About Dr. Kenneth Cohn

Ken Cohn

I am a board-certified general surgeon currently splitting time between providing locum tenens surgical coverage in New Hampshire and Vermont and working as a consultant at Cambridge Management Group, which specializes in physician-physician and physician-administrator communication issues.

I am a recovering academic surgeon who is passionate about helping physicians, nurses, hospital leaders, and board members work together. To the best of my knowledge, I am the only practicing general surgeon/MBA in the US who consults, writes, speaks, and teaches about physician-hospital relations. I have facilitated improvement efforts at community hospitals in the Yale, Banner Colorado, Santa Barbara Cottage, and Sutter Sacramento Health systems. I am also on the teaching faculty of the American College of Healthcare Executives, Estes Park Institute, Healthcare Roundtable, and New England College.

I obtained my M.D. degree from Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons Medical School, completed residency at the Harvard-Deaconess Surgical Service, and performed fellowships in endocrine and oncologic surgery at the Karolinska Hospital and at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, respectively. I was Assistant Professor of Surgery at SUNY Health Science Center at Brooklyn and later moved to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center as Associate Professor of Surgery and Chief of Surgical Oncology at the VA Hospital at White River Junction.

With the change in the medical economic climate, I entered the MBA program of the Tuck School at Dartmouth and graduated June 1998. I worked initially as a consultant at Health Advances, assisting 6 firms to commercialize new products.

Since joining the Cambridge Management Group in 1999, I have led change-management initiatives for physicians at affiliated hospitals within the Yale New Haven, Banner Colorado, Cottage Santa Barbara, and Sutter Sacramento Health Systems.

I remain clinically active, covering general surgical practices in New Hampshire and Vermont, where I maintain licenses.

My writing experience includes over 40 published articles in peer-reviewed medical journals and 2 books, Better Communication for Better Care: Mastering Physician-Administration Collaboration, published by Health Administration Press, March 2005, and Collaborate for Success! Breakthrough Strategies for Engaging Physicians, Nurses, and Hospital Executives, published September 2006. Professor Douglas Hough and I have co-edited a three-volume set, entitled The Business of Healthcare, published by Greenwood Press December 2007.

Approach

How I help healthcare organizations achieve a better collaborative environment is through a consultative approach that enables me to:

Leverage my clinical and administrative experience to help physicians and administrators engage each other in productive dialogue and work more interdependently
Show both physicians and administrators the benefit from an improved practice environment, leading to better use of limited time and improved outcomes
Develop valued long-term relationships over short-term transactions
Create a safe environment for reflection and learning

Graduate Teaching

In addition to my consulting practice, I have taught Managerial Economics in the Health Care Sector since 2003 to students in the MHA program at New England College, where I am an Adjunct Professor of Management. I help students become familiar with basic concepts of economics, including supply and demand, elasticity, subsidies, and externalities, applying the concepts to the healthcare industry, constructing a timeline of economic developments affecting healthcare over the past century and giving students a unique perspective on current issues. Because of my medical background, I am ready to discuss the economic implications of physician-hospital relations from the standpoint of a practicing physician.

“It was obvious that Ken wanted his students to learn and would take time on a particular topic until it was understood. He showed dedication, and had a genuine caring attitude. Assignments and deadlines were made clear, and comments and recommendations were made to help improve on future assignments.The healthcare industry has been faced with many challenges including physician and nurse shortages, decreased reimbursement, and vertically integrated services. Ken taught the class in a way in which theory was incorporated with every day practice. This type of teaching method is useful to me even today as it helps when making effective management decisions for the organization.” - Deb Pilling, Finance Manager, Lakes Regional General Hospital Healthcare

Locum Tenens Surgical Services

I am a Harvard-trained, board-certified general surgeon who maintains active licenses in New Hampshire and Vermont. I was recertified in general surgery by the American Board of Surgery January 2006. Prior to obtaining my MBA, I was Associate Professor of Surgery at Dartmouth and Chief of Surgical Oncology at the VA at White River Junction, VT. This enables me to help busy general surgeons worn down by frequent night and weekend coverage through, by working seamlessly in a variety of settings, giving surgeons a break from the grind and an opportunity to spend quality time with family.

One advantage that I have over other consultants is my medical training provides the clinical credibility to work with physicians on coaching and leadership development. Physicians enjoy learning from practicing physicians and listen receptively to concepts that hospital executives may have tried to promote in the past when explained in language that resonates with fellow physicians:

Dr. Kenneth H. Cohn has provided locum tenens general surgery coverage at my hospital since 2001. Ken helped us out tremendously when one of our general surgeons left, and it took several years to recruit another. His coverage allowed the two remaining surgeons to have a break from every other night coverage and to take family vacations knowing that their patients would be covered.Everyone who worked with Ken enjoyed his company and valued his surgical judgment and operative skill. He was such a favorite of nurses, physicians, and administrators that we offered him a full-time position at our hospital.

We also appreciated Ken’s insights into physician engagement and leadership. Ken helped us start a process to improve our efforts in this regard, which has begun to pay off for us. - Glenn Cordner, Chief Executive Officer, Springfield Hospital

Personal

When I am not consulting, I spend time with my wife and two teenagers outside of Boston, MA where I volunteer as a Sunday school teacher for adolescents aged 11-13.