We All “Cry” About Change, but Stop Holding On to What Doesn’t Work

• 01 Independent practices are already losing ground
• 02 Doing nothing is still a decision
• 03 Stop protecting broken processes
• 04 Innovation does not mean chasing every new idea
• 05 Adoption requires leadership
• 06 Independence must be operated, not defended emotionally
• 07 Innovate. Adopt. Implement. Change.

People do not like change.

Psychologically, we prefer what is familiar. We overvalue what we already have, underestimate the cost of maintaining the status quo, and focus more heavily on what could go wrong than what could improve.

In a medical practice, that often sounds like:

• “Our staff will never adopt it.”
• “Our patients will not use it.”
• “We have always done it this way.”
• “Now is not the right time.”
• “Let’s revisit it next year.”

Then next year arrives with the same staffing problems, billing leakage, disconnected technology, shrinking margins, and unfinished initiatives.

Change creates discomfort. But holding on to an operating model that no longer works creates consequences.

Independent practices are already losing ground

The decline of independent medicine is not theoretical.

In 2012, 60.1% of physicians worked in private practice. By 2024, that number had fallen to 42.2%, according to the American Medical Association.

The Physicians Advocacy Institute reports that 82% of physicians were employed by hospitals or corporate entities as of January 2026. That included 59.7% employed by hospitals and 22.3% employed by corporate organizations such as private equity firms and health insurers.

Private equity acquisitions of physician practices have also expanded. A JAMA Health Forum analysis noted that private equity firms acquired approximately 75 physician-owned practices in 2012. By 2021, that figure had grown to nearly 500.

Not every practice sale is unwanted. Private equity, hospital systems, and corporate owners can provide capital, infrastructure, and administrative support.

But many independent practices do not sell from a position of strength. They reach a point where rising costs, reimbursement pressure, staffing shortages, weak systems, and administrative complexity make independence increasingly difficult.

They did not necessarily choose transformation. They delayed it until someone else transformed the practice for them.

Doing nothing is still a decision

Practice leaders often treat change as the risky option.

Replacing an underperforming vendor feels risky. Implementing a new system feels risky. Redesigning workflows feels risky. Launching a new service line feels risky. Holding staff and partners accountable feels uncomfortable.

But maintaining a weak operating model also carries risk:

• Revenue continues leaking
• Staff remain buried in manual work
• Patients struggle to access support
• Poor vendors remain embedded
• Technology becomes more fragmented
• Costs rise faster than productivity
• Leadership spends more time managing recurring problems
• The practice becomes less competitive and less independent

The familiar option is not automatically the safe option.

Sometimes it is simply the risk you have become accustomed to.

Stop protecting broken processes

Every practice has legacy systems, vendor relationships, and workflows that once made sense.

The problem is not that they were adopted. The problem is continuing to protect them after they stop working.

“This is how we have always done it” is not an operating strategy.

If a process requires constant workarounds, evaluate it. If a vendor repeatedly underperforms, address it. If staff spend hours on work that can be automated or reassigned, redesign it. If patients need support between visits, determine how to provide it. If revenue is being lost inside existing workflows, identify and correct the leakage.

Loyalty to a broken process does not protect the practice. It protects the problem.

Innovation does not mean chasing every new idea

Change should not be reckless.

Medical practices should not adopt every new platform, AI product, service line, or operating trend simply because it is receiving attention. Innovation without diligence

can create more cost, work, and fragmentation.

Responsible change requires a business process:

• 1. Define the problem.
• 2. Quantify its clinical, operational, and financial impact.
• 3. Evaluate available solutions.
• 4. Select the right operating model.
• 5. Assign executive and operational ownership.
• 6. Implement with clear workflows and accountability.
• 7. Measure performance.
• 8. Adjust when the data says something is not working.

Innovation is not buying technology.

It is improving how the practice operates and cares for patients.

Adoption requires leadership

Change fails when leadership announces a new initiative and delegates the entire responsibility to someone without the authority to execute it.

Physicians and executives must explain why the change matters, connect it to patient care and the practice’s future, and remain visibly involved.

Staff need to understand:

• What problem is being solved
• How the new model affects their work
• What responsibilities are changing
• What support they will receive
• How success will be measured
• Who will resolve problems during implementation

Resistance should be heard, but it should not automatically control the decision.

Employees closest to the work often identify legitimate implementation risks. Leadership should use that feedback to improve the plan rather than abandon every initiative that produces discomfort.

Independence must be operated, not defended emotionally

Independent practices often say they want to remain independent.

That requires more than rejecting acquisition offers. It requires building an organization capable of sustaining independence.

Practices must improve revenue capture, modernize operations, strengthen patient access, adopt useful technology, develop service lines, control costs, recruit effectively, and remove unnecessary administrative work.

Independence is not preserved by holding on to the past.

It is preserved by building an operating model that can compete in the future.

Innovate. Adopt. Implement. Change.

Medical practices do not need to change everything at once. They do need to stop allowing fear, habit, and internal politics to protect what is clearly not working.

Start with the most expensive operational problem. Assign ownership. Evaluate the options. Make a decision. Implement it properly. Measure the result.

Then move to the next priority.

We can all “cry” about change. That is human.

But do not become part of the problem by defending broken systems until financial pressure, a corporate buyer, or a hospital system makes the decision for you.

ConnectedCare Advisory Group helps medical practices identify operational and ancillary-service opportunities, evaluate vendors, structure implementation, and build accountable operating models.

The goal is not change for the sake of change.

It is helping practices remain strong enough to choose their own future.

Innovate. Adopt. Implement. Change.

Change the operating model before someone else does

ConnectedCare Advisory Group helps practices identify operational and ancillary-service opportunities, evaluate vendors, structure implementation, and build accountable operating models.