The State of Healthcare: Wyoming Healthcare Leaders’ Perspectives
Join ACHE of the Rockies for a complimentary education session at the Wyoming Hospital Association Annual Meeting.
In this issue
Side Articles
Calendar of Events
Partner with The Resource Exchange (TRE) to support Gathering Time, a monthly social program for young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The health care environment is constantly changing, and provider organizations must adapt to survive and thrive. Learn from your peers as they share approaches that were successful, as well as those that impeded the change process. Save the date for our upcoming panel in Fort Collins. Join us on December 9 at Maggiano’s Little Italy from 6–9 p.m. for our annual holiday celebration. This event is open to members and non-members alike. Enjoy an evening of great company, festive bites, and a little seasonal sparkle.Volunteer with ACHE of the Rockies at TRE’s Gathering Time
ACHE Breakfast at Colorado Hospital Association (CHA) Annual Meeting 2026
Innovation and the Changing Face of Healthcare
ACHE of the Rockies Holiday Event
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2026 Fall Newsletter
Letter from the President
Building a Stronger Community of Belonging
Each year, ACHE of the Rockies reviews and updates its strategic plan, focusing on how we can provide meaningful value, education, and community to you, our members. This year, our chapter took time to reflect thoughtfully on who we are, what we value, and how we can foster a greater sense of belonging for every member.
As a local chapter of the American College of Healthcare Executives, we also considered how our values align with those of ACHE. As part of its strategic planning, ACHE updated its fourth core value from Diversity and Inclusion to Community. This presented our chapter with a difficult and important question: Should ACHE of the Rockies make the same change to align with ACHE, and would this updated language authentically reflect what we value and aspire to create for our members?
ACHE defines this value as:
Community: “We foster engagement and learning where the richness of each of us and all of us is celebrated and respected, creating a community of belonging.”
I am deeply proud to lead the empathetic, thoughtful, and wise leaders who serve you on the ACHE of the Rockies Board of Directors. We had candid conversations about what making this change, or choosing to remain the same, would communicate to our members. We carefully considered what we truly value, what we want our chapter to represent, and the kind of professional community we aspire to create.
After candid and thoughtful discussion, we determined that Community authentically reflects the chapter we are committed to building and approved it as our fourth core value, bringing ACHE of the Rockies into alignment with ACHE.
This change is intentional. It reflects our belief that a professional association should be an inclusive and welcoming community where members form meaningful relationships, learn from different experiences and perspectives, contribute their talents, and feel seen, respected, and supported. By embracing varied perspectives, learning from the different ways people experience the world, and approaching our work and relationships with cultural humility, we deepen our understanding of ourselves, one another, and the communities we serve.
To be clear, adopting this broader language does not diminish our commitment to diversity, equity, or inclusion. Those principles remain essential to building a strong, welcoming, and representative chapter. Rather, Community expresses what we hope to create through that commitment: a professional home where every member is valued and has the opportunity to connect, contribute, and belong.
Living this value requires us to create meaningful ways for members to participate, connect, and grow, regardless of their career stage, professional role, organization, background, or location. It also challenges us to look beyond who is already at the table and consider whose voices, experiences, and leadership can make our chapter stronger.
We are already putting this commitment into practice by creating more opportunities for healthcare leaders in rural communities, military-connected members, and students preparing to enter the field. I am also honored by our partnerships with the National Association of Latino Healthcare Executives (NALHE) and the National Association of Health Services Executives (NAHSE). Our collaborative events have brought together leaders with a wide range of experiences and perspectives, strengthened professional relationships, and enriched our healthcare leadership community.
I also recognize that this change may prompt a range of thoughts, feelings, and questions. It did for us as well, and those perspectives helped shape our conversations. Your voice matters, and my door is open. If you would like to share your thoughts or continue the conversation, please reach out to me at [email protected].
Thank you for being part of our community and for helping us shape what it can become.
Julia Lamb, MHA
President, ACHE of the Rockies
Message from your Colorado Regent
Since moving to Colorado in 2022, trail running has become one of my favorite pursuits. After more than 20 years as a sea-level road runner, I had to adapt to technical terrain, snow and ice, and the changing demands of age. Strava and my Garmin use artificial intelligence (AI) to help me interpret these variables and understand how each workout may influence future performance. I not only enjoy the running but also the cycle of reviewing the data, reflecting on the experience, and adapting my approach. That cycle—sustained engagement, reflection, and application—is the essence of immersive learning. For healthcare leaders, it is essential because complex challenges cannot be mastered through information alone. I saw that same cycle during recent orientations for incoming MBA and MHA students at two Denver-area graduate programs. I was invited to speak about the value of an advanced degree and the perseverance required to balance school with work, family, and unexpected challenges. Faculty emphasized that communication, planning, and collaboration make those challenges more manageable—and pledged their support. As the Colorado Regent for the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE), I encouraged students to view ACHE as another source of community, resources, and career guidance. Immersive learning is not solitary; it is strengthened by people who help learners persist, reflect, and apply what they learn. Graduate education also has changed since I matriculated in the mid-1990s. A traditional residential experience was possible for me through financial aid, part-time work, and cooperative housing. Many students today pursue graduate degrees while working full time and managing significant family responsibilities. Programs have responded with virtual courses, explicit expectations for engagement, and policies governing AI use. AI can help students organize ideas and clarify a position, but it should not replace literature review, critical thinking, or the work of developing and defending a research question or business case. Today’s immersive graduate