Becker's Hospital Review

57 57 PRACTICE MANAGEMENT THOUGHT LEADERSHIP Tampa General CEO John Couris: No days off By John Couris, President and CEO, Tampa General Hospital S itting in Raymond James Stadium with my son, Ben, watching Tom Brady lead the Bucs to a Super Bowl victory felt like a full-circle moment for me. A lifelong Pats fan and Boston native, and now a proud Tampa resident and Bucs fan, I felt an over- whelming sense of joy and pride as I reflected over the 20 years of football moments that Ben and I have shared. In those hours at the Super Bowl with Ben, I couldn't help but remember Coach Bill Be- lichicks' ongoing mantra: "No days off !" I recognized that in my own way, I have sub- scribed to living that philosophy of no days off and have tried to infuse my life — and all aspects of my life — with the same level of passion and drive that Brady and Belichick put into football. For me, living a life of "no days off " does not mean working around the clock — though there are times when my work requires a great deal of my time and energy, especially over the last 12 months. It is living a life of passion and throwing yourself into all that you do and being 100 percent committed to all to whom you are responsible — friends, family, co-workers. Simply put, you are all-in, all of the time. As a leader, I encourage my team to find that high level of passion and commitment in all that they do. I want them to experience the same pride and focus with their work at the hospital that they enjoy when they leave our campus. I believe by coaching them to be "all- in," they will find greater satisfaction and joy in all parts of their lives. Here are a few ways I help guide my team to- ward an "all-in" mentality: • Be there for your team when they fall, help dust them off and push them back on the field • Celebrate and acknowledge wins — both professional and personal • Give stretch assignments that will help them grow their capacity • Help guide them to discover new choic- es and new ways of tackling challenges • Recognize professional and personal achievements inside and outside the or- ganization When team members feel encouraged and supported in their choices, they develop their passion. ey also recognize that they can find space and excel in all aspects of their lives. For 20 years, I have run from work to little league practices, cheer competitions and vol- unteer activities. I have accompanied family members to medical appointments, celebrat- ed and recognized colleagues and spent time on the water with family and friends. And I have loved every single minute of it. ose twenty years with your son will go by in the blink of an eye. So don't waste a moment of it by taking a day off from life. n Becker's 11th Annual Meeting Speaker Series: 3 Questions with Jefferson Health CEO Dr. Stephen Klasko By Virginia Egizio S tephen Klasko, MD, serves as president of Thom- as Jefferson University and CEO of Jefferson Health in Philadelphia. Dr. Klasko participated in a keynote interview at Becker's Hospital Review's 11th Annual Meeting. As part of an on- going series, Becker's interviewed healthcare leaders who spoke or plan to speak at the conference. Question: Can you share one change brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic that you'd like to see stick, espe- cially in healthcare? Dr. Stephen Klasko: I believe that when the pandemic is in the rearview mirror, patients will expect us to transform from COVID to consumerism. People will not go back to our fragmented, confusing and inequitable system, and as leaders, we need to be ready. Let's assume that this is the Amazon moment, do we want to be Sears and JCPenney and ignore connected care? Or do we want to find the op- timistic path to a future that's care at any address, at any time, with connection loops that keep people healthy? Q: What is one essential trait leaders need to lead ef- fectively in healthcare today? SK: We need to be creative, nimble and flexible — not traits that typically define academic medical centers or health sys- tems in general. As the future unfolds, if you're doing the same thing you were doing in 2019, you are going to be out of business. The future belongs to creative partnerships, many of them vertical instead of horizontal. At Jefferson, we are preparing for a future where costly "sick care" is giving way to affordable, personalized and preemptive care with genomics, sensors and artificial intelligence digital-based therapies. That will entail new kinds of partnerships with tech companies, VCs, employers, community organizations and retail in order to have "healthcare at any address!" Q: What would you like to see as the defining theme of 2021 for your industry? SK: Trust, ethics and equity. The pandemic devastated vulnerable and underserved communities. Social deter- minants and health inequities need to move from a phil- osophic and academic exercise to the mainstream of care models, payment mechanisms and medical education. We can start with connected care. Broadband access needs to be universal like electricity and plumbing. In cities like Philadelphia, people living inside four walls were "virtually homeless," as they could not access telehealth or online education for their children. During the lockdown, the dig- ital divide became a wall that cut off older and poorer peo- ple from education, advice and care. But digital medicine is also our greatest opportunity to bridge that divide. n

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