Latest / Becker’s Healthcare -- Pediatric Leadership Podcast / How Children's Nebraska's Jerry Vuchak Works to Drive "A Culture of Innovation"

Transcript

How Children's Nebraska's Jerry Vuchak Works to Drive "A Culture of Innovation" · Becker’s Healthcare -- Pediatric Leadership Podcast

• 0:05
  - This is the Becker's Healthcare Podcast, created
• 0:07
  by the team of Becker's Healthcare,
• 0:08
  a multimedia company devoted to the people
• 0:10
  who power us healthcare.
• 0:11
  Four new 15 minute episodes are released daily containing
• 0:14
  industry news analysis and thought leadership.
• 0:16
  From powerful healthcare decision makers Support our show
• 0:19
  by leaving it a five star rating and review on Apple Podcast
• 0:22
  or other platforms you use.
• 0:24
  It's a chance to tell us what you like about the show
• 0:26
  and act on your feedback.
• 0:27
  Thanks for listening. Now here's the episode.
• 0:30
  - This is Chris Doster with the Becker's Healthcare Podcast.
• 0:33
  I'm thrilled to rejoined by Jerry ak, chief Information
• 0:36
  and Innovation Officer for Children's Nebraska.
• 0:39
  Jerry, thank you so much for joining us today.
• 0:41
  - My pleasure to be here.
• 0:45
  - Excellent. Could you please introduce yourself
• 0:46
  and tell us a bit about your background?
• 0:49
  - Sure. So Jerry ak as was mentioned,
• 0:51
  I'm the Chief Information
• 0:52
  and Innovation Officer here at Children's Nebraska.
• 0:57
  I've been, uh, with Children's for about five years now.
• 1:01
  My responsibilities, uh, span information technology,
• 1:06
  information security,
• 1:08
  clinical engineering, strategic planning.
• 1:11
  And then about 18 months ago,
• 1:13
  we developed a new group called Digital
• 1:14
  Health and Innovation.
• 1:17
  I've been in healthcare for the majority of my career,
• 1:21
  32 years.
• 1:23
  Uh, always worked in, uh, academic medical centers,
• 1:26
  including children's Nebraska, mostly in adult,
• 1:31
  uh, healthcare.
• 1:33
  Although in my last position at BJC
• 1:35
  Healthcare, I supported St.
• 1:37
  Louis Children's Hospital
• 1:38
  and really got an appreciation for pediatric healthcare,
• 1:42
  which really interested me in this position here
• 1:45
  at Children's Nebraska.
• 1:48
  - Certainly you have a, a long and a story career.
• 1:51
  Jerry, thank you again for joining us.
• 1:53
  So what would you say is the evolution
• 1:55
  of the innovation gap in pediatrics
• 1:58
  and what are children's Nebraska's strategies to closing it?
• 2:02
  - Uh, that's really, really a great question.
• 2:05
  So first of all, uh, you know, as I mentioned,
• 2:08
  I have strategic planning.
• 2:09
  So we have five pillars of our strategic plan,
• 2:14
  and one of those pillars is to improve the health
• 2:17
  and wellbeing of every child through
• 2:20
  innovation and discovery.
• 2:22
  So we call that out very prominently in our strategic plan.
• 2:28
  We do have a child health research institute in partnership
• 2:32
  with our academic partner, uh, university
• 2:35
  of Nebraska Medical Center.
• 2:37
  So discovery, uh, research
• 2:39
  and innovation are very core in our strategic plan.
• 2:43
  I also mentioned that we have five core values, uh,
• 2:46
  in our organization, innovation, collaboration,
• 2:50
  accountability, respect, and excellence.
• 2:52
  So we call innovation out as well in our core values.
• 2:57
  And one of the reasons we, we find it so important,
• 3:01
  probably the primary reason we find it so important is
• 3:04
  that it is a national statistic that
• 3:08
  of all the dollars spent on healthcare innovation, uh,
• 3:12
  technology, less than 2% of that is dedicated
• 3:16
  to pediatrics.
