In the fall of 2022, a road trip from Chicago to Seattle and back in nine days occurred. The rented cargo van was named Casper to represent its large white exterior. Later the name of Casper crystalized as the van floated back and further over the road due to wind gusts.
Casper was loaded with precision to assure safety and access. A system of access to dry goods, items to be chilled and snacks was established to maximize time, LEAN principles in action. A strategic plan had been developed with key milestones established to ensure successful advancements to meet daily goals. Possible scenarios were discussed with contingencies developed to assure the successful execution of the plan.
It was finally time to rock and roll and implement the plan.
You might wonder how a road trip applies to the current environment of healthcare. Stay with me as we journey onward. The first day was long with more than 900 miles driven. We had given it our all and were exhausted as we hit our first milestone and checked into our hotel.
Day two threw some curves at us, detours, delays and a loss of cell coverage in the middle of the plains of the Dakotas and the mountains of Montana. The scenarios we had worked through were real. We pivoted to our contingencies and used paper maps to navigate, ate lunch while traveling and made time up where we could. We were tired but pushed forward to meet our next milestone.
Day three we rose, excited but tired. Per the plan, it was the least number of miles to be driven, planned to be the easiest. It was not. Several factors were influencers, none of which we had thought through in our planning.
The first factor was our humanness. We were tired, with very little reserve in our ability to push on. Anticipatory excitement to reach our goal turned to irritation at each other as the miles slowly ticked down. The second factor was our humanness. One of the team members was ready to leave the plan and explore more by taking back roads. The other team member was committed to the plan with changes only out of necessity. Negotiation skills were minimal and came down to the team member who was driving.
The third factor was, you guessed it, our humanness. Because we were in a state of emotions and fatigue, we missed the beauty that surrounded us. It was when we retraced our route on the way back that we understood what we had missed.
Road trips give you time to reflect and apply lessons learned to other aspects of one’s life. I started laughing as I thought about the degree of planning I had applied to the trip. Precision planning, but then I became the one who wanted to throw the plan out when it became hard and grinding.
Grabbing my journal, I reflected on what the road trip had taught me. The following is an excerpt from lessons while on the road:
- A strong strategic plan must include scenario development to help assure that there are no blind spots or pitfalls in the design of the plan. The what-ifs make the plan more viable and obtainable.
- Plans will change and/or fail, be ready for that.
- Developing contingencies is, in essence, an insurance policy to assure the strategic plan will be successful and milestones will be achieved.
- Pivoting and adapting a new plan can only occur when team members understand the purpose and goals of the change.
- Plans will change, and pivoting will occur. Some team members will adapt better than others. Do not leave team members behind, as they are the ones who will help you navigate the unknown. Literally, do not leave team members behind!
- Many times, leaders feel that they are super communicators. No one is a super communicator all the time. Clarity of intent and meaning only comes through multiple interactions and dialogue. Keep talking about what is before you.
- Human beings are amazing until they are not. Know that the human factor will always be there as an influence on behaviors and actions.
- Human beings will rally and give all their energy and effort to whatever is needed to reach goals in the beginning. They will self-sacrifice themselves in their desire to do their best.
- When human beings self-sacrifice and do not rebalance, they lose their ability to communicate, adapt and engage in creative solutions. They become fixated on what they know to control their fear of the unknown.
- Do not fail to appreciate what is before you, right now. The horizon will always be there, but what is right here, right now, will not.
I was asked the other day my thoughts on the state of healthcare. I smiled and answered that healthcare is on a road trip of transformation. Some will get lost, some will stick to known pathways, but a few will take the road less known and show others the better road to take.
Be that leader who is willing to plan, execute, and adapt, so you can, with your team, take a road trip on a road less known — healthcare transformation.
Martie L. Moore, MAOM, RN, CPHQ, is the President/CEO of M2WL Consulting. She has been an executive healthcare leader for more than 20 years. She has served on advisory boards for the National Pressure Injury Advisory Panel and the American Nurses Association, and she currently serves on the Dean’s Advisory Board at the University of Central Florida College of Nursing and Sigma, International Honor Society for Nursing. She was honored by Saint Martin’s University with an honorary doctorate degree for her service and accomplishments in advancing healthcare.
The opinions expressed in McKnight’s Long-Term Care News guest submissions are the author’s and are not necessarily those of McKnight’s Long-Term Care News or its editors.
