Final boarding call: A look at healthcare and the airline industry
There I sat in a hard plastic chair, waiting. Waiting for it to be our turn. After two cancellations, a gate change, and now another delay, it is time to get home. I eagerly, but with somewhat decreasing optimism, wait for the latest update. Again, I check my phone again to see what emails or texts have come through since I last checked it. Searching for a Wi-Fi connection fast enough to talk to my workplace and let them know it might be a little while longer. I reflect that this is why we must continually communicate in our hospitals and clinics. Our patients are eager to hear their test result, or family members, the latest update on their loved one. If we are not overcommunicating, the lack of news causes increased anxiety, and the negative narrative becomes the predominate internal and external communication. A feeling of helplessness or anger is the end result.
Finally, I hear the loud voice over the intercom. “We’ll start boarding in 10 minutes for the flight to ....” Relief pours through me, and I look around, looking forward to getting where I’m headed, noting the strain around my fellow passengers’ eyes, their equally anticipatory and hopeful looks. Their furtive looks at their watches, quick glances toward the restroom, contemplating a last-minute dash. We are a group of people completely immersed in a process outside our control yet totally dependent upon the outcome, trusting that the system will see this through for us.
As a healthcare executive with 30+ years of experience leading hospitals and clinics, I can’t help but note similarities between the airline industry and healthcare. Both are global industries essential to the well-being of humanity. Intensely complex, they both have many moving parts that must work together seamlessly in order to function properly. Though slightly different, each industry deals with life-and-death situations on a daily basis, and as such, must always be prepared for the worst. Finally, both industries are heavily regulated by local, state, and federal governmental agencies lending themselves to additional coordination through systemness for safety. Read Full Article.
