About
No matter what kind of organization you lead, I suspect we have at least these things in common. We want patients to feel genuinely cared for. We want caregivers who know — truly know — that what they do matters. And we want to help others act on their best intentions.
That's the work I've devoted the last three decades to. My entire career has been in healthcare — and apparently, I can't stop writing books about it.
My first, Managing Patient Expectations: The Art of Finding and Keeping Loyal Patients (Jossey-Bass, 1998), was followed by a collaboration with Leslie Bank: I'm Sorry to Hear That: Real Life Responses to Patients' 101 Most Common Complaints About Health Care (Huron). My third, Split-Second Kindness: Making a Difference When Time is Limited, is a pocket-sized collection of kindnesses a caregiver can extend in two minutes, one minute, thirty seconds — and even ten seconds. My newest is Recommended: How Hospital Leaders Can Increase Survey Returns and Encourage Patient Testimonials.
I am working on my next two books. Good writing rests. Determined writers, apparently, do not.
My path to hospital senior vice president for operations began as an after-school chef's helper. My first boss ended every conversation, every meeting, with the same words: "You're never sorry you were kind." If Mr. Zagrodny were still alive, I hope he would say: "You did okay, kid."
I have spoken for healthcare organizations in 49 states and many countries. I've served on the Board of Examiners for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and held Fellowships in both the American College of Healthcare Executives and the American Society for Healthcare Risk Management. For twenty-five years, I've served on Connecticut's Commission for Medicolegal Investigations — which has given me a front-row seat to the intersection of healthcare, law, and public accountability.
My favorite question for making a quick connection with patients is to ask: ”What do you like to do when you're not here being our patient?" Watch what happens to the room when you try it.
Recommended emphasizes the power of testimonials in helping prospective patients, caregivers, hospitals, and communities. Here is the testimonial I do my best to live up to:
"Susan's work is inspiring and useful. Kindness and gratitude in work and in life need to be renewed from time to time for all of us."
— Frederick Keen, CRNA, Manager, Anesthesia Department, Minnesota