• 3:18
  And when you think about, uh, the population
• 3:21
  of the United States, uh, over 20% of
• 3:25
  that population is under 18 years old.
• 3:27
  So it's a little bit of an alarming statistic
• 3:30
  that less than 2%
• 3:32
  of innovation dollars are spent on pediatrics.
• 3:36
  We feel it's important to bridge that gap
• 3:39
  because we want to intervene in these children's lives
• 3:43
  to set them up for great health into adulthood.
• 3:46
  So intervene early
• 3:48
  and as often as we need to with innovation to set them up
• 3:52
  for health, uh, in the future.
• 3:56
  - Jerry, given the mission of not only your health system,
• 3:59
  but yourself and your team, what are some
• 4:01
  of the recent innovations that you
• 4:02
  and your team are proud of and what's on the horizon?
• 4:05
  - Yeah, that's, that's really a great question.
• 4:08
  So, I, some of the things we're very, very proud of, uh,
• 4:11
  that have transpired of the past couple years are we have a,
• 4:17
  a project that's named Project Austin in our organization,
• 4:22
  and it was really the idea of two nurses in our organization
• 4:27
  that saw a need in the community of, uh, with children
• 4:32
  that have a lot of medical complexity.
• 4:34
  So, uh, they had this idea to partner with
• 4:39
  EMS per personnel in the community to make sure
• 4:42
  that those personnel had the most current medical records
• 4:46
  of, of those medically complex kids
• 4:49
  to intervene appropriately
• 4:51
  and, uh, potentially to save lives
• 4:54
  and to advance those patients' outcomes.
• 4:57
  And, uh, in 2015, I can share a statistic, we, uh,
• 5:03
  uh, served about 15 patients in that program,
• 5:06
  and we're up to about 2000 patients in that program now.
• 5:10
  And really what that does is allow those EMS personnel
• 5:15
  to get to those records.
• 5:17
  And recently we have developed an application
• 5:20
  for those EMS personnel.
• 5:22
  So imagine them having a, you know, digitized paper
• 5:26
  that they were revert referring to
• 5:29
  in the past when they encountered one
• 5:31
  of these kids that needed help.
• 5:33
  We've now, uh, digitized it that in an application
• 5:38
  that gives them access to real time, uh,
• 5:41
  feed from our medical record here at,
• 5:44
  at children's Nebraska.
• 5:45
  So that's really an advanced innovation
• 5:48
  that we're very proud of.
• 5:50
  And as a matter of fact, uh, our organization was recognized
• 5:54
  by the American Nurses Credentialing Center, uh,
• 5:57
  for excellence in nursing for that program.
• 6:02
  Uh, recently, uh, in October, they were recognized by the,
• 6:07
  the Magnet Conference.
• 6:08
  So really, really great work there.
• 6:11
  Uh, the other thing that I'll call out is that
• 6:14
  our organization was just recognized by Modern Healthcare
• 6:19
  for our use of 3D print technology
• 6:21
  and advancing, uh, patient outcomes, uh, which is,
• 6:26
  uh, uh, recognized as a top innovator organization, again,
• 6:31
  by modern healthcare.
• 6:33
  We've been able to intervene with 3D printing technology,
• 6:38
  uh, to allow our surgeons to practice surgeries
• 6:43
  before they have to occur.
• 6:46
  It reduces the amount of time for the surgery
• 6:50
  and allows the, the, the surgeons to get an idea of
• 6:53
  what they're facing, uh, prior to having to,
• 6:57
  to start the surgery.
• 6:58
  So really great advancement there.
• 7:02
  I I will call out another thing that we're very proud of.
• 7:05
  Uh, a generous donor in our community is helping
• 7:09
  to finance an innovation center here at Children's Nebraska.
• 7:15
  We, uh, through, uh, COVID
• 7:18
  and the development of a hybrid work environment,
• 7:21
  we've been able to identify about 8,000 square feet
• 7:26
  in our organization.
