239: UNC Health: The care variation reduction story you need to hear

The cost and quality of care can vary dramatically—even within the same health system. This has real ramifications for patients and clinicians, not to mention system outcomes. But reducing unwarranted variation in clinical care is much easier said than done. In 2019, UNC Health launched a care redesign office to take on the job. They identified 24 sources of variation to target. And their efforts were so successful that five years later, it was time to set their sights on a new list of targets—this time with a partner. In this episode, host Abby Burns invites Cyndi Hall, former Executive Director of Care Redesign at UNC Health, and Dr. Larry Marks, Executive Medical Director for Care Redesign, Professor of Radiation Oncology, and Assistant Dean of Organizational Health and Quality at UNC Health and School of Medicine, to break down the last five years of their care design work. They share how they selected which clinical areas to target, stories of what it means when this work is successful, and through it all, underscore the role of true change agents of this work: the clinicians themselves. Note: Cyndi Hall is now Senior Advisor for Healthcare Plus Solutions Group where she is translating her expertise in care variation reduction to help provider organizations improve the clinician onboarding process. Reducing clinical variation is something Advisory Board is actively researching in 2025. If CVR has been on your organization’s docket and you have best practices to share, reach out to us at [email protected] with the subject line “Sharing our CVR work” to get in touch with our research team. Links: 4 common pitfalls in care standardization — and how to overcome them Care variation reduction metric picklist UNC Health | Changing Lives for the Better Healthcare Leadership Training & Consulting | Healthcare Plus Solutions Obtaining Imaging Cost and Quality Information in Femoroacetabular Impingement: The Patient Experience - PMC Insights from the 2026 CMS Advance Notice How Steindler Orthopedic improved joint replacements with digital surgical technologies A transcript of this episode as well as more information and resources can be found on RadioAdvisory.advisory.com.