- fastcompany.com/magazine/155/the-cure.html
- kaiserhealthnews.org/stories/2011/april/20/leadership-at-alameda-county-medical-center.aspx?referrer=search
List date(s) this work was published or aired.
May-11
Provide a brief synopsis of the story or stories, including any significant findings.
Public hospitals across the US are in serious financial trouble. It was so bad for Alameda County Medical Center in Oakland, Ca. that the hospital was in serious danger of closing. The board brought in a new CEO from the outside , Wright Lassiter III. He did was nearly a dozen former CEOs there could not — move the budget to a surplus. The story details how this was done — not by firing people or laying them off, although some of this occurred, but by focusing the entire management and workforce of the hospital on finding ways to save money. One detail: shifting from an amnio fluid syringe from one that cost hundreds of dollars to one that cost pennies. Lassiter’s prime challenge was convincing a jaded workforce that every effort was made to save money before any layoffs occurred. Six years after his arrive, ACMC remains in the black. Lassiter changed the culture from deep-set dysfunction into enthusiastic cooperation. He serves as a model for other public hospitals to follow
Explain types of documents, data or Internet resources used. Were FOI or public records act requests required? How did this affect the work?
Detailed hospital financial reports. Bond debt documents. County board and hospital board meeting minutes. State of California reports on finance and quality. Deep searching of relevant news clips on the Internet. Search of blog posts to locate inside sources. (No FOI or public record act requests were necessary.)
Explain types of human sources used.
Interviewed top managers at hospitals. Interviewed doctors, nurses and other workers, some off the record, some on the record. Interviewed union officials. Interviewed hospital consultants and other industry experts.
Results:
Fast Company editors told me readers responded with enthusiasm to story. I was told story was being forwarded among public hospital administrators. A business professor at Rutgers asked to use the story for a course he’s teaching on leadership.
Follow-up (if any). Have you run a correction or clarification on the report or has anyone come forward to challenge its accuracy? If so, please explain.
No corrections needed, no one challenged accuracy,.
Advice to other journalists planning a similar story or project.
Make sure to talk to as many people as you can to make sure what you are being told is true. Be willing to spend a lot of time searching documents. If you don’t know how to read financial documents, be sure to learn.