• 7:27
  So we originally envisioned having to build a bricks
• 7:31
  and mortar innovation center.
• 7:32
  We've been able to save the organization a lot of money
• 7:35
  by buying backspace, uh,
• 7:37
  through our hybrid work arrangement program.
• 7:40
  And we're in the process of building out
• 7:42
  that innovation center now.
• 7:44
  It will open in early 2024.
• 7:47
  And some of the things we're gonna highlight, uh, in
• 7:50
  that innovation center is it'll, it'll showcase our use
• 7:55
  of 3D uh, imaging technologies.
• 7:59
  We'll have a patient room of the future
• 8:02
  where we're partnering with some of our critical vendors on
• 8:05
  advancing the patient patient experience
• 8:08
  and advancing patient outcomes as well.
• 8:12
  We're we're getting into a bit
• 8:14
  of application development in our environment.
• 8:17
  So if we see a gap in services that some of our vendors, uh,
• 8:21
  don't supply an an application, we're doing a little bit
• 8:26
  of application development.
• 8:28
  We're also going to have a real-time
• 8:30
  decision support analysis center.
• 8:33
  So we'll be able to, uh, if you've ever heard
• 8:36
  of a virtual ICU environment, we're gonna take that
• 8:41
  one step beyond a virtual ICU to what we're calling,
• 8:46
  uh, patient care of the future.
• 8:49
  We're we'll be able to take information from, uh,
• 8:53
  biomedical devices at the bedside, analyze that data
• 8:57
  and intervene more quickly
• 8:59
  to improve positive patient outcomes.
• 9:01
  So a few of the things that we're,
• 9:03
  we're gonna be highlighting in our innovation
• 9:05
  centers, we advance that.
• 9:08
  - Jerry, congratulations
• 9:09
  to your team on all those innovations.
• 9:11
  No doubt they've helped a whole lot of people
• 9:14
  since they were, uh, implemented.
• 9:17
  Uh, when you look around
• 9:18
  and you have other people in your healthcare sphere,
• 9:22
  let's say, and they're trying to devote more resources
• 9:27
  to this, what sort of advice would you have for them
• 9:29
  for using certain innovations that
• 9:33
  childrens Nebraska has put at the forefront?
• 9:36
  - That's really, really a great question.
• 9:38
  So, so a two-part answer to that.
• 9:41
  So first, it's very important to build a culture
• 9:45
  of innovation in your organization.
• 9:47
  So for us, this is really a grassroots effort
• 9:52
  and tapping into the wisdom
• 9:54
  and creative wisdom of all
• 9:56
  of our team members across the organization.
• 9:59
  When we developed, uh, this, uh, digital health
• 10:04
  and innovation strategy, we very quickly realized we,
• 10:09
  we wouldn't be able to do it effectively by hiring,
• 10:13
  for example, a team of 20 people
• 10:15
  who were just devoted to doing this.
• 10:18
  Because what we know here at Children's Nebraska is the best
• 10:21
  ideas come from the caregivers at the bedside
• 10:24
  are folks working out in the field.
• 10:27
  And so what we decided as a leadership team is we wanted
• 10:31
  to give all of our team members across the organization an
• 10:35
  opportunity to participate in
• 10:37
  what we're calling the culture of innovation.
• 10:40
  And we've taken a two-pronged approach,
• 10:42
  uh, approach to that.
• 10:44
  So first of all, we've developed affinity groups
• 10:47
  for innovation, and we've started with four affinity groups.
• 10:51
  So we have one around virtual reality, the second's
• 10:55
  around our 3D printing technology.
• 10:58
  The third is around artificial intelligence,
• 11:00
  and the fourth is around digital wearables.
• 11:03
  And so we have a physician lead
• 11:06
  and an executive lead for each of those groups,
• 11:09
  but they're open for anyone in the organization
• 11:12
  to participate in.
