Archive for the ‘Integrative Health’ category

Going “Rogue” – An Open Letter to Healthcare CEOs

October 17th, 2011

For the past three years, I have had a chance to dig heavily into the future, and I’m pretty convinced that the old saying, “Necessity is the mother of invention,” has never been more true than in today’s healthcare environment.  What was a given before in healthcare management may no longer be so in the future, and since most hospitals only Chief Innovation Officer is the President him or herself, their tasks of visualizing, understanding, deciding and directing the future of the organization will be shifting even more heavily from quantitative deciding-and-directing to the more qualitative visualizing-and-understanding side of this leadership equation.

Although I understand the reluctance of most CEO’s to be on the bleeding edge of creativity, my experiences at my former positions can significantly reduce or mitigate the majority of risk from any decision regarding innovation.

Our new competitive environment has an insatiable appetite for information, access and connectivity and it’s a well known fact that a periodic injection of chaos fosters creativity and forces your co-workers to leverage technology.   Because most organizations already have an environment that is built on trust and collaboration, injecting a little creativity can put their CEOs in more of a position to be the orchestrator and the inspirer.

That Used to be Us That Used to be Us is the new book by Thomas Friedman and Michael Mandelbaum in which they analyze four specific challenges Americans face as a nation—globalization, the revolution in information technology, the nation’s chronic deficits, and our pattern of excessive energy consumption—and spell out what they believe needs to be done to sustain the American dream, and achieve true supremacy based on innovation and excellence.

As an innovator and futurist,  several sections of this book captured my imagination and brought closure to a myriad of beliefs that I have instinctively embraced over the past few decades.  When my responsibilities revolved around the CEO position, I always saw my job as being a contributor to an environment where creative decisions were embraced allowed to happen and then those innovators were rewarded and inspired to keep going.

As the co-founder of a Research Institute, one issue that continually resonates with me is that  “We don’t have enough ‘rogue’ CEO’s in healthcare administration to take risks so that the rest can benefit from both their successes and knowledge.”

Well, fortunately, I’m your guy.

For the last several years I have been out there implementing unusual things, and many of these disruptive ideas are coming to pass in a big way.  I was the first hospital CEO to blog, starting in 2005 (HealingHospitals.com), was an early Planetree board member, created the first breast cancer research center dedicated to the Department of Defense, and filled my hospital with Integrative Medicine, hotel amenities, and music.

Below, I’ve listed thirteen new examples of areas of innovation, in which we’ve been working for the past three years, as well as numerous ways to pay for these initiatives.

 Thirteen Examples of Disruptive Technologies and Practices That Hospitals Need to Understand 

  1. Robotic algorithmic software that improves emergency room flow by 37 to 50 percent.
  2. Financial transaction software that reduces electronic transfer fees exponentially (25% of health care income is from electronic transfers.)
  3. Utilization of nurses and actuaries as patient advocates to significantly reduce your employee health costs.
  4. Preventative medicine reimbursements that can double a physician’s income and add bottom line profits to hospitals.
  5. Treble growth potential of your organization through adding Integrative Medicine
  6. Diabetic retinopathy telemedicine for Family and Internal Medicine docs.
  7. Proteomic and genomic testing creating new “hospital income.”
  8. Peritoneal lavage that extends Stage 4 cancer patients from three months to five years or more.
  9. Bone scaffolding that supports bone growth and virtually eliminates bone infection.
  10. Special bandages that protect and stem cell cocktail sprays that heal burn wounds
  11.  Access to a cancer consortium that allows small and medium hospitals to become Certified Cancer Centers
  12. Hospitals paid “not to play” during an energy crisis as a back-up to the power grid.
  13. Green hazardous waste disposal costing 25% less than traditional methods

If you’d like to learn more about any adopting any of the concepts above, or receive a leadership presentation that will enable your staff to see the opportunities (rather than just the threats) in our current, uncertain environment, here’s where to find me.

Why Are Hospitals The Way They Are? from Nick Jacobs, FACHE on Vimeo.

