Five Lessons I Learned in 2020

As a physician and healthcare leader listening to the news about a possible pandemic, I grasped early on that we were going to face something at a hugely different scale than we had ever imagined or planned for. That realization became even more real through the second wave of COVID-19 and the current state of the pandemic.

With 2020 drawing to a close and inviting reflection, my experiences this year gave me insights into five areas.

1.     2020 taught me that our progress toward a high reliability patient care framework with a focus on safety, transparency and expertise can face setbacks in exceptionally high pressure environments, such as with COVID-19 pandemic.

2.     2020 taught me that a higher purpose and scientific principles can withstand disinformation, denial, conspiracies and pushback at the highest levels. 

3.     2020 taught me that readiness and preparedness for the next major event at the scale of the current pandemic will require a level of authentic leadership and integration of clinical, operational and financial teams that most healthcare organizations have not foreseen or have not yet been willing to embrace.

4.     2020 taught me that until we architect healthcare as a basic right that delivers the best possible patient outcomes, we cannot effectively and permanently erase health disparities.

5.     2020 taught me that we have not put the right strategies, focus and systems in place in support of our public health infrastructure and workforce.

2021 must be a truly transformational year for healthcare. Let’s seize this moment of clarity and get started. There is much work to be done to better serve the healthcare needs of our communities.