Community Health Collective

About Community Health Collective

I'm Jill Steeley, and I spent years as an FQHC CEO feeling like I was the only one struggling with impossible choices—mission or margin, staff or budget, growth or sustainability. Until I realized: I wasn't alone. None of us are. That's why I created this podcast—to build the community that community health leaders deserve. Whether you're leading a health center, a rural clinic, a public health program, or any organization putting community care first, you'll find practical wisdom, honest conversations, and a whole lot of "finally, someone gets it" moments here. Each episode tackles the big stuff—financial strategy, workforce challenges, policy changes—and the personal stuff—boundaries, burnout, and what it really takes to sustain yourself while serving others.

Publisher

Jill Steeley

Category

business · education · health & fitness

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

3 Nov 2025

Latest episode

21 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

51 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   21 Oct 2026

   We Replaced the Microwave: Why Your Staff Forgive Bad News but Not Silence

   Community Health Collective Podcast Host: Jill Steeley Invisible work looks exactly like no work. In almost every employee focus group Jill runs during strategic planning, someone says it: "They ask us, they do the surveys every year, but we never see them do anything." When she takes that back to leadership, the answer is always the same - "But we did do things." And they did. They just never said so. In this episode, Jill unpacks the gap between what you did with your staff's feedback and what your staff think you did, puts real turnover math behind it, and walks through her Close the Loop Cadence - ask more than once a year, say it back before you've fixed anything, fix one small thing fast, and report out on a schedule. She shares how a weekly all-staff update, sent even on weeks with nothing new, helped her keep 99% of her staff when her health center separated from county government and employees lost their public employee retirement system. And she makes the case that a new break room microwave, announced out loud, can build more trust than a six-month initiative nobody ever hears about. Here's the thing: staff forgive bad news, but they don't forgive silence. This one's for CEOs, directors, and supervisors who keep reading "nothing ever changes here" and know that isn't true. Highlights: The sentence Jill hears in almost every staff focus group - and what leadership always says back Why high performers are the best at invisible work, and why that backfires The math: $45,000 a year in hourly turnover, about $112,000 to replace one nurse, and hundreds of thousands for a provider The county separation story: losing the public employee retirement system and keeping 99% of staff What to put in a weekly update when there's nothing new (a quote, a book, even drinking more water) The Close the Loop Cadence: Ask, Say It Back, Fix One Small Thing Fast, Report Out The three parts of every update: what's done, what's in progress, and what's not happening and why Why the microwave beats the culture committee Line of sight in reverse: your staff can only see what you tell them 20-minute homework to start this week Quotes from the episode: "Your staff don't experience your work the same way that you do. They experience your communication about your work." "Invisible work looks exactly like no work." "Staff forgive bad news, but they don't forgive silence." "A clear no builds more trust than your staff trying to figure out why it's not happening on their own." Mentioned in this episode: Episode #42 (www.jillsteeley.com/podcast) - "You Didn't Lose Control. You Lost Line of Sight." Leadership Team Development with Jill: www.jillsteeley.com (https://www.jillsteeley.com) Jill's Healthcare Leadership Trainings and free resources: www.jillsteeley.com/leadership (www.jillsteeley.com/leadershipquiz) The Healthcare Leadership Style Quiz: www.jillsteeley.com/leadershipquiz (www.jillsteeley.com/leadershipquiz) FQHC CEO Connect Bootcamp. A 5-month program that helps you build a profitable, reputable health center easier and FASTER than figuring it out alone. Next cohort starts April 2027: www.fqhc-ceo.com (https://www.fqhc-ceo.com) Get in touch with Jill: jill@jillsteeley.com (mailto:jill@jillsteeley.com) or schedule a call with her here (https://calendly.com/jill-v7c/30min).

2. 

   14 Oct 2026

   Your 340B Discount Just Became a Mail-In Rebate. Here’s What That Costs a Health Center.

