A Conversation about Women’s History Month with Security Health Plan’s Krista Hoglund

March 30, 2023

ACHP is committed to honoring Women’s History Month by speaking with women leaders within our membership about the work that they do in the health care industry. Women’s health is an essential topic of discussion, with women more likely to face cardiovascular disease and cancer in their lifetimes than men and increasingly more likely to face pregnancy complications in recent years. Leaders like Krista Hoglund, Chief Executive Officer at Security Health Plan, inspire us with the creative ways they and other ACHP member organizations are working to address these disparities. We are proud to lift up these voices and stories and celebrate women every day.   

What are the greatest opportunities you face when considering ways to improve the health of women in your community?  

One of the greatest challenges women face is a lack of strong support systems. If I were to talk about one of the things that has been most impactful to me – my husband, my parents, the other women around me who I can lean on as resources and people I can talk to when I’m having a crummy day. And this is a hard thing to build globally. It’s specific to each individual. There are a lot of pieces to a support system. Women have a disproportionate burden, especially working women, with all the things they have to do at home – it’s often an additional job. We are losing women from the working world because we don’t have access to high quality daycare, for example. It might be hard to understand the value of a support system unless you have one. When you have it, you know how meaningful it is. When you don’t have a strong support system, you might not know how much you are missing.  

What is the biggest win you’ve had in the women’s health space over the past year? 

We’ve been able to maintain access to maternal health care as we’ve noticed hospitals around our service area closing or consolidating labor and delivery units.  

Our investment in women in leadership within Marshfield Clinic Health System has been significant. Women have a different approach to leadership, and a diversity of perspectives leads to better outcomes. If you only talk to people who think exactly like you, you’re never going to come up with different outcomes. The more collaboration you get from different perspectives, the better chance you’ll have to come up with the best outcome. It wouldn’t be good to have all women in leadership either. When I’m hiring to fill the team, we have different, complementary styles. Part of what makes us good for each other is our different perspectives. Having someone who doesn’t think the same as me is what I need.     

Which women, living or deceased, would you most like to sit down with and share a meal… and why? 

Deceased – Carol Emmott. After listening to people who knew her – a number of the people who are part of the leadership team at the Carol Emmott Foundation who actually knew her — she really lived a lot of what they teach us in the fellowship. She was mentoring and teaching women in health care before that was something people talked about. The legacy of the foundation was something she was really truly passionate about. She helped a lot of women find their leadership voice, and really had an impact while she was alive. And since she died, she has been impacting women in health care. I’d want to ask her if this is the legacy she would have wanted. I would want to hear about her reaction to the people who have gone through the program – it would be a really cool experience. 

Living — Famous people don’t excite me that much, but I admire Brene Brown. I love her books and the perspective she brings. She’s all about vulnerability, including talking about things that often, as women, we’ve been coached not to be and not to do. She’s about authenticity. You have to be who you are, and that makes you a better leader, instead of fitting a specific mold. Dare to Lead is one of the better books I’ve read. I’ve read it more than once, and will continue to pick it up throughout my life. I particularly like one story she tells – about when her husband comes home from work, and she lays into him about a sandwich. She’s not really mad at him, but he’s the one she attacks. It’s not really about the sandwich; it’s about something else. She writes with honesty that you can relate to, and say, “Yeah, I’ve definitely been there.” She would be fun to share a glass of wine with.