Novant Health Inside Remarkable

In this episode of the Cyberchat podcast, the cybersmart team focuses on the critical issue of insider threats. The team explores how team members and contractors with access to sensitive information can pose significant security risks. This discussion covers the motivations behind insider threats and they share insights on identifying potential red flags. Listeners will gain valuable knowledge on preventing, detecting and responding to insider threats to safeguard our organization.

Physicians and APPs are struggling under the increasing demands of their work. Despite a shared desire to deliver great care it is becoming more and more difficult to create meaningful connections. Novant Health leaders discuss clinician burnout and how being intentional with compassion can bring joy back to healthcare. 

Online shopping has become the preferred way to purchase items without the hassles of traffic and crowds. However, the internet is full of hidden dangers that can compromise your information with a single click. In this episode of Cyberchat with Cybersmart, we discuss how applying the proper security measures and behaviors will ensure you enjoy the benefits of shopping online while avoiding the pitfalls. Before you start your holiday shopping, remember to pause and think about what you are doing so you can spot, stop and prevent any compromise of your information.

Smishing, or SMS text phishing, is a form of phishing that uses mobile text messages to trick people into providing personal or financial information, downloading malicious files or clicking on links designed to steal their information. In this episode of “Within These Firewalls,” we will cover the signs of a smishing message and provide strategies to help you handle a smishing attack. Listen in and get cybersmart.

In this episode of “Within These Firewalls,” we hear more about the different data classifications at Novant Health and the types of data that fall within each classification.

