Healthcare IT & Transformation

IT Resources from other industries

Every industry I consult for tells me how unique and complicated they are. They all want IT people who speak their industry language and maybe even have experience on the end-user side of the fence. It is inherent in human nature to be comfortable with the familiar.

In healthcare, this need for “one of our own” is very strong and has led to an isolated IT resource pool that, in general, hasn’t benefited from the advances made in other industries. Lets face it: healthcare, as an industry, is far behind in technology! Instead of making excuses or  being defensive or embarrassed… lets fix it. 

Don’t be afraid to hire IT resources and, particularly, IT leaders from other industries. They’ll bring new concepts, technologies and energy to healthcare IT. I remember it was a big question mark for many when I took my first healthcare position. Would I be able to function in this strange new environment? Would my other industry experience be relevant? I must tell you I was never worried. I’ve worked in many industries and all of them prefer someone who acts like “one of their own”. The key, for me, is how quickly I can assimilate my language to be perceived as just that. I don’t believe I missed a single step.

Honestly, the premise of healthcare is one more people can understand than lets say: manufacturing. Most people can relate to being a patient and understand the patient perspective of care. However, until I learned the manufacturing industry I couldn’t really understand the process. Most people never have the need to understand what a switch is in the telecom industry; how your credit card charges get processed across the Internet in financial services or the costing of the ingredients in your average lipstick. I have the dubious distinction of understanding all these business processes but most people never will and nor should they.

My first HIMSS conference was an interesting experience as well. I walked in and out of sessions trying to find someone talking about interoperability, customer service, enterprise technology layers and strategy but all the sessions I found on these subjects at the time were remedial from my perspective. I heard people mention Lean only to be told that we’re not building Toyotas. I had to leave the room. Such closed-mindedness is not productive when healthcare has processes that need some serious improvement. I heard others talk about innovative technology only to have the red flag of patient safety waved frantically in their face as a showstopper. In fact I heard the constraint of patient safety used many times to stop technology…. when in fact I believe patient safety is the single most compelling reason to use more technology. I was flabbergasted!

I could have turned away from healthcare at this point deciding it was too backwards for me. Instead I decided they needed my help more than any other industry. Healthcare is starting to move forward which is why I think it is the most exciting industry to work in. Do we need IT resources with a clinical background? Of course! We just don’t need to put blinders on and only choose from the previously experienced healthcare resource pool. Healthcare IT has become incestuous and will benefit from some new blood. Don’t be one of those IT departments that only knows how to do things the way they’re done in healthcare. Get out of your box!

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