experience requires learners to integrate career demands, academic rigor, collaboration, and evolving technology. Guardrails are part of developing sound judgment. That week, I had an immersive learning experience of my own at the ACHE Denver Cluster on AI. Although I was already an active AI user, I had not fully understood what responsible deployment requires in a complex healthcare system. The central lesson was governance: leaders need a clear process to evaluate evidence and capabilities, engage the right stakeholders, define risk tolerance, and decide whether to build, buy, pilot, or decline a solution. This discipline matters when attractive products outpace the evidence behind them. It also challenges a simple division between “financial” and “clinical” risk, because nearly every healthcare function ultimately affects patients. Administrative applications may be a reasonable starting point, but leaders must still consider access, equity, privacy, workforce experience, and trust. Tools that influence diagnosis or care delivery warrant even greater scrutiny. The session also showed the value of learning with leaders who brought different perspectives and plans for AI. It left me wondering how our health system’s intended uses in 2026 would compare with its reality in 2029—when many of the students I met will be applying their MHA and MBA training to real-world challenges. These experiences suggest several ways healthcare executives can make immersive learning part of their leadership practice: For example, a health system considering an AI tool could begin with a 90-day pilot in a high-volume administrative workflow, such as categorizing claim denials, assembling supporting documentation, and drafting appeals for human review. Leaders could establish baseline measures for time, accuracy, and user experience; engage operations, privacy, compliance, and frontline staff; require human review of every output; and monitor results throughout the pilot. The team would then reflect on what worked, adapt the workflow and guardrails, and decide whether to scale, revise, or stop the initiative. In this way, implementation becomes an immersive learning cycle rather than a one-time technology decision. By 2029, I hope I am still racing on mountain trails and adapting to the regulatory, economic, and technological realities confronting healthcare—perhaps with an AI agent or two helping me reach my goals. More importantly, I hope I continue to learn in ways that require engagement, reflection, and application. Immersive learning does more than expose leaders to new ideas. It develops the judgment to interpret change, adapt responsibly, and act with purpose—whether on a mountain trail, in a classroom, or across a health system. Tina Slee, FACHEFrom Experience to Judgment: The Value of Immersive Learning
Immersion as a Path to Judgment
From Immersion to Leadership Practice
ACHE Colorado Regent
Message from your Wyoming Regent
Greetings, Chapter,
As summer winds down and our attention turns to a full slate of fall programming, I wanted to share something I am genuinely proud of: the results of ACHE’s 2026 Chapter Member Needs Survey, and what they tell us about where ACHE of the Rockies stands today.
The short version is this: when our members show up, they leave satisfied. The longer version is where I need your help.
Where We Are Excelling
Members who attended one of our chapter education events in the past year rated their experience an average of 4.61 out of 5, well above the national average of 4.47, and a meaningful jump from our own 4.46 in 2025. Networking events told the same story: a 4.55 average satisfaction rating, ahead of the 4.47 national mark and a strong improvement over our 4.32 last year. Our overall chapter satisfaction score of 4.02 is right in line with chapters nationally, and it climbed from 3.74 just last year.
I want to be direct about what this means: when we bring you a program, a speaker, or a networking opportunity, we are delivering something that measures up to, and in places exceeds, what ACHE members are experiencing across the country. That is a credit to the volunteer leaders and committee members who plan these events, often around already full schedules.
Where We Have Work to Do
Here is the part that keeps me up at night a little: only 35% of you attended a chapter education event this year, compared to 52% nationally. Only 28% attended a networking event, compared to 37% nationally. And two-thirds of respondents told us they are only somewhat or completely unfamiliar with what our chapter actually offers.
Put plainly, the quality is there. The awareness and access are not, at least not for everyone. That is a solvable problem, and I would rather hear it from you directly than guess at the answer.
How ACHE of the Rockies Compares to National
| 2026 Measure | ACHE of the Rockies | National (All Chapters) |
How We Compare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall chapter satisfaction (1–5) | 4.02 | 4.02 | Tied |
| Satisfaction, education events (1–5) | 4.61 | 4.47 | Ahead |
| Satisfaction, networking events (1–5) | 4.55 | 4.47 | Ahead |
| Attended an education event | 35% | 52% | Behind |
| Attended a networking event | 28% | 37% | Behind |
| Completely/somewhat familiar with chapter | 66% | 71% | Behind |
Source: ACHE 2026 Chapter Member Needs Survey, Chapter Leaders Report and Individual Chapter Results, ACHE of the Rocky Mountains.
What Would Get You in the Room
Nationally, members told us more convenient locations (50%), more convenient times (41%), and education credit hours (39%) would most increase their likelihood of attending in-person events. For virtual events, it was viewing recordings later (42%) and receiving ACHE Virtual Interactive Education credit (44%). I suspect our numbers tell a similar story, given the distances many of you travel across Wyoming to reach a chapter event, but I do not want to assume. I want to hear it.
I Am Asking for Your Voice
This chapter belongs to all of us, and I would rather build our fall and winter calendar around what you actually need than around what we assume you need. So, I am asking directly:
- What is standing between you and attending more chapter events: location, timing, cost, credit hours, topics, or something else entirely?
- What would make our chapter feel more essential to your day-to-day work?
- Where should we focus first: more virtual options, more regional in-person events, better communication, or something else?
Please reach out to me directly at [email protected] with your thoughts. I read every response myself, and your feedback will shape how we plan the months ahead. No survey link, no extra steps. Just tell me what you are thinking.
Thank you for being part of ACHE of the Rockies, and for the work you do every day for the communities we serve across Wyoming. I am looking forward to hearing from you.
Until next time,
Dustin
Dustin Brown, DHA, FACHE
Wyoming Regent, ACHE of the Rockies
Dustin Brown, DHA, FACHE
Wyoming Regent
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Interested in Sponsorship Opportunities?
Please contact Sharmarke Mohammed, Sponsorship Chair, if your company — or one you know — may be interested in supporting ACHE of the Rockies through sponsorship opportunities.
