MHI Newsletter Shakes New Ground

I wanted to include a link to the Masters In Healthcare Innovation at Arizona State University college of Nursing and Healthcare Innovation newsletter. See below... please subscribe and forward as appropriate.


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ASU MHI Newsletter & Signup

Jules Verne and Healthcare Innovation

So I admit I am somewhat of a nerd... I was watching the Discovery Channel today and saw a show about Jules Verne. It got me thinking about the Masters In Healthcare Innovation program I am currently studying.

Jules was initially a shunned stockbroker. Repeatedly denied credability due to his outlandish ideas and science fiction. But as history has shown, he predicted the submarine, flying machines, space travel, dictators, world demise, and diseases. He was a true innovator, before the word innovation was buzzing the world.

So how does this relate to Healthcare Innovation. In much the same way Verne was shunned, the MHI students at some point feel the same way. They are the groups of people that don't fit the traditional mold of the healthcare industry. They have ideas, see things differently, and predict changes, well in advance of them happening. Verne found comfort in a group of friends called "The Eleven without Women". The MHI classmates, though with women, provide a similar support structure. A place where the walls of tradition are broken and ideas flow and are accepted without the context of the bottom line or power struggles found in actual hospital politics.

I found on fact very interesting in watching this show. Verne consulted with physicists, mathematicians, visionaries, and designers and calculated the trip to the moon, the weight of the lander, and the power needed to break gravity almost exactly. Decades before NASA was formed Verne calculated within 2 miles the landing spot of the astronauts returning from space in the ocean!!!! That is innovation!!!

So what is the morale of the story. Pay attention to those people you work with who question the status quo and work to change to world. They may be right on! Although questioning is a needed part of innovation.... shooting down ideas with out a pilot is not.... Give it a chance and you may predict the next revolution in healthcare!!!!

Dr. Nurses changing the flow!

After a long break I am back to stir up the blogosphere....

There has been a lot of talk lately on the Dr. Nurses. I have read blogs, mostly by physicians, questioning the value of these healthcare providers. I find that interesting and at the same time not surprising.

I find it interesting that a group can feel overwhelmed (primary care crisis) yet when the market produces comparable answers it seems some are a bit wary. But what is causing this sudden kick up of blogs and discussions? It is fear of a role change? Is it loss of power? Is it something completely different? Is it just curiosity? Nurse practitioners have been around for a long time, yet the new DNP programs have created quite a stir....

Personally I think it is a good thing. The crisis will not be solved by physicians alone. Not only do DNP provide needed services, they are a member of the team. They can reduce the demand on practices and according to research they have equal or better care outcomes. They are not a replacement for docs, they are a member of the team.

It is not surprising that this questioning of change is occurring. Healthcare is steeped in tradition, and fearful of change. The only way to change healthcare is to begin to look outside of healthcare for answers. I have posted about Disney, Auto, and other industries and how they can have influence healthcare. Living in a silo fixes nothing.

I am interested in discussing what industries can help change healthcare???? Please post your thoughts!!!!

Update- Plans

Hello all... sorry for not posting the past week, I have been hard at work finishing some projects for my masters program.

I am going to a Design Awards Dinner tonight at the Desert Ridge Marriott where the author of Wisdom of Crowds, James Surowiecki will be speaking at the KeyNote. Should be a fun experience and a good networking event. I will write a blog tomorrow about the experience.

More innovation soon to come!!!

I GOT PUBLISHED!!!

IN the April/June issue of Nursing Administration Quarterly look for the following article! Its my first of many to come, man this is exciting!

Caring for Innovation and Caring for the Innovator

Caryn Unterschuetz, BSS, RN; Paula Hughes, BSHS, RN, CHES;
Daniel Nienhauser, BA, MBA; Daniel Weberg, RN, BSN, CEN;
Lauraine Jackson, RN,BC

Nurs Admin Quarterly
Vol. 32, No. 2, pp. 133–141
Copyright c 2008 Wolters Kluwer Health Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

Exclusive Social Networks....good idea?

Recently I have seen several blogs on exclusive physician-only social networks. Sites such as Sermo and Ozmosis adn Tyromed have popped up creating a place for physicians to share ideas and collaborate. My question is, is this a good idea?

Do exclusive sites like this serve to generate new knowledge, new ideas, and new innovation....OR do they silo thoughts into the doctor world, lost forever? I cannot honestly answer that because I am not a physician and cannot access the sites... SO am I feeling left out... Not likely. I do wonder about the effect of theses sites though. Do they continue to widen the gap between docs and other specialties like nursing, respiratory, administration, nurse practitioners, and PA's?

Wouldn't sharing case studies and collaborating with the health care team only serve to create better outcomes?

I understand the need to create a site that the general public cannot access.... Although patients do have a say in the world of health care, an open site like that only serves to breed another MySpace. But a collaborative website that includes all health care workers and promotes a professional exchange of ideas and collaboration seems like a better idea.

Keep your eyes open, as a site like this will be beta testing soon!!!! I will update more as this occurs!!!

Damn Army!

I almost had a heart attack today when I read this story. The Army has awarded a $900,000 contract to DRC (a patient simulation training company) for ONE YEAR.

For those of you who know me I too have a simulation consulting company as well. Simovative Solutions LLC! I have done some work with schools of nursing and am now working with a publisher to create the next innovation in simulation learning.

Although it can be lucrative

I can only hope to get $900,000 for a year contract... You think the Navy needs sim?