This time of year, the ramp up to high school football season – Go Brockton Boxers! – prompts the "required" viewing of the movie Friday Night Lights. And as I watched this past weekend, I realized a key moment, a key speech, from this movie could serve to inspire and drive healthcare transformation. Coach Gaines speech paraphrased and tweaked for healthcare transformation: “Well, I want you to understand something. To me, being perfect is not about revenue generation, HCAHPS scores, and other “scoreboards” typically out there. It's not about winning the market share game with another harmful merger and acquisition and/or anything else that takes our attention away from being truly perfect. Perfection is about you and your relationship to yourself, your team, your patients and their families, your family and your friends, and your community. Being perfect is about being able to look at these people in the eye and know that you didn't let them down, because you told them the truth. And that truth is that you did everything that you could. There wasn't one more thing that you could've done. Can you live in that moment, as best you can, with clear eyes and love in your heart? With joy in your heart? If you can do, then you're perfect.” Now imagine, all healthcare leaders (from the C-Level to all those in leadership roles throughout the healthcare system) committing to this definition of perfection, to this truth. Now imagine, all these leaders (all of us) committing to this level of perfection, and thus doing everything we can, no matter what, to ensure we have created a care system which best positions each doctor, each nurse, each care team member, e.g., each housekeeper, each respiratory therapist, each valet, each registration professional, all, to honor their calling to the best of their ability and always do the loving thing. Now, back to the speech … “I want you to take a moment. And I want you to look each other in the eyes. I want you to put each other in your hearts forever, because forever's about to happen.” Together. Together let's look one another in the eyes. Together let's put each other in our hearts. Together let’s pledge to achieving this true perfection. Together let’s honor and love one another always. Together let’s create the systems which lead to not only greatness, but goodness for all. Together. Together let’s commit to this truth. Together. 🙏 ❤️🙏 Dahlborg HealthCARING Leadership Group, LLC (DHLG) Brockton High School #leadership #heartcenteredleadership #servantleadership #love #HEARTchange #healthCARING #alovingorganization #HALO #leadservelove #leadwithlove #HCAHPS #patientexperience
So well said, Thomas (Tom) Dahlborg 🙏🏼 ❤️ 🙏🏼. Let me add my usual "HEALTHCARE HAS SYSTEMS PROBLEMS" rant to mix. Pretty much all of the heartless, ignorant, knee jerk things Admin does to make the lives of staff and patients worse are "required" by the Profit Maximization System (PMS) of Admins. Even goodhearted Admins cannot go against the PMS or they will be punished. That leaves us with systems change at the care delivery level as probably our only option to save staff and patients from evermore stressed/dysfunctional care delivery systems, now so toxic as to be burning out staff in mass. We must remember. 94% of outcomes are a function of the systems, not the efforts of people. Staff can do no better than the systems allow. The PMS will be the last to change. Let's fix the systems while Admin continues doing what they are required to do by the PMS. I'll send you an article written by UAB Medicine on the implementation of 3D Change Management, a staff led systems change model. Notice how re-energized staff is when they are trained and allowed to fix the systems in which they delivery care.
What a fun way to use the football metaphor and the movie to help us think about this definition of perfection in healthcare. I love the idea of being able to look people in the eye and know you didn't let them down. At the Home Care CEO Forum, we are working with mastermind members to put in place people and processes to help older adults in their home. The idea of being able to look them in the eye and know that we didn't let them down is terrific. Thanks, Thomas (Tom) Dahlborg 🙏🏼 ❤️ 🙏🏼
Thomas (Tom) Dahlborg 🙏🏼 ❤️ 🙏🏼what do you think it will take to change the mindset of these individuals? The world as we know it (for the most part) is driven by scorecards. What can we do to help them move in this direction? Because I agree with you, but I see such a different reality.
Beautiful post, Tom. My grandfather died at the age of 90. The mind of this well-read and wise man worked brilliantly until the last few days of his life. I remember watching him when he seemed lost in his thoughts, and I’d ask him what was on his mind. In the last years of his life, what occupied his mind was the way he had lived, his moments of pride, and his regrets. If only we could live and act each day in a way that was aligned with the legacy we want to leave behind, then our actions would be what you describe as ‘perfection’. And living each day in a way that is aligned with these highest core values is also a way toward a fulfilling and happy life. To the decision-makers in healthcare I would ask: ‘Are you brave enough to take a step back, look at your actions, acknowledge where you could have done better, and take corrective action? Are you brave enough to look in the mirror, and can you confidently answer that you respect and love the person you see?’ That the person you’re seeing is the best version of you?’ Hard questions, but they’re best answered now than at 90.
This hits home for me! As part of my faith, I want to always give 100% as if I am working for God. Being able to look people (God, patients, families, leaders, coworkers) in the eye and knowing we gave our best and didn’t let God or them down - that is the ‘true caring’ of healthcare and of life.
I love the football analogy Thomas (Tom) Dahlborg 🙏🏼 ❤️ 🙏🏼. This is so true and underrated -- Perfection is about you and your relationship with yourself. If individuals resent and judge themselves, they'll be too busy finding others that resent and judge others. It is then justified. If you learn to communicate compassionately with yourself, it'll flow naturally all day long :-) I'm looking forward to watching you speak at the patient symposium!
Wow Thomas (Tom) Dahlborg 🙏🏼 ❤️ 🙏🏼 I can see you really took the time to sit with this quote and adapt it toward the healthcare industry, and now that I read it, it could be relevant to any industry or person! As a recovering perfectionist, I tend not to use the word at all, but I love how in this quote it means truth and your relationship to self and others. Powerful post!!
Thanks, Thomas (Tom) Dahlborg 🙏🏼 ❤️ 🙏🏼 for using the football analogy to express your thoughts. You had me at, "Perfection is about you and your relationship to yourself, your team, your patients and their families, your family and your friends, and your community." These are the true measures of success, aren't they?
What a powerful way to get your message across Thomas (Tom) Dahlborg 🙏🏼 ❤️ 🙏🏼!!! As an improviser I couldn't agree more with what perfection is. It doens't mean no mistakes or errors, it means doing the best you can, learning as you go, having your teammates backs and they have yours. I also love your tag line... Creating HealthCARING!!!
Seek to … ✝️ Love like Jesus ✝️ 🌟 Lead like Jesus 🌟 🙏🏼⚓️♥️
1yTo all who love for love sake.