatory challenges put on you. Is there any other main challenge you're facing? And then I'd like to know your innovative approach to addressing these challenges.

I have

Aidan Hettler: some approaches for some of the challenges and some of them, unfortunately, are a little bit beyond what we're able to do locally, but one of the other challenges that's pretty prime is how we conduct ourselves in healthcare in terms of finance and payment for services rendered is not like any other industry, anywhere. And I always like to frame this conversation with people by saying, if you go to the grocery store and you see a gallon of milk for 5 dollars and you get to the checkout, what do you think you're going to pay for the milk? 5 dollars, right?

Host: Mhm.

Aidan Hettler: Well, only in healthcare are you going to get to the checkout, and then instead of paying your 5 dollars, because you're the person paying for the good or the service, you're going to say, well, actually I'm going to give you $2.50. And the cashier is going to have to take it because they don't have another alternative. And that's what happens in healthcare. So we provide services, they're done, they're, they've already been given out. We've paid for the personnel to do that. And then we submit a claim to get paid for it.

And you don't get all of what you billed for. Which is crazy. No other industry works that way. And if you told anybody, Hey, I've got a great business proposition for you. You're going to do all this work because you have to, and morally it's the right thing to do. And then when you go to get paid for it, you're going to get about 50 percent and you better like it.

Host: Right.

Aidan Hettler: In rural health, especially, it's hard because we're so small. We don't have negotiating power. So when we say, Hey, this isn't really fair. On a payer side of things, we're told, well, if you don't like it, then we can make you out of network or, you, don't have to accept us or our insurance, which isn't the right thing to do for the patient.

And it's not the right thing to do for the health system either. So then, we're unfortunately stuck in this scenario where you just have to accept that you're not going to get paid everything that you bill out for services that you provide. And that's not only a frustrating problem, but we talk about the jeopardy of health systems across the country, particularly in rural health.

And people wonder why, you know, why are these institutions faltering? And why are they not, why don't we have money to reinvest in our aging facilities? Why do we not have money to invest in our people and educate them further, or, get them certified in this, that, or the other, or pay them more what they're worth. And you just can't.

Host: Is that what scares you most?

Aidan Hettler: I worry a lot about if we don't right the ship, financially, we're going to see a lot more medical deserts across the country, and that's not a statement, that's said to sensationalized anything. That's reality. I think the numbers is around 26 hospitals in the state of Colorado, rural hospitals are operating in the red right now.

Host: Mm

Aidan Hettler: Anybody who knows anything about business, if you are operating in the red, you're not going to make it. So without major reforms and quickly, we're headed towards a dangerous place in healthcare. And it's really concerning because people don't really understand how woven in rural health care is the fabric of general society.

So these health care systems by and large across the country that find themselves in rural areas are almost always the largest employer and they are critical to supporting the agricultural economies that are the cornerstone of these rural communities. And this agriculture is what drives a gigantic sector of the American economy and also provides us with food security, security for fuel sources and biofuels, you name it.

And if we don't make sure that rural health systems are taken care of, they ultimately are going to falter and close, and they will, and it's again, not an exacerbation of the reality here. The local economies are going to collapse without rural health. If all of these people were to lose their jobs and the people who are involved in the agriculture sector don't have access to health care to keep them healthy and take care of them, when unfortunate accidents occur, it's going to cause a huge problem. And I don't think that people fully understand those intricacies the way that they should, because

Host: It's all connected.

Aidan Hettler: It is all connected and the implications are so great. When we talk about national security and defense budget spending, this is a huge part of it. You know, If we have a huge disruptions in our supply chains from the agricultural sector, we're going to be hurting in a variety of ways. We already have food insecurity issues that would become significantly worse.

We talk about people not being able to pay for fuel prices at the cost that they are now, that would get even higher. We talk about not having resources that we need for our military and defense, that would get worse. So it really is an overarching problem that I think a lot of people overlook.

Host: Yeah, when you talk to other rural hospital CEOs, are these generally your discussions that you're having?