• 11:13
  And we have the, um, assurance of all
• 11:17
  of our leaders across the organization
• 11:19
  that they're gonna allot time for their folks to,
• 11:22
  that are interested in that, uh, uh,
• 11:25
  have an interest in those programs to participate in them.
• 11:29
  And we're very excited
• 11:31
  because, uh, we have up to about 80 folks
• 11:36
  participating in any one of those, uh,
• 11:40
  those affinity groups.
• 11:42
  So those meet monthly.
• 11:44
  So a lot of great participation across the organization
• 11:48
  and a lot of advancement across the organization.
• 11:51
  The other thing that we've done is we've introduced
• 11:54
  what we're calling the innovation cup,
• 11:57
  which is a competition in the organization,
• 12:00
  and everyone across the organization is allowed
• 12:03
  to participate in it.
• 12:05
  And what it's about is submitting your creative ideas
• 12:10
  around, uh, two specific areas of
• 12:15
  that we're focusing on.
• 12:16
  The first is around, uh, patient engagement.
• 12:21
  Uh, so how our patients are feeling about their experience
• 12:24
  with us, uh, advancing positive patient outcomes
• 12:29
  and their overall perception of us as an organization.
• 12:32
  And then the second is our team member engagement.
• 12:36
  So our employee experience
• 12:38
  and our team member engagement is
• 12:41
  of utmost importance to us.
• 12:43
  We wanna retain our employees,
• 12:45
  we have really great employees
• 12:46
  and wanna make sure they have a great experience
• 12:48
  with the organization as well.
• 12:50
  So that's our other focus area.
• 12:53
  So our innovation cup, our, our,
• 12:56
  across the organization folks are allowed
• 12:58
  to participate in that.
• 13:00
  And we just launched that this fall. Very successful.
• 13:03
  We got close to a hundred ideas
• 13:06
  across those two areas of focus.
• 13:09
  And right now we're in the process of, uh, judging those.
• 13:13
  We have a judging panel
• 13:16
  of multidisciplinary leaders across the organization with
• 13:20
  who will pick the top ideas in each of those categories.
• 13:24
  And then our, we have, we're very lucky, uh, very blessed
• 13:28
  to have a strong foundation in our organization
• 13:32
  who has raised money
• 13:33
  to help us advance those ideas to fruition.
• 13:36
  So if, for example,
• 13:39
  someone had a great idea about developing an application to,
• 13:43
  to help our employees
• 13:45
  with their experience in the organization, make that better
• 13:48
  for them, that would get funded
• 13:50
  and we would do the development around that
• 13:53
  and then roll it out to the rest of the organization.
• 13:55
  So, so to your point in your question,
• 13:59
  we find it's gonna be very important
• 14:02
  that the organization advances a culture of innovation
• 14:06
  and that folks feel empowered to be creative, to think
• 14:10
  beyond the status quo
• 14:12
  and not do everything the way they used to
• 14:15
  before to think innovatively
• 14:17
  and advance, uh, the organization.
• 14:19
  I'll say the second thing I think
• 14:21
  that is really critical in giving advice is
• 14:25
  what we found is unfortunately,
• 14:28
  the traditional healthcare vendors,
• 14:31
  the big healthcare vendors, um, are not
• 14:35
  as progressive as they could be.
• 14:37
  So, you know, healthcare
• 14:39
  for a long time has lagged on the innovation front.
• 14:43
  And I would say, say there's still some truth to that today,
• 14:48
  when we reach out to our vendor, traditional vendor partners
• 14:51
  and say, Hey, we're we're trying to advance innovation.
• 14:55
  Would you help be a partner with us on that front?
• 14:59
  They're, they're quick to come to the table,
• 15:02
  but they're not quick to execute.
• 15:03
  They're not as agile as, as I think they could be.
• 15:07
  Uh, and others in our organization think they could be.
• 15:11
  What we've found success at is, uh, partnering with,
• 15:16
  uh, more, what do we call startup companies,
• 15:20
  a little bit more agile,
• 15:22
  have a really quick development cycle.