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In Memoriam, Dr. Lee Lipsenthal

September 22nd, 2011

We have not even to risk the adventure alone; for the heroes of all time have gone before us. The labyrinth is thoroughly known. We have only to follow the thread of the hero path. And where we had thought to find an abomination, we shall find…God.
—Joseph Campbell

Such has been my experience with Dr. Lee Lipsenthal. Lee was the co-founder of Finding Balance in a Medical Life, a recognized leader, teacher and pioneer in the field of provider wellness. He was internationally known for his research work with my friend Dr. Dean Ornish in preventive cardiology. He was also well known in the field of Integrative Health, and past president of the American Board of Integrative Holistic Medicine.

Lee Lipsenthal, MD - Enjoy Every Sandwich - Nick Jacobs, FACHE - HealingHospitals.comAlthough Lee’s entrance into medicine was traditional, (a BS from George Washington University, his MD from Howard and an internship and residency at the Medical College of Pennsylvania), he started on his truth path of healing as a resident, where he developed the first multi-disciplinary cardiac rehabilitation program in Philadelphia, a plan that addressed stress reduction, exercise and nutrition teaching.

He then went on to become the Director of Cardiovascular Services for the Benjamin Franklin Clinic in Philadelphia, as well as a staff physician at The Pennsylvania Hospital. In this role, he developed treatment programs for patients with heart disease or risk of heart disease; he developed corporate wellness programs for national companies, and consulted on patients with cholesterol disorders at the hospital.

But who was the real Lee Lipsenthal? Lee was a hero who embraced the adventure and led the way for us all. In an incredibly selfless and positive way, like all heroes, Lee “lost himself and then gave himself to all of us.” He mastered the transformation of consciousness, and taught us all to look deeply inside ourselves. Lee’s life and teaching was always about the powers of life and their modulations through the action of man, and Lee’s actions led us all to a better place; a place of healing, love and understanding. He did this through his words, his music, his soul and his heart.

Lee Lipsenthal, MDLee captured the imaginations of many of us and gently drew us into his circle of positive influence where he provided a psychological center for our lives, he fed our individual and collective souls and he helped us to experience life at its fullest. He often took us to the edge of self-discovery, but he always took us to a place of peace and love. He could literally show us the “belly of the whale,” and then bring us back to a deeper understanding of our lives, our abilities and our spirits.

In many ways he helped us transcend our humanities so that we all could emerge into a deeper reality of serving our fellow man. He taught us that, as a person, if we don’t listen to the demands of our own spiritual and interior life, we will drift dangerously off-center.

Lee was our center. Lee was our friend, our mentor, our spiritual guide and our hero.

Lee passed this week, surrounded by his wonderful, loving family, and our hearts are breaking from the loss, but also reveling in the joy of having known him, having shared him and always loving him.

Learn more about Lee’s extraordinary journey, and his wonderful book, Enjoy Every Sandwich below.

You will be inspired and moved.

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E-Patient Dave: Let Patients Help!

August 7th, 2011

After a life-changing experience, Boston area businessman Dave deBronkart has re-named himself E-patient Dave.  My introduction to Dave took place on January 26th, 2010.  We were both invited to make presentations in Washington D.C. at the Health 2.0 STAT event. This was my first rapid-fire Ignite or Pecha Kucha-style presentation, and, frankly, I was at first a little overwhelmed by the brevity. Having been a teacher for the first decade of my career, the experience was similar to following the Assembly Day bell schedule in any school. We had strictly limited time to “tell our story,” and as the first hospital CEO in the country to have had my own blog (beginning in 2005), it was a story that I had told before in cities like Chicago, Las Vegas, Washington D.C., Charleston. What I hadn’t expected to hear that evening was my fellow presenter Dave’s powerful and inspiring story.

Interestingly enough, after retiring from my hospital CEO position in 2008, my passion had been redirected toward the one thing that touched me the most during my 22 years of hospital administration, patient advocacy. It was simple to me. The United States of my youth was changing, but healthcare, not unlike many other professions, has always been filled with terms, attitudes and activities that are mysterious, confusing, sometimes inhuman and usually concealed from the very patients who are receiving the services and benefits. Consequently, it was my desire to reach out to every person to let them in on the “inside track” to healthcare, to share with them the insights gained by my two-plus decades in the business, and to help them get the excellence they truly deserve regarding treatment, respect and care. The result was my first book, Taking the Hell out of Healthcare.