Carmen Canales  00:03Hello, I'm Carmen Canales, Senior Vice President and Chief People and Belonging Officer at Novant Health. Welcome to Talent Talk, a podcast that focuses on leadership strategies for engagement, development, and retention for the modern workforce. In each episode of Talent Talk, I'll interview a different leader about their transformational practices in leading, engaging and retaining teams and supportive our patients and communities. These conversations will leave you with a few key takeaways and actions you can put into place on your own teams. Our guest today is Onyeka Nchege, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer at Novant Health. Onyeka has more than 25 years of experience in leading teams developing strategies and building digital technology solutions. Prior to joining Novant Health, Onyeka held leadership positions in multiple industries, including in the automotive aftermarket replacement batteries, financial services, and consumer packaged goods. Onyeka, thank you for joining us today as we focus on transformational leadership. Onyeka Nchege  01:11Thank you for having me. Carmen Canales  01:13Onyeka, take a moment to tell us a little bit about your background, and about yourself and your role at Novant Health. Onyeka Nchege  01:20All right. So, you know, Carmen, I appreciate I appreciate you either, sharing all that about my background. And, and so when I'm asked to tell us a little bit about yourself, I'll be totally honest with you all that sounds great. But I always go into, look, I'm a husband, I'm a father, I'm a son, I'm an uncle, you know, I'm a brother. And that's, that's who I am. At the core of it all, it's about family for me. And that's who you get. I'm a friend, right? And those are all the those are all the things that truly define kind of who I am and and what I want to be known for. You know, it's, it's great that, you know, God, God's been good to me over the years, and I've had an opportunity to be a CIO at, you know, a number of major brands within, within the US and all that's great. But, you know, when it comes down to it, husband, father, son, uncle, brother, friend, those are the things that matter to me. Carmen Canales  02:26Onyeka, I love you distinguishing who I am versus what I do. That does not surprise me one bit about you. Onyeka Nchege  02:33Yeah. So, and then, and then, you know, at Novant Health, you know, my, my role is just accountability to the DPS team members. It's the accountability to the organization, Novant Health organization, to patient care to all the communities that we serve. It's, it's that role that is all about, you know, how do we leverage technology? How do we leverage innovation? And how do we optimize the things that we currently have today, that allow us to provide that patient care that patient experience that remarkable, right? So that's, that's, that's what the role is all about. Carmen Canales  03:13Well, Onyeka, so as you focus on that, tell our listeners about your leadership style, and what's your approach to leadership in general? Onyeka Nchege  03:20Yeah, that's a great question, Carmen. You know, from a leadership style, it's, I'd say it's collaborative. That's probably the the word that I would use, you know, what is my leadership style, it's it's a collaborative leadership style, it is a leadership style, that is a that is a purpose driven leadership style that that truly as a, you know, I believe in the lead from the back. And folks always go, what is that lead from the back? And it's, it's the opportunity to allow my team members allow my, my direct reports and all that report into my organization to take a leadership role themselves, right? I'm a firm believer that you know, you don't start leading the day that you're handed an opportunity. You start leading well before you're handed an opportunity. And the only way to really get there is if you have an opportunity to do some of that, to walk a mile if you will, in someone's shoes, in a leader shoes. And so I have an opportunity to push my team members forward and allow them to lead and so that that is the leadership style that I ascribe to. And that's how I, that's how I try to show up every day. Is that collaborative, inclusive leadership style that brings everybody along at the same time. Carmen Canales  04:30Onyeka, I hear in your conversation, not just a commitment to leadership, but also in mentorship and in developing leaders. So, tell us what sparked your interest in that. How did you discover that you were good at that? And how did you discover your interest in that? Onyeka Nchege  04:44Yeah, so you know, my, my, wow, that goes back that you're taking me back, Carmen (old school!). That goes that goes way back. So, I remember. It's, I'll tell you this story, right. And I and I've recounted the story. I've told the story several times over the years, when I first started working, I worked for an organization called Wachovia. So I graduated college, I went to join the Wachovia operational services on their management training program, you know, you six months intensive, all the all the stuff take you through the rounds at the bank, and you show and then you graduate, and then you get assigned to anyway, I got assigned to this group and I graduated, I went to Georgia State in Atlanta, graduated, started with Wachovia In Atlanta, finished the six-month intensive program and got and got sent to Winston-Salem to work as part of the eCommerce organization. And when I was there, I remember one day, this is some data and myself, I was way back when I first came out, right? And there was, there was this email that came to me, and it was it was a joke, right? So, it's, you know, I don't know if you remember that, like people would always send these emails with all these jokes. And, and, right now it's TikTok and Instagram and all that kind of stuff, right? Nobody sends jokes in emails anymore. Back then they did. And so, I remember getting it reading and thinking it was funny. And I forwarded it to a buddy of mine that worked at the bank with me, right. And later that day, I remember Mark, he was the vice president of...can't remember his full title, but he's the, he was the VP. He got it somehow, got that email and then he calls me into his office, right? And he goes, hang on you stop by? So, I stopped by. And he says, hey man, just want to just want to share something with you. (Oh no) You sent an email out earlier today. And, you know, the question I have for you is, is this who you want to be? Is this how you want people to know you? That you are, he said, you know, I read the same email when it was sent to me. I read it. And I thought it was funny. I laughed at it. But I didn't send it on to anyone. He said, because that's not who I want to be. That's not how I want people to know me. So, the question for you, is that really what you want, and that stuck with me? Right one that he took the time out to coach man, even though I didn't realize that's what coach/mentor was at the time. But he took the time out to do that for me, and to say, look man, let me let me help you along. Because there may be some things that you may not be aware of, there may be some "unspokens" that you didn't know about. And that that literally was the impetus for me to say I want to be I want to be "Mark" one day, right? I want to pay that forward to someone else to someones else, right? And that's how it started for me. So now, you know, I tell people that I that I mentor and coach, you know, I, I want to be a brain to pick, an ear to listen, and a push in the right direction. And that's the commitment I make to them. A brain to pick, an ear to listen, and a push in the right direction when you need it. And so that, that has become, you know, uber-important to me, honestly. Because, I want to see, I want to make sure that you know, folks have an opportunity to do the same things that I did and more, right? Because I look back and I go, like who knows whether that moment with Mark was the, was one of the moments that propelled me on to where I am today. I like to think it did. And so, I want to pay it back. Carmen Canales  08:27What a fantastic story about your days as a as a "Wachovian". I remember being called that myself! Onyeka Nchege  08:34Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. Carmen Canales  08:39Onyeka tell us about your career. Tell us about your passion for technology and digital innovation. Where does that come from? Was there a particular thing that sparked your interest in that?   