Guest Blog: "Transparency Can Bite You "
The following is a guest blog from Anthony Cirillo:
Transparency Can Bite You if You're Not Totally Upfront
The CEO of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Paul Levy, writes one of the most insightful and impactful blogs about the healthcare industry. In it he has been fairly transparent about both his professional and personal life.
A month ago I would have said he was totally transparent. That is until it was revealed that he had a personal relationship with a former employee that the board of directors deemed improper and who further fined him $50,000 among other actions to be taken. Mr. Levy dutifully reported this on his blog after revelations surfaced and further implored his readers saying: "For those of you who have come to rely on me for my pursuit of quality and safety of care and continuous process improvement in our hospitals, I hope that this series of events and revelations will not undercut the importance or validity of what I have been saying. I especially apologize to you if you feel that I have let you down and, in so doing, in any way weakened the case I have been making."
To his credit Mr. Levy took the lumps for being a very visible CEO with a very passionate platform. And that is a lesson for any leader in healthcare to heed. If you are going to be transparent be 100 percent transparent. Or be prepared to face the consequences. Some would argue that personal and business issues should be separated. Easier said than done. Just ask Tiger Woods. Has Mr. Levy hurt his case for his platform? Perhaps a little. But he has built up a lot of credit over time through his blog. Still just like Tiger, people will look at you or regard you a bit differently now.
If you want to tread in the transparent waters beware the sharks ready to pounce on your every move. But do forge on. We need people who are passionate enough about issues to speak their mind and take a stand. Wimps get nowhere.
Anthony Cirillo, FACHE, ABC is a health care consultant, senior advocate and blogger for Wellsphere, Medpedia and others in the area of aging, person and patient-centered care and marketing. He consults with long-term care facilities and is available for management retreats and association keynotes. He is the author of "Who Moved My Dentures? His company, Fast Forward Consulting empowers organizations to change the healthcare experience and leverage it in their marketing. Hear him speak this month at American College of Healthcare Administrators in Philadelphia. More at www.4wardfast.com and www.anthonyssong.com.