Dave, on the other hand, told the story of his own very personal journey through his near-death experiences as a patient at one of the Harvard Hospitals. His very moving and special story was one that not only touched everyone’s heart; it also demonstrated the very deep and real need for transparency, communication and access to our own health records.  Interestingly, the happy ending to Dave’s story was a twist on what had been a very moving and very different ending for one of my closest personal friends about two decades earlier. So, the good news for Dave was that they had refined, improved and eventually perfected that treatment that saved his life.

The most important aspect of his story, however, was that his physician encouraged him to seek input via the Internet from other people who had lived through similar experiences. It’s where Dave found the recommendation that later proved to be the secret to his survival.

Because of his compelling story, his amazing recovery and the beauty of having lived to participate in his daughter’s wedding, there was not a dry eye in the house. As a patient advocate, I freely admit that included my own eyes. Dave is exactly what this country needs right now. He is a man who is utilizing all of the tools available to all of us via Internet connectivity, and he is pushing hard for positive change that is sorely needed in our field.  So, you go, E-patient Dave… don’t stop now.  In fact, don’t ever stop.

e-Patient Dave de Bronkart, Nick Jacobs, FACHE, Health 2.0 DC STAT meetup #health2stat

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People and Ponies

June 26th, 2011

I’ve been periodically volunteering my weekend time to help establish an equestrian healing center where the horses help to heal the people. Although I’m not particularly connected to horses, I appreciate them and like to watch them run freely through the fields. It’s the people in this particular volunteer leadership group, however, who “make me tick.”

Over the last twenty or more years, I’ve had several opportunities to meet healers. Now, don’t get all “New Age-y” here and run out of the room screaming. These people are “pure of spirit,” and have no ulterior motives, except to help other people navigate through this sometimes relentlessly unforgiving maze that we call life. There are two doctors, an RN, two equestrian specialists and a couple of administrative types like me who simply believe that mankind is somewhat intellectually challenged, and not always capable of grasping anything that is not black and white or concrete and factual.

Surely, with all of the things that we purport to believe in religiously, it seems incomprehensible to me that we, as a group, have problems giving it up to the fact that our brains, our spirits and our hearts don’t or can’t play a larger role than that assigned to us by our Primary Care Physicians or our big Pharma companies. For the most part, we believe in an after-life, we believe in miracles, we believe in goodness, but we have problems understanding how an Autistic kid on a loving, nurturing horse can be helped. It’s because there have not been enough control groups, double blind studies or scientific documentations to support the theory, and typically those scientific theories are only scientific law until they are proven wrong, and that has happened plenty of times.

The freedom of having been a nonmedical, nonclinical, nonscientific healthcare CEO was that “I really didn’t care what made people get better; just so they got better.” Consequently, if a golden retriever licking your hand or a clown bopping you with a sponge hammer, a violinist, a massage therapist, an acupuncturist, a flower essence or aroma therapy specialist, a reiki master or a visit from your grandchild helped you, it was all good to me. Pick your passion and start to heal.

The only real way to describe this philosophy was “Open” because that’s what it was and is. One of the amazing aspects of the collection of healers that have gathered to lay the groundwork to make this amazing dream operational is that they also believe that there is much more to healing than a pill or seven pills, and they are more than willing to be open to the spirit of healing.

Of course, one of the problems with this type of work is that you have to “let go” to allow things to happen, and if you are too into the discipline of concrete and only proven science, you will not let enough of your guard down to see what can happen. The problem is that we’ve all heard about the quacks who almost religiously rip off naïve people with magic elixirs or spiritual interventions like Whoopi Goldberg called forth in the beginning of the movie “Ghosts,” but our collection of healers is filled with people who are sincere, well-trained, highly-credentialed and, believe it or not, open to understanding what may otherwise be ignored by the scientists or the traditional establishment.

So, on we roll in search of others who believe that there may be ways to help people that have not been used for several decades or centuries where the brain leads itself into healing or where the switch that turned the gene on inappropriately can be coerced into reversing that physically destructive non-decision. Life is a journey, and when I look back at all of the people who were helped because of things that sometimes make no sense to anyone else, my only response is “Yeah, that’s right.” It can happen, and with the help of other believers it will happen.

