Scott Pruitt, the disgraced and departing head of the EPA, sullied that office not only with his scandalous abuses of taxpayer money, but with his obvious disdain for science. Good riddance to him. Alas, both deficiencies he epitomized will survive him. Personal enrichment and indulgence as perks of power and post are a sordid tale as old as civilization. Disdain for science is newer, because science is newer, but it likely emanates from a similar source. Science is a threat to the exercise of absolute authority predicated on false pretenses. Every manner of despot finds it…highly inconvenient.
Seeing patients in my OB/GYN office this morning, I try to stave off the mild nervousness rumbling inside of me. My good friend Monica is having a C-section this afternoon, and I’m performing it.
The nurse grabs me. “You have to check my patient now! She is screaming and bearing down.” Without letting go of my hand, she leads me into the labor room. I don’t even consider saying no, I know not to question this nurse. She has been a labor and delivery nurse nearly as long as I have been alive — she knows much more than I about everything.
Patient centricity is a central philosophy and strategy for virtually all of the top 40 global pharmaceutical companies. What this means and how to achieve it, however, varies considerably.
Just a few months ago, I was privileged to speak on a panel at the American College of Cardiology conference in Orlando, FL. My panel, devoted to the benefits of plant-based diets, included prominent champions of plant-exclusive (vegan) diets.
I guess it all converges on one point: the customer. From the dry cleaners to the operating room, the goal now seems to be customer-centricity. Yes, thumbs up, four stars, and likes are today's currency of success. In a recent survey by Kaufman Hall, that examined 200 hospitals and healthcare systems, the headline was loud and clear.
Digital health should not be inspired by technology but by great people like Wendy Mitchell. When listening to health tech or innovation presentations they often use quotes by the likes of Steve Jobs, Reed Hastings who started Netflix, Joe Gebbia & Brian Chesky who started Airbnb or some other disruptive technology entrepreneur. However, we must never forget to have great people like Wendy Mitchell as our driving force, understand their lives, their hopes and fears and their everyday problems. Unsurprisingly this goes well beyond taking their medicine.