   Community Health Collective Podcast Host: Jill Steeley Guest: Steve Weinman The 340B rebate pilot is happening, and it isn't a hospital problem. On October 1, HRSA approved 10 drug manufacturers to pay the 340B discount as a rebate instead of an upfront price cut, starting January 1, 2027. In this episode, Jill Steeley sits down with Steve Weinman, principal and CEO of FQHC Associates, to explain what changed since last year's pilot was blocked in court, how the rebate actually works (pay list price, file within 45 days, wait up to 10 more for your money), and why the drug list lands squarely on health centers: diabetes, AFib, COPD, and behavioral health drugs your providers prescribe every day. Steve's bottom line is "hope is not a strategy." There's a lawsuit and there are bills in Congress, but you plan as if this starts on January 1, the same day the Medicaid cliff hits and UDS season starts. Then he walks through seven moves to make now, starting with knowing your float, the dollar amount you'll have to front while you wait on rebates. The flip lands at the end: don't quietly adjust. If health centers make this look tolerable, it'll be 30 more drugs next year. This one is for health center CEOs, CFOs, and pharmacy leaders who need a plan, and a board briefing, before January. **Highlights:** - Where things stand: 10 manufacturers approved October 1, the pilot starts January 1, 2027, and a lawsuit and bills are already in play - What's different from last year's pilot, which a judge in Maine blocked as "hastily assembled" - How a rebate works compared to an upfront discount, explained with a $10 store coupon - Why 45 days to file isn't really 45 days once your contract pharmacy reports and your TPA get involved - The drug list: Jardiance, Farxiga, Januvia, Janumet, Tradjenta, Eliquis, Breo Ellipta, Vraylar, Austedo, and more - The January 1 collision: the rebate pilot, the Medicaid cliff, and the start of UDS season, all on one finance team - The good news: no denials for diversion or duplicate discount disputes, capped data collection, and required denial reporting - Seven moves to make now: know your float, call your wholesaler, pin down your TPA, re-check your sliding fee pricing, brief your board, log every late payment and denial, and keep a story log - Whether to change your formulary, drop contract pharmacies, or bring pharmacy in-house - Why the pilot is a test of how much health centers will tolerate **Quotes from the episode:** > "Hope is not a strategy. So yeah, we hope it'll be delayed, but we better be ready to deal with it." - Steve Weinman > "These are not some high-cost drug that's being used for chemotherapy." - Steve Weinman > "I would not switch TPAs right now because one of them will do it for a nickel cheaper." - Steve Weinman > "This pilot is just that. It's a test to see how much they can subject us to and get away with." - Steve Weinman **Mentioned in this episode:** Steve Weinman, Principal and CEO of FQHC Associates: https://www.fqhc.org (https://www.fqhc.org), sdweinman@fqhc.org The 340B Rebate Pilot quick guide (how it works, what to do now, and which drugs are included): REBATE GUIDE LINK (about:blank) HRSA's 340B Model Pilot Program page: https://www.hrsa.gov/opa/340b-model-pilot-program (https://www.hrsa.gov/opa/340b-model-pilot-program) Report late payments and denials to HRSA: 340Bpricing@hrsa.com Get in touch with Jill: jill@jillsteeley.com or schedule a call with her (https://calendly.com/jill-v7c/30min (https://calendly.com/jill-v7c/30min)). ---

3. 

   7 Oct 2026

   Twelve Months Analyzing a Weight-Loss Program. A Competitor Launched It in Six.

   Community Health Collective Podcast Host: Jill Steeley Indecisiveness has a cost, and Jill Steeley paid it. When she was a health center CEO, her team spent 12 months analyzing whether to start a weight-loss program while a competitor in the community simply launched one. The cost: roughly 500 patients and $900,000 in revenue. In this solo episode, Jill tells that story, owns her part in it, and does the math most leaders never see, about $75,000 for every month the decision sat on the agenda. She explains why clinically trained leaders are especially likely to get stuck here, then walks through the three things she does now: decide at 80% of the information, put a deadline on the decision itself, and ask the regret question. The flip is the part that stays with you. Waiting is a decision too, and it's the one mistake nobody will ever call a mistake. This one is for health center CEOs and senior leaders with an item on the agenda that keeps rolling to next month. Highlights: The story: 12 months of market analysis, a competitor who went first, and about 500 patients lost The math: roughly $900,000, about $1,800 a patient, and about $75,000 for every month of waiting Why waiting feels safe, and why it's still a decision with a price Why a business decision is not a diagnosis, and what that means for clinically trained leaders The 80% rule, and the one question that tells you when you have enough How to put a deadline on a decision, and how a three-month pilot makes a big decision smaller The regret question: a year from now, which will you regret more, acting now or waiting for more data? Homework: find the oldest item on your leadership agenda, price it, and pick a date Quotes from the episode: "It's not like a direct cost that is glaringly staring at you in a budget line item, but it is a real cost, and I did pay it." "Waiting is also a decision. It just doesn't feel like one." "It's the one mistake you can make over and over that no one will ever call an actual mistake." "A business decision is not a diagnosis. In a diagnosis, the answer already exists, and your job is to find it." Mentioned in this episode: FQHC CEO Connect Bootcamp. A 5-month program that helps you build a profitable, reputable health center easier and FASTER than figuring it out alone. Enrollment is now open: www.fqhc-ceo.com (https://www.fqhc-ceo.com) Get in touch with Jill: jill@jillsteeley.com (mailto:jill@jillsteeley.com) or schedule a call with her here (https://calendly.com/jill-v7c/30min).

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Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

1 ratings

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