• 15:24
  We've found success there.
• 15:27
  So, so I think it's very important to really vet vendors,
• 15:31
  look at folks that can be agile,
• 15:33
  that have a solid development cycle
• 15:36
  and can advance the ideas you have more quickly, uh, so
• 15:40
  that you can actually, uh, you know, see the outcomes that,
• 15:45
  that you're trying to achieve.
• 15:48
  - Certainly, Jerry, I hope,
• 15:50
  and we hope that the culture
• 15:53
  that you've created at Children's Nebraska yields any number
• 15:56
  of ideas and that vendors are able to match that
• 15:58
  with their agility.
• 16:00
  Uh, lastly, I will ask you, uh,
• 16:02
  what issue in pediatrics do you believe deserves
• 16:04
  to be discussed more often?
• 16:07
  - You know, so I, I think I will go back to, uh,
• 16:12
  that statistic of, you know, less than 2%
• 16:16
  of innovation dollars in healthcare are spent in pediatrics.
• 16:21
  I think all of us in the pediatric community need
• 16:25
  to be very focused around that.
• 16:27
  And we're starting to see some movement in that.
• 16:30
  You know, there's a consortium, uh, that's based in, uh,
• 16:34
  at LA Children's called Kids X,
• 16:38
  which has been very successful about
• 16:41
  bringing pediatric hospitals together with, uh,
• 16:44
  innovative vendors to advance innovation in pediatrics.
• 16:48
  You know, there's another program, I, I can't remember
• 16:52
  where it's, it's exactly where it's based out of,
• 16:55
  but it's called VINs Kids,
• 16:57
  and it also partners, uh, pediatric hospitals with
• 17:02
  more innovative thinking, uh, vendor partners to,
• 17:06
  to advance, uh, innovation in pediatric healthcare.
• 17:10
  And, and I think we need to continue to hone that focus to
• 17:14
  where we start to see the tide turn, uh,
• 17:18
  to those equitable dollars coming into pediatrics
• 17:22
  for research and innovation.
• 17:24
  Because as I mentioned
• 17:25
  before, you know, when you think about intervening
• 17:30
  early in the healthcare of children,
• 17:34
  that just sets them up for many, many years, more years of,
• 17:39
  of good health into adulthood.
• 17:42
  And, uh, that's when we should be intervening quickly
• 17:48
  and often when we see needs in the community, what,
• 17:51
  whether it be, uh,
• 17:53
  because kids aren't getting the appropriate healthcare
• 17:56
  because of social determinants of health
• 17:58
  or what other the, the circumstances are making sure
• 18:02
  that we're intervening early in the healthcare of these kids
• 18:07
  and young adults to make sure that they're set up for, uh,
• 18:11
  great health into adulthood.
• 18:13
  And I think we all need to maintain
• 18:15
  that focus in the pediatric community, uh, in,
• 18:19
  in advanced innovation to help us do that.
• 18:23
  - Jerry, thank you so much for being so generous
• 18:25
  with your time and your insights today.
• 18:27
  We definitely cannot wait to share them with our audience,
• 18:29
  and we hope to connect with you soon.
• 18:31
  - Awesome. It was a pleasure to be with you today.
• 18:34
  I love talking about this topic and,
• 18:36
  and really appreciate the opportunity.
• 18:40
  - It's so important for leaders at the top of organizations
• 18:42
  to keep learning, stay sharp, grow their networks,
• 18:45
  help our audience better do this in a more simplified,
• 18:48
  personalized, and meaningful way.
• 18:50
  Becker's Healthcare has launched my bhc,
• 18:53
  it's your trusted Becker's healthcare experience
• 18:55
  and more with content, connections, events
• 18:57
  and learning opportunities.
• 18:59
  Join the community free
• 19:00
  of charge@www.my dot becker's hospital
• 19:04
  review.com and we'll see you there.