President Obama’s Jell-O

John is off today.   The following blog first appeared in July of 2009. Reforming healthcare is one of the most complex, daunting and important tasks of this decade. What began with great hope and good intentions to avoid the reform mistakes of the past is now going...

Spits and Spurts

CHICAGO — Everything goes in spits and spurts.  That wisdom was from my Grandmother Jackson.  Note the capitalization of the “G” in grandmother.  Ms. Cora was worthy of that respect.  She created and she sustained so many wonderful memories of my youth and, day...

Hiring “Gamers”

Who we hire makes a difference.  A grumpy housekeeper or cafeteria cashier whose work is mediocre can help drive down patient satisfaction scores.  A physician who is more focused on the money he or she makes than the needs of the patient will impact quality of care...

Graduate Education In A Changing World

We are moving into an era of extraordinary change. Healthcare will change because government can no longer afford some of its signature programs including Medicare and Medicaid, and because the quality of care and the level of patient safety too often do not match the...

The Excitement of Being Different

It is time to think about being different, being different in a way that allows a company (or hospital) to make a meaningful difference. Our healthcare economy, where many of the rules we have come to rely on for the last 40 plus years, will change markedly over the...