Aidan Hettler: Not particularly. And the reason why is I think we would be beating a dead horse, in our regard.

Host: So you all share the same challenges, the staffing, administrative burden, payment for services rendered. This is kind of, we all know this, and you're, all rural hospitals, not all, but generally, as I said, a lot of them are in distress. These are the known issues or challenges, is that, is that right?

Aidan Hettler: Yeah, they are the known issues and challenges. You know, everywhere's facing the staffing issues. Everywhere's facing the financial implications and yeah.

Host: From your position, what is the cure for these things, especially payment for services rendered? That seems like it's the big one when you're doing the work and you're only getting paid a percentage of what that work costs, that's difficult. So do you have a thought, a plan uh, an innovative solution for this? what are you thinking about this?

Aidan Hettler: Yeah, I, mean, not that I know all the answers or have the single answer, but I mean, right now I'm in a Master's for Healthcare Transformation course at the University of Texas. And we talk all about value based healthcare and what the transition arc looks like for moving the U.S. healthcare industry from our current fee for service models to value based healthcare that really drives meaningful and valuable outcomes for patients and those relying on our healthcare industry.

While I feel that we need to transition there in the long term, I don't know that we would be able to pivot to that fast enough to ease some of the issues that we're experiencing right now. So in the immediate term, I feel like there needs to be state and federal level support for health systems that are experiencing pay inequities at the hands of payer sources and insurance companies.

Host: How do you go about doing that? How do you go about getting in front of state and federal officials for the support and insurance companies?

Aidan Hettler: Yeah to get in front of your officials, it's like, everyone preaches in the political sphere. If you want to talk to your representative, call them, email them. That's one of the beauties of being in a democracy. We have these people that represent us and we can reach out to them and can get connected to them.

And we must do so in order to make our voices heard about these challenges. And then for the insurance companies, it's hard because in the way our current system is structured, we need them to administer the services that they do. And, I'm not sure if you've ever asked someone if they'd like to take a pay cut.

But typically people don't really want to do that. So I think it would have to be a productive and mediated conversation between the two parties involved. So those who provide the care, those who pay for the care and government official to some level. And it's going to take some give and take in order to make this happen, because the unfortunate thing is, and the ironic thing is, if the payers do not want to make any changes to their current methodology and how they are working with us, they're ultimately strangling the source of their money anyway, because they can't function without the people who actually provide the services, right?

Host: Yeah.

Aidan Hettler: So I don't have a perfect answer for that. Other than I think it's going to take a lot of collaboration and a lot of work and a lot of effort from a lot of parties to say, how do we work together and make this right?

Bill Klaproth (Host): Have you, in your year and a half there, have you started to cultivate those relationships with your state representatives?

Aidan Hettler: Yes.

Bill Klaproth (Host): And insurance companies? I'm sure that you've made those calls and started those relationships to share your concerns and

what you feel is not right with what's happening.

Aidan Hettler: Actually for the insurance companies, no. And the reason why is because if I were to call as the CEO of the small health system in Julesburg, I don't think that they are going to want to take the time to talk to us about that. Now, while I said, I haven't personally called many of my colleagues have, and they've been met with that kind of response, which is why.

Host: Well, that's disheartening.

Aidan Hettler: It is. And, logistically, you can kind of understand why that approach would be taken. You know, we're small potatoes to them and to them it doesn't matter if we're in their network or not, right? But to the people we serve and the people who have those peers, it does really matter. So I hope that that changes, but I have engaged on the political side of things with our state governments and fortunately through collaboration with the Colorado Hospital Association and the Eastern Plains Healthcare Consortium, which Sedgwick County Health Center is a member of, we do engage with our policymakers through those channels and through the American Hospital Association as well, of course to engage with these people and, initiate that dialogue for how do we make meaningful change.

Host: Well, it sounds like you're doing what needs to be done. You're forming those critical relationships. You're sharing your knowledge, your information, your experience from what's happening on the ground where you are, which if you don't get out there and advocate for yourself, how are these people going to know? So it certainly sounds like you're doing what needs to be done. Before we wrap up, Aidan, this is primarily a health care marketing podcast. Do you have any thoughts on marketing? How do you market your hospital in a rural setting? What type of marketing do you do? Do you do service line marketing or social media marketing or content marketing or all those different advertising? What do you do there?

