Worth another look: January’s top 5 stories

With the rise of the chief AI officer, the more established occupants of the hospital C-suite may be wondering when the influx is going to stop. Are we going to need a chief clinical robotics officer (CCRO)? A chief quantum computing officer (CQCO)? Or maybe we’ll see the advent of the CETO, the chief emerging technology officer. Holders of that title might oversee all of the above plus whatever next big wheel might run a stop sign at the intersection of patient care and healthcare technology. Then again, maybe not. Either way, this line of thinking is prompted by our No. 1 (most-clicked) story of the past 30 days. The four runners-up are pretty interesting too. I hope you agree and I thank you for reading.—Dave Pearson

Members of C-suites around the world are making room for a new teammate: the CAIO. In healthcare, some organizations are hiring for the even more specialized position of CHAIO, for chief health AI officer.

Along with the obvious hits to patient traffic and population health, the COVID-19 pandemic delivered a financial upending to U.S. healthcare. Is it over yet? 

Going by criteria set and applied by Money magazine, only two of America’s 6,000 or so hospitals deserve the title “best of the best.”

Healthcare executives were already struggling to establish a more resilient workforce before the pandemic, and that challenge has only worsened in the years since.

Healthcare saw an alarming spike in Chapter 11 filings last year, lengthening a trajectory that started taking shape in mid-2022.