UK board directs healthcare enterprise to seek growth, prepare for financial challenges
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Oct. 29, 2026) — The UK HealthCare enterprise must continue to thoughtfully grow to ensure greater access to more Kentuckians to the level of advanced, subspecialty care only the university provides in the Commonwealth. That was one of the key directives given by the University of Kentucky Board of Trustees during its annual retreat Oct. 22-23 in Ashland at UK King’s Daughters Medical Center.
“We will successfully navigate this moment with a renewed commitment from our community to advancing this state and a deepened resolve to do it in collaboration with, and in support of, a growing web of partners across the Commonwealth,” UK President Eli Capilouto said during remarks to trustees during the retreat.
A resolution, unanimously adopted by the board, charged Capilouto and the university with the following:
- Leverage the full breadth of the University of Kentucky’s expertise and capacity in partnership with UK HealthCare — to expand access to advanced care and services.
- Build on current momentum by strengthening UK HealthCare’s work as a High Reliability Organization (HRO) in ways that will continue to expand and improve access and capacity. The HRO initiative is an enterprise-wide program that seeks to improve safety, operational efficiency and reliability efforts across the healthcare enterprise.
- Evaluate mission-aligned partnerships and emerging business models, and maximize the growth and focus of the Advancing Kentucky Together Network.
- Continue to advance the health of Kentucky through dynamic planning, strategy and measurable action, while managing operational and financial risk.
“Much of that commitment is reflected in our growing Advancing Kentucky Together Network — nearly 20 partners across the state, large Fortune 500 companies and liberal arts colleges, associations that represent pharmacists and physicians and foundations seeking answers for regional economic growth,” Capilouto said. “What we heard you say is work with and grow those partnerships, through the network and in other ways.”
The UK Board of Trustees meets annually in a retreat to discuss major issues and opportunities confronting the institution. At previous retreats, the board adopted the university’s strategic plan, The UK PURPOSE; created the Advancing Kentucky Together Network; and established goals around campuswide planning for leadership initiatives around artificial intelligence.
UK HealthCare is the hospitals and clinics of the University of Kentucky. But it is so much more. It is more than 10,000 dedicated healthcare professionals committed to providing advanced subspecialty care for the most critically injured and ill patients from the Commonwealth and beyond. It also is the home of the state’s only National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, a Level IV Neonatal Intensive Care Unit that cares for the tiniest and sickest newborns and the region’s only Level 1 trauma center.
As an academic research institution, we are continuously pursuing the next generation of cures, treatments, protocols and policies. Our discoveries have the potential to change what’s medically possible within our lifetimes. Our educators and thought leaders are transforming the healthcare landscape as our six health professions colleges teach the next generation of doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other healthcare professionals, spreading the highest standards of care. UK HealthCare is the power of advanced medicine committed to creating a healthier Kentucky, now and for generations to come.