In a recent interview with Home Health Care News, Future Leaders Class of 2026 honoree and Maxwell TEC Director of Operations, Dustin Cowan, sat down with the publication to share what drew him to the home health & home care industry, the biggest leadership lessons he has learned, and his thoughts on the future of care at home.
Home Health Care News: What drew you to the home health & home care industry?
Cowan: Home health and hospice have been familiar to me for most of my life. My mom was a home health nurse, so I was exposed to the industry and the impact of care in the home from a very young age. After college, I began my career in a role adjacent to the industry, and when the opportunity came to move directly into home-based care, it felt like a natural fit.
What I have always loved about this industry is the concept of meeting people where they are, both literally and figuratively. There is something incredibly meaningful about bringing care directly to people in their homes, whether they are unable to easily access care elsewhere or simply want the opportunity to remain and age in the place they call home. That mission has continued to resonate with me throughout my career.
Home Health Care News: How would you describe your leadership style, and how has it changed over time?
Cowan: I would describe my leadership style as leading by example and leading with trust. I believe in setting clear expectations and making sure the people I work with have the tools, guidance, and support they need to be successful. From there, I try to give them the autonomy to determine the best way to get from point A to point B.
I am fortunate to work with incredibly skilled and experienced professionals, and I believe part of being an effective leader is recognizing that you do not need to dictate every step of the process. My role is to provide direction, remove barriers, be available when support is needed, and ultimately trust people to do what they do well.
Over time, I think I have become more comfortable with that balance. Earlier in my career, I probably felt a greater responsibility to be involved in every detail. As I have grown as a leader, I have learned that leadership is not about having control over every step. It is about creating clarity around where we are going, supporting your people along the way, and trusting them to help determine how we get there.
Home Health Care News: What is the biggest leadership lesson you’ve learned while serving the home health & home care industry?
Cowan: One of the biggest leadership lessons I have learned is that you are not always going to be the smartest or most experienced person in the room, and you do not need to be. Effective leadership is about recognizing the expertise of the people around you and creating an environment where that expertise can be heard and put to use.
Home health and hospice are incredibly complex industries, and throughout my career I have had the opportunity to work alongside people with tremendous clinical, operational, financial, and technical knowledge. I have learned the importance of listening to those individuals, connecting with them, asking the right questions, and trusting their expertise.
For me, leadership is not about having all the answers. It is about bringing the right people together, learning from them, and helping create a shared direction that allows everyone to contribute what they do best.
Home Health Care News: In one word, how would you describe the home health & home care industry and why?
Cowan: Dynamic.
Home health and hospice require you to constantly adapt. We are delivering care in the patient’s home, not in a controlled clinical setting, so our clinicians have to be resourceful, think on their feet, and make the most of the resources available to them.
That same dynamic exists at the organizational level. The regulatory and reimbursement environment is constantly evolving, and providers are continually being challenged to do more with less. We have to find ways to operate more efficiently while still improving outcomes and maintaining the quality of care our patients deserve.
That combination is what makes this industry so challenging, but it is also what makes it exciting. You have to be willing to adapt, solve problems, and continuously find better ways to deliver care.
Home Health Care News: What do you see as the biggest opportunities and challenges currently facing the home health & home care industry?
Cowan: I believe one of our biggest opportunities is the ability to fundamentally transform how and where healthcare is delivered. As our population continues to age, the traditional model of care is going to become increasingly difficult and expensive to sustain. Home-based care gives us an opportunity to better coordinate care, reduce unnecessary utilization, and allow more people to age in place while still receiving the support they need.
I think our industry has an opportunity to play a much larger role in the overall healthcare continuum. The challenge is demonstrating that value while continuing to operate in an environment of reimbursement pressure, increased regulatory scrutiny, workforce constraints, and rising costs. We are continually being asked to do more with fewer resources while maintaining, and ideally improving, patient outcomes.
For me, the opportunity is in proving that those two things do not have to be at odds. If we can continue finding more efficient and innovative ways to deliver high-quality care in the home, I believe home health and hospice can be an important part of creating a more sustainable healthcare system for the future.
Home Health Care News: If you had a crystal ball, what do you think will impact the home health & home care industry over the next 5-10 years?
Cowan: I believe we are going to see a significant expansion in the utilization of home-based care over the next five to ten years. As our population continues to age, we simply will not have the facility-based capacity to care for everyone in the same way we have historically. That reality is going to require us to rethink not only where care is delivered, but how it is coordinated and managed as people reach the later stages of life.
I believe home health, hospice, and home care will play an increasingly important role in that transformation. We have an opportunity to help people remain in their homes longer, better manage their care as their needs become more complex, and ultimately improve their quality of life as they age.
In many ways, I think the demographics are going to make this transition a necessity. The challenge and opportunity for our industry will be ensuring we are prepared to meet that growing demand while continuing to deliver high-quality, sustainable care.
Home Health Care News: In your opinion, what qualities must all Future Leaders possess?
Cowan: I believe Future Leaders have to possess the courage to be bold and think differently. We are at a pivotal point in home-based care, and healthcare more broadly, where simply continuing to do things the way they have always been done is not going to be enough. We are being challenged to do more with less while caring for a growing and increasingly complex patient population.
Future Leaders need to be creative and willing to challenge traditional ways of thinking, but they also have to remain grounded in the realities of the industry. That includes understanding the financial side of healthcare and being good stewards of the resources available to us.
Ultimately, I think the next generation of leaders will need to find the balance between innovation and sustainability. We have to be bold enough to rethink how care is delivered while being responsible enough to ensure the organizations providing that care can continue to thrive, grow, and serve patients well into the future.
Dustin Cowan's insights reinforce Maxwell TEC’s commitment to providing strategic consulting that strengthens technology, streamlines processes, and empowers people. Dustin's leadership, combined with the expertise of our consulting team, enables us to tackle operational inefficiencies, optimize systems, and support care-at-home teams.
Congratulations to Dustin on this exciting accomplishment!
To read the full interview, visit: Future Leader: Dustin Cowan, Director of Operations, Maxwell TEC