On October 7, the College of Health’s (COH) Population Health Colloquium Series continued with a spirited discussion on “The Future of Aging: Business, Care & Community.” This year’s theme, “The Business of Health,” celebrates the new Integrated Business and Health (IBH) program, an interdisciplinary collaboration between the Lehigh University Colleges of Business and Health that prepares students to be leaders in the fast growing healthcare sector.
View the full recording HERE.
Moderated by Michael Gusmano, professor in the department of population health, the session brought together diverse perspectives from academic research, healthcare business and direct care provision. Professor Eduardo J. Gómez is the co-director of the IBH program, as well as a professor in the department of population health and the director of the Institute for Health Policy and Politics. He introduced the panelists: Tony Wolk ’89, president of ALW Consulting, LLC and a member of the COH Dean’s Advisory Council; Ken Faltischek, chief executive officer at Mobile Health and Matt Lippitt ’94, vice president and division director, payor contracting and strategic partnerships at Bayada Home Health Care.
Gusmano opened the panel by sharing a remarkable fact highlighting why aging is, indeed, a growing business: the population aged 85 and over is projected to more than double between now and 2040. The panelists shared their career journeys and how they became interested in health and aging. Both Faltischeck and Wolk began their careers as corporate lawyers and came into healthcare later in their careers.
Faltischeck, who majored in history as an undergraduate, said the skills he developed in law school—identifying problems, identifying core issues and using regulatory and legal frameworks to analyze those issues and reach a conclusion—provided a great foundation in healthcare. “We are really focusing on resolving core issues that are undermining our ability to deliver better, higher quality and more efficient healthcare,” he said.
On the other hand, Lippit studied sociology and social psychology as a Lehigh undergraduate. He said the knowledge he gained in interpersonal behavior and communication from those studies was extremely valuable to his career in terms of building effective relationships with colleagues and business partners. He later received a Masters in Health Services Administration.
After working with different health systems throughout his career, Lippit shared that “it became clear that home and community-based services and the movement of care out of the acute care setting into the community was where there was going to be a lot of energy, traction and excitement.”
According to Wolk, there are almost 24 million people working in the healthcare field, representing the fastest growing sector in terms of employment.
“Aging and taking care of seniors may sound uncool or unsexy, but it’s the opposite,” Wolk said. “To me, it provides the perfect balance of what I call ‘head and heart.’ A lot of people are looking for that balance, which means it requires an intellectual rigor, a curiosity, a motivation and a willingness to work hard. At the end of the day, there is a consumer, an agent or a recipient of care who is better off based on what we’re all doing.”
All three panelists agreed that career opportunities in aging and healthcare are limitless. “It’s really just about keeping an open mind and finding something you’re passionate about. And, a little bit of luck,” said Falticheck.
The conversation explored the transformative potential of artificial intelligence to improve efficiency and accelerate innovation in healthcare. They considered the idea of longevity, living better for a longer period of time, as well as the need to ensure sufficient capacity to care for aging populations. Also, they discussed the need for sharing resources and information among caregivers, whether through new technological platforms or through community groups.
Wrapping up the panel, Gusmano shared, “I’ve learned a lot. It’s really inspiring to hear about the careers that you had, and I hope our students are inspired to think about what they’ve learned and to recognize there are incredible opportunities in health and aging.”
Join us on November 13 for the next Population Health Colloquium entitled “Translating Discovery: Insights from Biotech and Pharma Leaders.” The all-alumni panel will feature Emily Winn-Deen ’74, Jeremy Schmalzle ’97, Jim Wassell ’99G ’05G and Tom Anderson ’77. For more information, visit our Colloquium Series page.
