Deepak Sadogopan, MS, MHCDS

Our class is an incredibly well selected and closely knit group that is constantly seeking ways to partner and collaborate both within and outside the program. I don’t think any other program would offer this unique combination of intellectual challenge and cohort relationships.

Please tell us about yourself, Deepak.

I serve as the Senior VP of Value Based Care for Providence Health System. Providence is the second largest not-for-profit integrated health system in the US, covering 7 west coast states, serving over 5 Million lives, with $25B in annual revenue.  I am part of the system’s Population Health executive leadership team, and am responsible for developing and implementing a scalable transition from fee-for-service (FFS) to alternative delivery models.

I am also a dad of two teenagers, active workout and yoga enthusiast, amateur golfer and love all kinds of music.

Why did you decide to take the MHCDS program?  

I am deeply influenced by the inherent dysfunction of a healthcare system that touches each of our lives in the most intimate way possible, and yet seems impervious to change.

At a personal level, I was inspired to contribute to public health by the sad passing of both my parents at a relatively young age due to debilitating health conditions that could have been better managed with the right care.  That personal experience motivates me to serve as a change agent to enable sustainable and equitable access to healthcare.

Why did you choose MHCDS over another type of master’s program (e.g., MBA, MPH, MMM)? 

I sought a program that specifically incorporated cross-functional integration of content across economics, finance, operations, strategy and public health. Honestly, I only found two programs that matched that need, and only MHCDS had the flexibility I needed to integrate academic work into a busy work schedule.

What has been the best part of the program for you – so far? 

The cohort - hands down. It is the best resource that the program offers you. Don’t get me wrong, the professors are world class, the materials are thought provoking, and the learning environment is energizing for sure. 

However, in my role as a change agent in my health system, I am constantly confronted with difficult decisions that involve situations like aligning compensation models for specialists or surgeons so that they are adequately incented to drive the appropriate practice behaviors in emerging care delivery models. In this program, speaking to a specialist, and running ideas by them as a sounding board, is literally one zoom call away.

It is an incredibly well selected and closely knit group that is constantly seeking ways to partner and collaborate both within and outside the program. I don’t think any other program would offer this unique combination of intellectual challenge and cohort relationships.

How have you used the skills/knowledge you have gained so far? Do you have a real-life example? 

I use these skills and resources every day. I consistently go back to materials in finance, economics, operations and now population health, as I seek to develop and scale the right change management approach for my enterprise.

As one of many examples, I was charged with choosing the right organization-wide metric (if you consider that this is a 120K person company and this one metric would be tied to the variable compensation of the entire structure, that is actually a pretty big deal)  that would appropriately measure the progress we were making as a health system in the implementation of value-based care programs. I leveraged our case discussions and learnings from economics and finance to develop a hybrid performance indicator that measures net yield relative to Medicare, in combination with both growth in membership and contribution margin at the program level. I then leveraged learnings in General Management & Operations as I worked with each regional executive team to collaboratively develop targets and communicate them to obtain general buy-in. Finally the learning experience in organizational change management came in handy as I sought to design a complex organizational structure to align implementation and accountability with strategy. 

Is there anything else that you would tell a friend or colleague who was considering the MHCDS program? 

If you are a person who sees the tremendous opportunity to make healthcare affordable, friendly and accessible, and are motivated to contribute to that cause - I don't think you will find a better learning and supportive experience to catalyze your journey.