As we continue to progress within the digital world, my “CEO corner” that accompanied the marketing newsletter will now be published as a monthly CEO blog. Tennessee Oncology employees will receive the blog post by email as well as be able to view under the blog section of our website.
A lot has changed in the Patton household since I last wrote. Ashley relocated from Atlanta to New York City and loves it…she is now a self-professed “big city, cold weather girl”. Evan graduated from Auburn and moved back to Nashville. He has an apartment in midtown and is now “a big city” kid. Mary had her hip replaced 3 weeks ago and is doing fantastic despite having her doctor husband as her nurse!
This month’s quote is from Harry Beckwith: “You often hear, ‘Be bold. Take a leap!’ Sometimes you should. Other times, there’s a better idea. Take a step.” In planning to make big changes or implement new processes within our organization there is often hesitation in taking that first step. Fear of making a mistake or the pursuit of perfection can get in the way of good progress. Often times, it is best to just take a step. Dr. Dickson and I were discussing this concept just this morning. We both like the concept of “fail forward.” That is, be willing to make mistakes and learn from them. Putting a plan into action is the only way to evaluate its effectiveness. It’s difficult to always achieve “perfection” on first try but you learn from each endeavor. Actions and reaction will eventually get to perfection.
Tennessee Oncology is in the midst of several big projects. Two of our biggest enterprise projects are implementing the Medicare Oncology Care Model (OCM) and changing our EMR. The OCM is a very exciting opportunity and implementation has gone very well. We’re continually learning ways to better meet the needs of our patients and their caregivers through care coordination. The complexity of our practice and the treatments we provide has presented obstacles in building the new EMR, but we will meet the challenge. Go live dates have been pushed from March to April to ensure readiness and the successful implementation of this new system.
Join me in embracing the philosophy to take the first step and continually commit to pursuit of perfection. Our patients are depending on each of us.
