I had a phone conversation yesterday with an emergency medicine physician after her shift at an unnamed hospital in an undisclosed state. She had a number of frustrations to share and she doesn’t really have an outlet (and doesn’t want…
See all of Greg’s email updates on this page Greg Jacobson, MD is a practicing emergency room physician. He’s a friend and trusted colleague and he’s not prone to overreaction and exaggeration. We just got off the phone and his…
TL;DR: Psychological safety is a shared belief that you can raise concerns, admit mistakes, ask questions, or offer ideas without fear of blame or humiliation. Harvard Business School professor Amy Edmondson, whose 1999 research first established the concept, defines it…
Healthcare – Creating Value for Patients Sometimes you just need to get a team together and improve. Here’s a good example of use of A3 thinking to improve opioid prescribing in outpatient rheumatology. Reducing harm requires the conditions to speak up, raise…
Joining me for episode #354 of the podcast is Kim Hollon, the CEO and President of Signature Healthcare, based in Brockton, Massachusetts. I first met Kim about a decade ago and, as we discover during the podcast discussion, one of…
My guest for Episode #353 of the podcast is somebody whose work I’ve appreciated for a long time — Quint Studer. I was first introduced to his book Hardwiring Excellence back in 2005 and I’ve been following his work (and…
Joining me for Episode #351 of the podcast are my friends Joel Tosi and Dion Stewart, co-founders of the company Dojo & Co. They’re the authors of the new book (to be released on November 19) called Creating Your Dojo:…
My guest for Episode #345 is Edward Niedermeyer, author of Ludicrous: The Unvarnished Story of Tesla Motors. The book offers a deeply reported look at Tesla’s history, strategy, and culture–and why manufacturing and leadership still matter. Ed is Senior Editor…
Lee Iacocca, the former CEO of Chrysler, passed away on July 2. Ross Perot, founder and former CEO of EDS, also passed away a week later. In reading about him recently, I learned Perot didn’t like to be called “H.…
Chick-fil-A is widely known for fast service, high quality, and a strong culture–but behind that reputation is a deliberate approach to Lean and Kaizen that engages every employee in continuous improvement. In this podcast episode, I’m joined by David B.…
TL;DR: Numbers don’t make decisions–people do. Metrics that look “good” or “bad” can be dangerously misleading when leaders ignore context, system limits, and natural variation. The Chernobyl disaster shows what happens when incomplete data, fear of speaking up, and rigid…
I was invited to be a guest on a Detroit radio talk show that’s hosted by Dr. Paul Reeves, a show called “Dr. Paul’s Family Talk.” Dr. Paul is an educator (and a drummer, like me!) and he asked some…
