This week I had the chance to spend time at the CHIME Fall Forum in San Antonio. It was great to be back together and it is still the best place to find healthcare CIOs. This year CHIME was celebrating their 30th anniversary at the event and they held a CIO panel that included a mix of CIOs across the generations:
- Andrea Daugherty, CISSP, Interim CIO, Dell Seton Medical Center at the University of Texas
- Theresa Meadows, Senior Vice President and CHIO, Cook Children’s Health Care System
- John Glaser, PhD
- Liz Johnson, MS, FAAN, FCHIME, FHIMSS, CHCIO, RN-BCMS, Retired Chief Information Officer (moderator)
Here’s a look at some of the key insights they shared with some commentary.
CIO panels at #CHIME22Fall are great. #hitsm pic.twitter.com/ABYjzZqd2P
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
Seeing as CHIME was celebrating it’s 30th anniversary it was fascinating to hear how far we’ve come since John Glaser first started. Maybe we shouldn’t hammer ourselves too bad.
Interesting perspective by @johnglaser about how when he started they just asked the CIO to not screw things up. Now, healthcare executives have been through an EHR implementation and other IT and so they come in with a different perspective. #HITsm #CHIME22Fall
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
John Glaser offered this interesting perspective about what he wouldn’t have predicted as well. This really illustrates how the thinking was for many years and how much it’s changed.
I wouldn’t have predicted the industry transition to integration. @johnglaser #HITsm #CHIME22Fall
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
Glaser offered a kind of 4 stages we’ve been through in the evolution of IT as well. I slightly missed the way he phrased the last stage, but it was essentially technology being ubiquitous in the care that’s provided. Think about how big of a mindset change that is for IT leaders from the original backend process efforts that IT led.
Evolution of IT via @johnglaser
Stage 1: Changing backend process
Stage 2: Driving new revenue
Stage 3: Transforming Care
Stage 4: Native Digital Care?#HITsm #CHIME22Fall— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
A big chunk of the conversation centered around some of the big challenges healthcare CIOs face right now. Daugherty offered this positive opportunity.
Andrea Daugherty makes a great point that all of these companies laying off tech professionals is an opportunity for healthcare. #HITsm #CHIME22Fall
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
Plus, Glaser pointed out how CIOs and other staff have more on their plate than ever just like others in other industries (he used teachers as an example). Hard to see this changing anytime soon.
No matter what role you have in healthcare, there’s the reality that you have more on your plate now than you did previously.
This is true across industries and it’s not going to be easily solved.@johnglaser #HITsm #CHIME22Fall
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
Meadows suggested that doing a survey to hear from your staff would be well worth the effort.
Good idea from Theresa Meadows about doing a burnout survey of your staff. #HITsm #CHIME22Fall
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
Glaser also offered some great universal advice for CIOs.
One of the challenges with burnout and IT is when the user sees it as something being done “to” you versus something being done “with” you.
Some of that goes to using the right pronouns of We versus I or You.@johnglaser #HITsm #CHIME22Fall
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
All 3 chimed in on what skills CIOs should be cultivating to be ready for the future.
What is the top skill healthcare CIOs need to cultivate over the next few years?
Relationship Management
-Theresa MeadowsData Management
-Andrea DaughertyBeing competent at managing change and elevating our collective prowess
–@johnglaser #HITsm #CHIME22Fall— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
The conversation then proceeded to disruption and innovation. Glaser offered this fascinating look at how we may be overusing the term.
Sometimes we treat disruption as a virtue. That’s not always the case. @johnglaser #HITsm #CHIME22Fall
Disruption takes a long time.
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
Meadows then offered what she thought may be a controversial take as part of the build vs buy discussion of innovation and disruption.
I think one of the ways to disrupt is using the technology you already have.
It’s not always about the new shiny object, but how can we use the status quo technology and use it to disrupt how we’ve always done it.
-Theresa Meadows#HITsm #CHIME22Fall
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
Plus, she suggested it was about understanding your core competency (it’s not coding at her organization).
Development is not our core competency. Our core competency is understanding the clinical workflow and processes. -Theresa Meadows #HITsm #CHIME22Fall
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
Hitting this from a different angle Glaser suggested that it’s about innovation and knowing where to say no since you can’t do everything. Plus, even the most innovative solution implemented poorly (including cultural acceptance of the product) can lead to disaster instead of innovation.
It’s good to ask yourself, where do I want to innovate and where don’t I? @johnglaser #HITsm #CHIME22Fall
Said in reference to build vs buy. Plus, it’s often about how you implement it.
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
Meadows also offered this great suggestion to make sure your organization isn’t an echo chamber of the same ideas. It’s good to be challenged by someone to expand your thinking.
Bring people into your organization that challenges you.
-Theresa Meadows
I brought in a digital manager from another industry and he’s challenged us with all sort of questions. #HITsm #CHIME22Fall
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
Glaser put into perspective the reality of working with vendors. He’s right that it’s going to be part of your life and needs to be a competency and partnership that you build with the right vendors.
Dealing with the vendor community is a fact of life and essential. So, be careful how you navigate that. @johnglaser #HITsm #CHIME22Fall
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
Wrapping up the innovation, Glaser offered this fascinating insight into what innovation and disruption really look like.
The automobile was an innovation, but the disruption was the roads and infrastructure that makes the automobile useful. @johnglaser #HITsm #CHIME22Fall
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
Wrapping up with a discussion of burnout, staffing, and the mission of the work we do, Liz Johnson offered this idea that her staff loved.
Do you have a fun committee? We have a fun committee. -Liz Johnson #HITsm #CHIME22Fall
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
Daugherty wrapped up the session with an incredible personal story about her experience with healthcare and her family. She described what I think applies to most of us in healthcare.
Healthcare is personal to me. -Andrea Daugherty #HITsm #CHIME22Fall
— John Lynn (@techguy) November 9, 2022
Lots of great insights from this panel at the CHIME Fall Forum. It was great to be there to celebrate the 30th anniversary. Luckily, none of them had a blue screen of death like experience on stage like the previous day’s keynote by Sophia, the Humanoid which taught us that robots replacing us is still a long way away. At least Sophia said upfront that she wasn’t meant to replace us, but augment us. Given that idea, we still need great CIO leadership for a while to come.