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It’s Not Just About the Passion

February 20th, 2011

Get up at 3:00 AM, get to the airport at four, fly out at five, arrive in Austin, Texas at 10:20 AM, wait until 1:30 PM to meet three other board members, rent a car and drive to the retreat center. Check–in, have a quick dinner and go to the first evening board meeting; in bed by 11:30 PM, up at 6:30AM and meetings on Saturday until 11:00 PM. Next day: Up at 6:30 AM, meet until 10:30 AM, drive to the airport and fly home through multiple cities; arrive at around 8:00 PM. That was my weekend. Why? Because I am the only non-physician member of the American Board of Integrative Holistic Medicine. More specifically, I am the not-so-token former hospital administrator, and that’s how much ABIHM cares about spreading the word.

This is my third year as a board member, and during that time, it has been my genuine pleasure to watch this amazing group of caring, integrative/holistic physicians build what is fast becoming the most important element in the U.S. healthcare reform movement. Most of them may not be seeing this the same way that I am (i.e., as not only life but also economic saviors), but it is absolutely a fact that their way of providing care is the only hope that we have in this country to contain health care costs and improve the quality of life in America.

As physicians, this group of humble yet brilliant men and women are true giants in their respective fields of endeavor, be it Family Practice, Internal Medicine, OB/GYN, or Psychiatry. They are “top docs” in combining traditional practice with integrative and holistic medicine. They come from prominent medical schools, and some eve teach residents at these schools. Some are in private practice and still others are working for large, prestigious health systems. They have literally written many of the books on integrative and holistic medicine, but the most important thing that I can tell you is that they are all unbelievably positive people; kind, caring, nurturing, thoughtful human beings who are “in it for all the right reasons.” No kidding. All of them.

Why am I so enthusiastic about these folks? They truly practice what they preach. Spending even 50 hours with them revives the soul and confirms my beliefs that every one of these holistic modalities can contribute to our well-being. I’ve heard their stories about the power of meditation, of vigor restored by appropriate diet and things like simple yoga stretching and walking. They casually discuss case after case of people who have been cured or healed of what would otherwise be considered debilitating maladies simply by altering a diet; cutting out the processed foods and sugars, walking a little every day and finding anywhere from 20 to 40 minutes a day to just step back and focus on themselves, their hopes, dreams and positive outcomes through internal journeys of self-exploration and meditation.

So, where do we go from here?

If you’re a doctor, look them up on the web at integrativeholisticdoctors.org, attend their seminars and workshops, meet them, learn about their peer mentoring program, embrace them and their 1200 Diplomates, and, most importantly, get on board. Each and every one of these gifted, inspired physicians has one thing in common: they love their work; they love to go to work, and their patients and staff love to work with them. If for no other reason, look them up for yourself.

If you’re a patient, don’t settle for less. Search their website at and find physicians near you who are certified in Integrative Holistic medicine. Get off those medicine cabinets full of pills, start taking care of yourself, and begin to live the life that you and your loved ones deserve. It’s the only way. The promise of technology has not cured us. The skill of steel from our gifted surgeons has not prevented the malady from impacting us in the first place, and, finally, the pain and suffering keeps going on and on in our lives.

The solution? Find an ABIHM doctor and start the change today.

The American Board of Integrative Holistic Medicine (ABIHM) is pleased to announce an additional opportunity to take the 11th Annual Board Certification Examination, on-site at the conclusion of the iMOSAIC Conference in Minneapolis, MN.  Please take a moment to review the iMOSAIC conference schedule at www.imosaicconference.com, where you will see an impressive program of faculty and topics!

Date: Sunday, April 10th, 2011 at 1:30 PM. Sign in between 1:00-1:30 (preregistration required).

Location: Minneapolis Convention Center, Room 208 AB

Duration: 5 hours allotted; at least 50% of candidates finish by 2.5-3 hours

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Veratherm

February 3rd, 2011

For the past 25-plus years, my personal commitments, both intellectually and emotionally, have been directed toward helping to make positive changes in the healthcare system worldwide. It’s been my great pleasure to have had the opportunity to connect with such organizations as Planetree, and to work with them to enhance and promote their philosophy of integrative medicine and human touch. We have watched them grow from three to more than 600 affiliated hospitals. It has also been exciting to have had the chance to work with organizations like the American Board of Integrative Holistic Medicine (ABIHM), a truly transformational healing organization. Their laser-focused goal is to reach more and more physicians worldwide to assist them in becoming certified in the techniques of holistic and integrative healing arts.

Along with these high-touch organizations, I’ve also been privy to advancements and discoveries made within the research field. As a former hospital CEO, and Founder of a medical research institute, I have been exposed to both the peaks of promise created by medical technology and the valleys of disappointment that have evolved from those unfilled expectations generated by the promises of that same technology.

Veratherm - ThermalTherapeutic Systems, Inc. - Nick Jacobs, FACHE

The subject matter to be addressed in this next blog segment is not a false promise. This particular medical device, the VERATHERM™ system was designed, patented and FDA-cleared as a portable hyperthermic perfusion system. There are two other FDA-cleared devices that have been used for this procedure – one which has been retrofitted and the other is somewhat outdated. There are also experimental-type devices that have been pieced together for use in some research facilities and academic medical centers, but they are not FDA-cleared and cannot be marketed.

What VERATHERM™ does provide is a very real opportunity for surgeons and perfusionists to not only standardize hyperthermic perfusion in the treatment of cancer but, potentially, to help to significantly extend the lives of those patients touched by these surgeons and the use of this technology. Most recently, I have had an opportunity to not only see this medical device but also to work with the extremely passionate individual who is in charge, Raymond Vennare, CEO of Thermal Therapeutic Systems, Inc. Raymond has helped to develop and bring to market this compact and mobile perfusion system that, I believe, will contribute to helping literally hundreds of thousands of people worldwide. In my exploration of hyperthermic perfusion, however, I have discovered that only a tiny fraction of those patients who could be helped by the technique that is enabled through the use of this device have any idea that it even exists. Hence, the reason for this blog. VERATHERM™ not only does exist, but the procedure performed by these surgeons and perfusionists can also have a dramatic impact on certain types of cancers.

Please understand that my interest in hyperthermic perfusion in the treatment of cancer revolves around a commitment to those individuals – people like my father, and Raymond’s father, mother and brother who, because products like this were not available, were all lost prematurely due to different types of devastating cancers.

How does this work? After complex surgery for the removal of the tumors in specific body cavities, such cancers as the colon, appendix, stomach, lung and even some types of metastatic breast cancer, the appropriate fluids can be heated in order to perform an intraperitoneal or intrathoractic lavage. These heated fluids then are circulated through the impacted body cavity as needed to help eradicate any remaining cancer cells. Sensors and probes built directly into the VERATHERM™ Console and Disposable Kit efficiently monitor temperature, pressure and flow of heated and unheated sterile solutions while protecting the patient, physician and profusionist.

Let me close by saying one more time that, due to the procedure enabled by this medical device, the lives of many patients have been extended by as much as three-to- five years. It’s not technically impossible to do, but, as a patient, you have to know about it to request it, and only a handful of cancer centers in the entire country have begun to even look at the creative re-use of profusion equipment for non-traditional surgical lavages such as this.

You read it here first!

The Parable of the Starfish

One morning an elderly man was walking on a nearly deserted beach. He came upon a boy surrounded by thousands and thousands of starfish. As eagerly as he could, the youngster was picking them up and throwing them back into the ocean. Puzzled, the older man looked at the young boy and asked, “Little boy, what are you doing?” The youth responded without looking up, “I’m trying to save these starfish, sir.” The old man chuckled aloud, and queried, “Son, there are thousands of starfish and only one of you. What difference can you make? Holding a starfish in his hand, the boy turned to the man and, gently tossing the starfish into the water, said, “It will make a difference to that one!”

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Is Saint Vincent’s Just the Beginning?

November 9th, 2010

In an article in New York magazine by Mark Levine entitled, “St. Vincent’s Is the Lehman Brothers of Hospitals,” we are taken on an extremely in-depth and comprehensive review of the sickness and death of one of New York City’s oldest hospitals. It is not my intent to re-create or completely paraphrase this incredible article, but only to select a few of the most poignant facts that literally jumped off the pages and painted a reality for me that was not restricted to the hospitals of New York City.

Photo Credit: Associated Press via WSJ.com

A worker removes signage from now-closed St. Vincent's Hospital.



Mr. Levine’s research revealed that “In 2008, local hospitals spent $3 billion more delivering care than they took in.” He also found that New York hospitals carried twice as much debt in relation to net assets as hospitals around the country, and that, — this is no surprise, as various New York City hospitals close, “the health of low-income and minority residents will be most affected.”

In this commentary, he listed a myriad reasons why these facts represent reality. Included is the $600 per square foot construction costs, outrageous malpractice premiums that are double the national average, 15% higher staffing levels than in other areas, CEO salaries that in some cases have reached nearly $10M per year, daunting demographic challenges, a lack of private physicians living in most communities, lengths of stay that, once again, are at least a day longer than other U.S. hospitals, the 1.4 million New Yorkers who have no health insurance, decreasing Medicaid rates, and a private insurance network that makes considerably more on its New York hospitals than is the case in other geographic areas.

Interestingly enough, as we forged our way through this comprehensive history of how the City system has devolved over the past thirty or so years, we were taken on a journey that is not unfamiliar to many of us in hospital administration. As government swung from socialized (as Mr. Levine states…with a small “s”) medicine to shock-therapy free market, to increased costs in competition, physician recruitment, technology build-up (a build-up that he referred appropriately to as the “medical arms race“), and more movement toward outpatient care, it is very clear that New York City’s hospitals crisis is just one view of a dysfunctional healthcare system that is clearly on a path that could eventually lead to collapse for not only the system, but also for the economy of the country as well.

New York City’s hospitals crisis is just one view of a dysfunctional healthcare system that is clearly on a path that could eventually lead to collapse for not only the system, but also for the economy of the country as well.

This paragraph is one of the most telling paragraphs in the article, “The way forward seems perfectly, if brutally, clear. With private insurers under pressure to cover more patients yet not hike premiums, with federal and state governments facing record deficits, and in a local industry climate with free-market survivalism, many New York (substitute U.S.) hospitals won’t be able to generate sufficient revenue to restore themselves to financial health.”

Image Credit: gothamgazette.com - Nick Jacobs, FACHE - HealingHospitals.com

Interestingly enough, the conclusions reached regarding survival embrace numerous ways of doing business that were not entirely foreign to many hospitals. Included were such concepts as: moving more toward outpatient care in less expensive locations, more follow-up care to keep patients from returning, reduction of unnecessary testing, employment of and profit sharing with physicians, and additional methods of dealing with “the tyranny of insurance companies.

Steps such as measuring nursing hours, housekeepers per square foot, food service people per meals delivered, and embracing the entire model of industrial efficiency were all suggested contributors to the bottom line.

Mr. Levine also granted partial sainthood to a profoundly bullying management style of one CEO who cut services that didn’t make profits, eliminated catering to the poor and “told doctors where to go.”

All of this plays perfectly into the story that I had lived and am currently telling across these United States and beyond; that dignity, prevention and wellness, attention to human and humane detail, the removal of autocratic leadership, and patient and employee-centered care — all enveloped in a spirit of entrepreneurship — can prevail.

That integrative and holistic medicine practices will contribute to taking us out of the current crisis and into a health care delivery system that will be the design for this century and beyond. Of course, we need malpractice reform; we need more control over big pharma and most importantly, we need to provide some type of safety net for those without coverage, but the path to survival is not simply one of a “business model.” It is a path to a humane model, a creative model that embraces people, embraces wellness, embraces humanness in creative, meaningful ways.

Perhaps hospitals are not being killed, but rather are committing slow suicide by following their “Calf Paths” from the past.

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Bhutan’s Philosophy of “Gross National Happiness”

October 3rd, 2010

Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.
—Albert Einstein

At a recent conference I had the opportunity to learn about the Himalayan nation of Bhutan. Most of us had not heard of this country, but we should have, because they have done something that is reminiscent of the Broadway Musical “Camelot,” or possibly “Brigadoon.” Their King introduced a philosophy of living that is intended to shape all of the government’s activities. According to Mr. Kuenga Tshering, Director of the National Statistics Bureau of Bhutan, Gross National Happiness (GNH) was promulgated as Bhutan’s philosophy of economic and social development by the Fourth King of Bhutan as soon as he came to the throne in 1972.

The reason I’m writing about this is because I believe it is an amazing idea, a wonderful goal, and a step toward embracing  idealism.  Many of you have heard my thoughts on change, and know that I do not believe that there is only one route to follow on this journey through life.

Takstan Monastery, Bhutan (image credit: johnehrenfeld.com)

Takstan Monastery, Bhutan (image credit: johnehrenfeld.com)

The Bhutanese philosophy of “living” refers to a set of social and economic interventions that evaluate societal change in terms of the collective happiness of people.  Further, these measures are also applied to the creation of policies that are aimed at that objective. Premised on the belief that all human beings aspire to happiness in one way or another, the concept promotes collective happiness of the society as the ultimate goal of development.  Now that would be a political platform!

The philosophy of Gross National Happiness considers economic growth as one of the means towards achieving happiness, but it also offers a holistic paradigm within which the mind receives equal attention. While GNH recognizes the importance of individual happiness, it emphasizes that happiness must be realized as a collective or societal goal and not be defined as an individualized or competitive good.

The philosophy should also not cause misery to future generations, other societies, or to other  beings, and it is important to the government of Bhutan that the efforts of this philosophy be distributed evenly across all sections of  the society.

They work at strengthening the institutions of family and community; the spirit of voluntarism, tolerance and cooperation; the virtues of compassion, altruism, honor and dignity, all of whose active promotion may be a contributing factor to Bhutan’s low crime rate.

Culture also provides a framework where an individual’s or society’s psychological and emotional needs are addressed. By preserving local, regional, and national festivals, the government attends to these needs and provides a forum for maintaining social networks and promoting the conviviality of public culture.

His Majesty, King Jigme Singye Wangchuck of Bhutan

His Majesty, King Jigme Singye Wangchuck of Bhutan

Bhutan treasures the extended family network as the most sustainable form of social safety net. Aware of the possibilities of family disintegration or nuclearization, the government makes conscious efforts to revive and nourish the traditions and practices that bond families and keep communities resilient and thriving.

Their environmental policy is predicated on the perspective that human beings and nature not only live symbiotically but are inseparable from each other. According to this perspective, nature is a partner in existence; a provider of sustenance, comfort and beauty.

Environmental preservation, therefore, is a way of life in Bhutan. Currently, 72% of the country’s area is under forest cover, 26% of the area is declared as protected areas, and the state has decreed to maintain 60% of its area under forest cover for all times to come. Environmental cost is an essential ingredient of evaluating new development projects in  Bhutan.

Finally, Bhutan launched parliamentary democracy 2008, becoming the youngest democratic country in the world. All this was initiated by the country’s leader – His Majesty, King Jigme Singye Wangchuck, thus fostering people’s capacity to make choices.

Well, we have generally been making choices as a country for some time now that generally do not embrace nature, family, our fellow man, or the environment.  On a recent boat trip up the Caloosahatchee River, I expressed a dream, namely that mankind would embrace a philosophy of “National Happiness.”

Now wouldn’t that ROCK?

Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted. — Albert Einstein

Read more: http://blog.rypple.com/2010/06/chip-conleys-ted-talk-on-gross-national-happiness-gnh/#ixzz11MQ5ZTm6

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And one more thing . . .

August 12th, 2010

These blog posts are supposed to be directed toward creating healing hospitals. That objective seems to be compromised from time to time as I post genuine opportunities for hospital CFO’s and CEO’s to trim monies from their budgets, to find money that their hospitals should have received, or to initiate new ventures that will create additional, positive economic yields for their facilities.  I’m sorry, but I just can’t help myself.

One of my “gifts” as a CEO was to always find ways to pay for the challenges that we faced so that new ideas, new modalities and  new healing techniques could be introduced to our healthcare environmentI even wrote a book about it. Interestingly, the biggest push back that I experience when presenting to my former peers is that bottom line, no nonsense question: “How the heck are we supposed to pay for this stuff?”

The Benefits of Healing Hospitals

View more presentations from Nick Jacobs.

Over the years I’ve prepared charts, graphs, and narratives demonstrating the dramatic growth patterns, the huge economic surpluses, the wonderful bottom lines that were generated by embracing a “healing” philosophy, but those of you who have been lured by “snake oil salesmen” in your past lives are very leary that my passionate dialogue is simply that, dialogue. You have  no  reason to believe me when I say that improving your employee morale will improve your patient satisfaction scores. Of course it’s common sense, but if you’re too nice to your employees, they’ll think you’re a push over and they’ll take advantage of you, right?  Well, after 22 years of niceness, the one thing I can tell you is that niceness can be confused with weakness, and that needs clarification early on in your journey.

You see, my recent devotion to the economics of healthcare was prompted by the knowledge that you will be treating much larger quantities of patients for less reimbursement. Consequently, new streams of funding will be imperative. For example, the annual amount of discretionary healthcare dollars spent on integrative and holistic medicine is well into the double-digit billions of dollars.  Logic would tell you that at least a percentage of these dollars could be spent at your facilities.  The downside is that your patients have not been used to paying cash for anything except co-pays, but the reality is that “they will pay,” if the service is meaningful, helpful, and healing; money simply becomes a way to get them there.

Wellness Wheel - Image credit: Marquette UniversityIf you, however, don’t believe that massage is good for you, don’t believe that some people respond well to acupuncture or Reiki, don’t care that aroma therapy, floral essences, or pet, music and humor therapy have a place in “legitimate medicine,” that’s a problem, a personal problem.  Go on vacation to some place like Canyon Ranch, and let go for a few days.  Allow yourself to be open to new modalities.  The body and mind can work extremely well together . . . if you’ll just give them a chance.  More importantly, you can generate additional funds for your facilities that will result in additional growth in market share, in patient loyalty, and in patient and employee  satisfaction.

So, this week’s tip . . . financial transaction services: Over 1/4 of your facilities daily financial transactions are completed electronically.  We are currently providing the interface for your financial transactions that will reduce your costs of doing electronic business exponentially.  It is seamless, requires no interruption of your current banking relationships, and invisible to the patients and your staff, but why, for example, would you pay 4.5% if you could complete the same transaction for 2.5%?  It’s savings that can contribute to your bottom line to allow you to supplement your staff with those individuals who can add additional depth, healing activities, and peace of mind to your patients’ experiences.

It’s all good.

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What’s Still Missing?

April 3rd, 2010
We are on a not-so-merry-go-round which, even after health care reform, continues to promote a system of illness incentives  that are improperly reimbursed, improperly addressed, and inappropriately segmented. We continue to consider body parts as if they are not connected to or a component of the whole.
Wellness Wheel - Image credit: Marquette University

Tort reform still has virtually no teeth.  This causes physicians to practice sometimes over-the-top medicine in self-defense. When will it be time to begin to throw the switch and teach patients what we already know so well; that wellness, wholeness, and health can change the quality of our lives completely? Our medical schools need to embrace wellness and prevention as a path to health. Not unlike indigenous man, it is time that we begin to realize that our brains do have something to do with our bodies.  We live in a commodity driven society which does not always promote the best, most healthful food, even miminal exercise, stress management, or self-nurturing. Instead, because of those quarterly reports to the stockholders, these companies promote what is the most lucrative and often the easiest to sell.

Oprah.com - Health and Wellness - Nick Jacobs -  HealingHospitals.comWe know that drinking a soft drink with 10 teaspoons of sugar is not healthful. We clearly understand that quadruple cheese anything might eventually catch up with us, or that Uncle Buck’s 72 oz. steak can’t really be good for our arteries. Fried and buttered everything, a total lack of exercise, and more stress than anyone can ever dream of will not extend our lives

One night a few weeks ago I couldn’t sleep, and at 3:00 AM, I looked up and saw an apparition… Oprah. There she was, talking about food. The person she was interviewing said, “Oprah, in the 1960’s, our food cost us 18% of our annual income. ” Maybe that’s why there weren’t more restaurants at that time. Families were stretched just eating at home. He went on to say that, “In the 60’s, healthcare costs us 9% of our income.”  Finally he said, “Now healthcare costs us 18% of our income, and food costs us 9%.”

So, that’s the trade off. We can buy good, farmer’s market-type healthy, organic food and have low healthcare costs, or we can buy manufactured, additive filled food, and pay more for our healthcare.  How much further down this cul de sac must we go as a country before we begin to realize the path to health and wellness or longevity?

Health and Wellness - Nick Jacobs - HealingHospitals.com

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