Aidan Hettler: Definitely. So at the high level, you know, we engage in marketing channels through various social media platforms. We do Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, we have a TikTok account oh, and then also of course, traditional sources like the newspaper we use as well. So yes, we market through those channels and then we also market more specifically about specific service lines like you mentioned.

And so we'll have specific advertisements for our rehab department, our mental health service lines, our primary care, our lab and imaging departments, all kinds of different things like that. And we have a wonderful marketing director who does a lot of work engaging all those channels.

And she also, I'm just thinking about this one too. We also work with a couple of local radio stations. We put ads out there as well. And we, try to get in front of as many people as possible. That's the whole purpose of marketing, right? If they don't know what you have, then they won't know to come.

So, I would say we take a very, very active posture in all those different mediums to try and reach people across different ages because the communities that we serve range across the lifespan, from, young adolescents all the way through older adults, in geriatric style care or something. So, we try to make sure that our approach is conducive to all the ways that our patients would consume information. And that's always changing too.

Host: Yeah. Yeah. Well, interesting. Even in a rural community, you have a TikTok channel, which I think is great. So you are trying to cover all bases for everyone in your community. So, before we wrap up, Aidan, and thank you so much for your time. For someone that wants to follow in your footsteps, and we do need young leaders in healthcare, what's your advice?

Aidan Hettler: Yeah. I am a huge supporter of young people who want to make an impact kind of getting out there and networking and exploring what opportunities exist in rural America. And I say this as a person who had not ever really considered what rural America could offer me in terms of career, in terms of lifestyle, in terms of overall fulfillment but rural America has a lot to offer, a lot to enjoy.

And if you want to make an impact that can be felt every day; working in rural America is a great place to be because you're not a number in a large corporate system here. And that's perfectly fine. You know, I worked in a large corporate system and I enjoyed it very much. But I really enjoy coming to work every day, knowing every single person on my team and knowing that we're serving our friends and neighbors.

So I encourage young people to consider moving to rural America where these communities are looking for people with skill sets from trades and from colleges with college degrees rather, and need the skills to help them, continue these great organizations that they've had as cornerstones of their community for a long time.

And then, for young people too, I always advocate or I've been so fortunate to have the mentors that I've had since I started this role. And since I started my career, you know, reach out to the people who have been in the industry for a long time. They more often than not want to share everything that they've learned with you and make you a strong leader in your own right.

And that's something that, I mean, it's just invaluable. You can't buy those kinds of experiences. And I really treasure the relationships that I have with my mentors as well. They're excellent people and people that I would consider not just mentors, but friends and, and dear colleagues too.

Host: Yeah. That's very well said. Encouraging young people to come to rural destinations because you're needed in health care, not only in administration like yourself, but doctors, nurses, pharmacists, even like risk managers, supply chain people, purchasing agents, all those things definitely are needed.

Aidan, thank you so much for your time. Anything else you want to add before we wrap up?

Aidan Hettler: I don't think so. I appreciate the opportunity to share a little bit about my experience and talk about my health system. Thank you for what you and your team do, Bill.

Host: Well, thank you, Aidan. And I know if anybody wants to get a hold of you, any uh, person that wants to pick your brain and get advice, I know you'll be available for that, for sure. So thank you uh, so much for your time, Aidan. I really appreciate it.

Aidan Hettler: Thank you. Thank you very much.

Bill Klaproth (Host): You bet. And once again, that is Aidan Hettler. And please join us at SHSMD Connections 2024. It's coming up in October in Denver. Colorado, Aidan, you should come to that. It's right in your state. And if you found this podcast helpful, please share it on your social channels and please hit the subscribe or follow button to get every episode and to access our full podcast library for other topics of interest to you, visit SHSMD.org/podcasts. This has been a production of DoctorPodcasting. I'm Bill Klaproth. See ya.