RWL #210
VVT, Improv at work, Opioids, and more!
Greetings from the LHH! What a year 2021 is turning out to be, and it has only just begun. I hope you are all staying well and staying safe. I’m watching my many friends in healthcare delivery sharing their vaccine selfies and eagerly awaiting my opportunity so that I can relax and spend time with my family and friends again. There is a light at the end of this awful tunnel. Now hopefully our politics will settle back down and we can all focus on living our best lives.
My wife and I had a lovely frozen walk around Durham this morning - the pic above is from Main Street, right in the middle of campus. Our business school and the president’s house are off to the left. Each day is a blessing when you can appreciate the sunshine and live in a place you love. I hope you are finding the time to get outside, get some exercise, and appreciating where you are, too!
Stay well and stay safe!
Read
What: HFMA, Lessons learned from the transition from volume to value
Why: Interesting discussion of the volume to value transition (VVT). Everything needs an acronym, right? I think the most interesting thing to look at in this article is the 2x2 they have about half way through the article that creates quadrants for where organizations are with respect to transition to value.
Another thing I am seeing in the literature is the benefits that have accrued to clinical organizations that were in capitated arrangements during COVID - because their revenues are fixed, they did not see the collapse in revenue that FFS organizations did. From the article:
Healthcare providers that were in a purely fee-for-service (FFS) environment saw their revenues collapse as elective services were shut down and patients avoided them due to fear of infection. But providers that were further along in the transition saw at least some of their revenues preserved through capitated payments for those in premium-based risk or the promise of shared savings in the future due to lower utilization.
This is a quick read - worth a glance.
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What: Evil HR Lady, I Binge-Watched Top Chef and Learned 5 Things about Feedback
http://www.evilhrlady.org/2021/01/i-binge-watched-top-chef-and-learned-5-things-about-feedback.html
Why: This is what the title says - five quick things that can help you give better feedback. The Evil HR Lady always has great advice.
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What: FastCompany, Yes, And… Improv Techniques To Make You A Better Boss
https://www.fastcompany.com/3024535/yes-and-improv-techniques-to-make-you-a-better-boss
Why: There’s a lot of back and forth about how to nurture creativity in the workplace. This is a fun application of Improv to business creativity. Short passage:
Kulhan says while it’s important to create a safe space for people to thrive, take chances, fail, engage in “Yes, and…” types of exercises, and suspend judgment, it’s equally important to create a space for critical thinking. The former’s the time for all ideas, no matter how silly; the latter’s the time to edit: to find the ideas with potential and move forward.
The common thread in this literature is creating psychological safety. Psychological safety crosses to other areas as well, such as creating a high reliability organization.
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Watch
What: TEDxCannes, Ayse Birsel, If your life is your biggest project, why not design it?
Why: I am a bit fixated on the idea of life design. I shared previously some of my own thoughts, as well as Scott Adams (of Dilbert fame), and Dave Evans of the Stanford Life Design Lab. Birsel has a nice four step method she outlines in this video. In particular I like her focus on values. She has an exercise where she suggests you think about a hero and why you admire that person - and that gives you an insight into your own values. The goal, according to her, is to design an original life that looks like you, based on your values. I think that’s good advice.
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Listen
What: President’s Inbox, Transition 2021: How Will Biden Manage COVID-19?
https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/transition-2021-how-will-biden-manage-covid-19
Why: I’ve posted from the President’s Inbox a few times. This is a product of the Council on Foreign Relations, and the analysis is always excellent. This is a solid update on the COVID pandemic and discussion of how to go forward.
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What: Reason Interview, Sally Satel: The Secret History of the Opioid Epidemic
https://reason.com/podcast/2020/12/23/sally-satel-the-secret-history-of-the-opioid-epidemic/
Why: The title is a bit hyperbolic. It should be more appropriately called, A More Nuanced History. There isn’t anything secret discussed. Satel is a psychiatrist who specializes in addiction, and she intentionally moved her practice to rural America where the opioid epidemic has had such a pronounced effect. The interview provides a nuanced perspective on addiction, and how opioids have interacted with economic decline and despair. I found particularly interesting the metaphor of darkness that she borrows from Anthony Bourdain’s addiction story. She mentions how Bourdain referred to his addiction as a darkness inside himself. She then describes the communities that have succumbed to addiction as living under a cloud of darkness. I think that metaphor is powerful. There is a lot of interest here. She talks about addiction as being somewhere between a disease and a character flaw - saying that addiction responds to external stimulus, unlike schizophrenia or other biological diseases.
Thanks for reading and see you next week! If you come across any interesting stories, won't you send them my way? I'd love to hear what you think of these suggestions, and I'd love to get suggestions from you. Feel free to drop me a line at mark.bonica@unh.edu , or you can tweet to me at @mbonica .
If you’re looking for a searchable archive, you can see my draft folder here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1jwGLdjsb1WKtgH_2C-_3VvrYCtqLplFO?usp=sharing
Finally, if you find these links interesting, won’t you tell a friend? They can subscribe here: https://markbonica.substack.com/welcome
See you next Friday!
Mark
Mark J. Bonica, Ph.D., MBA, MS
Assistant Professor
Department of Health Management and Policy
University of New Hampshire
(603) 862-0598
mark.bonica@unh.edu
Health Leader Forge Podcast: http://healthleaderforge.org
'It is the small things, everyday deeds of ordinary folk, that keep the darkness at bay. Simple acts of kindness and love.' - Gandalf (The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey)