Three Ghosts once visited Ebenezer Scrooge and with the same spirit of elucidation and enlightenment Longwoods will soon unleash a third Ghost on “the balcony of personal reflection”….The Ghost of Healthcare HOPE.

Our conversations on the “balcony” were spurred first, by the visitation  of  the ‘Ghost of Healthcare Despair’. A cynical, jaded and often fatalistic ghost that openly addressed the fragmentation within the healthcare system. Insights were shared through twenty-two (22) essay discussions pertaining to the state of our healthcare system, the foreseeable obstructions encountered and, most importantly, processes for change.

Next, we were introduced to the ‘Ghost of Healthcare Consciousness’. This Ghost brought  questions pertaining to the perspectives and voices of patients, care providers and middle managers. The ghost was perplexed as to why people were often managed as though they were robots, devoid of desire, compassion, creativity and intelligence. Insights led to thirty-one (31) essay discussions led by patients, care providers and middle managers.

In Series 3, Hugh MacLeod will be joined on the “balcony of personal reflection” with a number of thought leaders and the Ghost of Healthcare Hope. Yes, you guessed it….they will be painting a picture of what future value based healthcare could look like and what we need to do to get there.

The Publisher 

Series 3 Essays:

1. The Ghost of Healthcare Hope – Surrounded by Opportunity…By: Hugh Macleod
   Focus: Introducing a new Ghost and imagining five new perspectives: Customer, Culture, Skills/Capacity Enabling, Structural/Value Creating and Resources.
    
2. If We Had a Magic Wand…By CEO Leslee Thompson and Hugh MacLeod
   Focus: Care Providers, Policy Makers, Operational Leaders the patients will see you now. Are you Ready? 
    
3. Understanding Organizational and Health System Spaces: Listening to Hear…By: Hugh Macleod
   Focus: Need for alignment and clarity of purpose between top, middle and front line spaces. Exploring three conditions: “blind reflex at the top”, “torn middles”, and “blame up” at the front line. 
   
   
4. A Paradox to be Outgrown: Moving From Doing Stuff to Providing True Value…By CEO Dr. Brendan Carr and Hugh Macleod
   Focus: A shift on the expert side of the table. Have we become so scientific, mechanical and process driven that we missed what the customer values? 
   
   
5. Healthcare Leadership Contradictions…By: Professor Graham Dickson and Hugh MacLeod
   Focus: Highlighting a number of contradictions (Systemic, Practical, and Personal)  and the impact on healthcare leadership.
   
   
6. Getting a Grip on Complexity…By: Professor Ron Lindstrom and Hugh Macleod
   Focus: Understanding complexity, obstacles and solutions. Getting past the compulsion to make the complex be simple.
   
   
7. Blurring the Lines Between Research, Evaluation and Quality Improvement… By: CEO Dianne Finegood and Hugh MacLeod
   Focus: What’s the difference between research, evaluation and quality improvement?  Is it artificial and old school thinking? 
   
   
8. Soft Side of Healthcare Meets the Hard Side...By: Hugh MacLeod
   Focus: Awakening of "soft" stuff like culture, purpose, collaboration and relationships. 
   
   
9. Beyond the Tipping Point: 5 Questions For Patient Engagement...By: CEO Dr. Joshua Tepper and Hugh MacLeod
   Focus: Exploring questions to effectively implement patient engagement.
    
10. The Paradox of Patient Centred Care & Use of Language...By: Marg McAlister, Sue VanderBent and Hugh MacLeod.
    Focus: We communicate in code. 
     
11. Choice?...By: Don Ford and Hugh MacLeod
    Focus: Why can't patients have choice? 
     
12. Let's Get Personalized...By: Professor Anne Snowdon and Hugh MacLeod
    Focus: Action steps to Personalization.
     
13. Home Care Recipients: Handy, Obliging, Persistent, Engaged (HOPE)...By Associate Professor Marilyn MacDonald and Hugh MacLeod. Focus: Personalization of Home Care.
     
14. Let's Walk It Like We Talk It...By: Former Minister of Health, Louise Simard and Hugh MacLeod
    Focus: Action steps to get serious about the social determinants of health. 
     
15. Bridging The Leadership Gap... By: Professor Marilyn Taylor and Hugh MacLeod. Focus: Integrative Leadership For The Future. 

     
16. Closing The Board Leadership Gap... By: Ted Van Dawark and Hugh MacLeod. Focus: Board Leadership For The Future. 
     
17. We Have A Glimpse Of The Future...Leadership Capacity Is Crucial...By: Professor Graham Dickson and Hugh MacLeod. Focus: Healthcare Leadership Development. 
     
18. Leadership, White Space and Mindsets...By: Professor Alan Best and Hugh MacLeod. Focus: Vision needs to be paired with a through understanding of the dynamics that explain the organization’s processes, and a shared strategy for how to get from the present to the preferred future.
     
19. The Patients Will See You Now. Are You Ready? By Hugh MacLeod. A thread running through the Ghost of Healthcare essay series is today’s healthcare leaders must not only lead well, but also lead differently. That means accepting a shift in the drivers of the health system from care providers to consumers, from hospitals to primary care, home care, community care and a shift from emphasis on downstream acute care to upstream prevention and wellness. 
20. A Last Word From the “Balcony of Personal Reflection” With the Healthcare Ghosts of Despair, Consciousness and Hope Focus: The sixty-six (66) guests on the balcony of “personal reflection” and eighty-one (81) pages of feedback and reflection from patients, care providers, middle managers, executives, researchers and board members suggest that healthcare transformation can be accessed through seven interconnecting circles: Culture, Relationships, Communication, Values and Meaning Making, Appreciation, Accountability/Responsibility, and Learning. Gandhi said it best, “People stand within a circle whose circumference is bounded by their fears. The circle is their comfort zone. If people stay there, they become complacent.” There are no ghosts, except the ones people create in their mind and fear as if they are real.