Onyeka Nchege  08:51I don't know that there was necessarily any one thing that that sparked my interest in that. I will tell you, unlike, unlike probably some others that are in this field, mine took a, mine took a non-traditional approach to get here. Because, you know, when I was with, you know, going anchoring back on Wachovia, when I was there, you know, I was I was part of an operations group, not the technology team. But, when I went through that, that, that six months of management training, one of the things that came out was, man, he's got a strong technical aptitude. And so, I was, I was put with an organization, eCommerce back then, that worked very closely with the technology organization. So, I had an opportunity to interface with engineers and analysts. And, you know, and so I just, I developed a, an interest in the work that was happening across the tracks, right, I call it. And so I would spend time with the technology team, just understanding what they do, why they do it, and being able to close the gap between what is being requested, and the work that actually has to be done to create whatever is being requested, right? And so, that, that's the thing that, that sparked the interest for me in terms of wanting to be a part of how do I impact lives in an organization, right, by being able to, being able to bring solutions to the table? And those solutions in this case, are technology solutions and innovation and innovative solutions, how do I bring...how do I help bring that to life in organizations? And so that was important to me. And, then that's how I got involved, if you will, in the, in the technology space and in the innovation space. And I've been able to, to leverage those experiences over the years with multiple organizations. You know, to be able to not just develop leaders, but also be able to bring technological advances to the organization as well. Carmen Canales  10:56So, in your time as a Chief Information Officer in healthcare and at Novant, Health, what changes have you seen in the healthcare landscape? And how does that impact the work of you and your team? Onyeka Nchege  11:08I'm going to take it at a broader level, because I think it's, it's, I see something similar across all industries in terms of talent. I think that's the key, you know, organizations always say, you know, our people are our best asset, right? And, that the proof is in the pudding in terms of how we interact with engage with, nurture, right, that talent, right? It's easy to say, you know, our people our best asset, but if you're not, if you're not doing all the things that that demonstrate that, then it's just talk, right? And so, I think, when the change that I see, and I see that in our organization, right? So, this is there's a difference between, you know, we will take care of you versus we will care for you, right? And there's a big difference there. And I think our organization has done a good job of, of probably transitioning from, we will take care of you too, we will care for you, right? Because, if we care for you, then we give you all the things that you need to be successful as, as an, as an associate, right, or a team member. Versus we will take care of you, which might suggest that, you know, we'll do everything for you, which is not healthy for folks that, that are team members in our organization. So, I think that's, that's the thing that I have seen that I think is a difference-maker for not just, not just the healthcare, but any, any industry that I've been a part of is being able to focus in on, on the people. Right? And that, that and making that they're our best asset making that real.   Carmen Canales  12:44And that's why you're a featured guest today. That's what that's why it's Talent Talk, right? Regardless of industry, it's about the people. Onyeka Nchege  12:51That's, a that's a very good point. I didn't think about that. But yes! Carmen Canales  12:55So, Onyeka, sometimes things don't go as we plan. Our listeners, I'm sure would love to hear about a mistake that you've made in your career. And importantly, what did you learn from it? Onyeka Nchege  13:08That's a good one. That's a good one. Mistakes, listen, I have made my share of mistakes over the years, there's no question about it. Probably two come to mind for me. I think when I was when I was a Senior Director at I think it was like Coca Cola at the time. When I first started with Coca Cola, it's many years back. And I had an opportunity to bring a product into the organization. And my team had been working on it well, before I got there, right? So, they they've been working on it. And so, I show up, and it's not going well. And, I have an opportunity to go talk to one of the Senior VPs about the fact that, hey, this, this, this thing is not gonna it's not gonna go in, on the day that we had originally said it was gonna go in. And so, I march, you know, I'm like, now I'm a truth teller. I'm transparent. I'm authentic. And I walk right into his office. I'm like, hey, man, this is not gonna go and hit baba, baba, you know, just going on about why it's not gonna work, right? And so, you might ask, well, what's the mistake in that? And it was a lesson for me, right? Because I hadn't thought through how I would have that conversation. (Okay) I just watched into to have the conversation (Oh no), as opposed to really thinking through, what's the best way to get my point across, right? So, intent versus delivery. My intent was right, my delivery was full of crap! It sucked! And so that that was a lesson for me. And, you know, one, taking two steps back, right, and really thinking through, what is it that you really want to say, and how do you want I say it, and know your audience, right? Understanding who it is that you're going to go talk to, and it wasn't title. In this case, it was how the person receives information...that I did not take into account. So, that's, that was that I remember that (So, how did it go?) I'm here. (It turned out, okay!). Yeah, it's, I learned how about let me let me put it this way, I learned from it. (I love it!) And he was he was in a coaching moment. So, he took the time to coach me with the, you may want to, you may want to step out, think through that and come back in which I really appreciate it. It was, and that was some real coaching because it and I did, I literally paused, walked out the door, closed the door, spent about five minutes behind the door, literally. And then I opened the door and came back in. And I apologized for the way I I stepped through the first time. And it was good. So, I learned a ton from that. My second, my second mistake, career mistake. And listen, you know, we all learn from it, right? So, I was with an organization and, and we were putting in a product. And I heard one thing. So, my team had told me, hey, here's everything that we're doing, here's how much it's gonna cost us about half a million dollars, and we're good to go. I said, okay, so I'm in with the I mean with the "E" team. And I'm part of the "E" team at this time, right? So, I mean with them, and we're talking and, and I said, Alright, hey, listen, guys, I'm gonna "thumbs up", I'm gonna move move ahead and get this, get the system, and put it in. And everybody was like, okay. But the next day I signed the agreement, and we push forward, right? Two days later, I had two of the "E" team members come to me and go ahead and say Onyeka, we weren't ready. Why did you sign that agreement? We're not...we never said we were ready to go. And I said, well, I brought it up. And, and I realized I brought it up. But, in my eagerness to go forward, I didn't hear the "Yes". I saw a couple of head nods and I just went with that because I was ready to go and committed the organization to half a million dollars' worth of product that we never intended to use. Because my partners weren't ready to go. And so, you know, lesson, lesson there for me was and I actually put some controls in place as a result, because I had to go unwind half a million dollars that an organization had already booked revenue on it, right? So, I had to go unwind that and thank God for relationships, right? So, I had built a relationship with that company, on and on. So, I was it took a while. Don't get me wrong, it took a while to unwind it, but we finally did. And I remember going to our CEO and saying, hey, listen, I don't need my daddy to help me just yet. But I want you to know that this is happening. And at some point, I may need to call my daddy and to help me. (Oh no.). But as of right now, I'm good to go. So, but you know, lesson learned for me was you know, make sure you get make sure you get "Yes", verbal yesses from everyone. When you're when you're doing something this critical this important, don't just rely on head nods or, or thumbs up? No, no, no, I need it in writing. Right? If we're ready to go, and we're going to commit the organization to a million dollars, half a million dollars, whatever it is 20,000, then all of us need to agree that we're ready to go. But I've learned from it. Carmen Canales  18:30Onyeka, you might win the prize thus far for Talent Talk podcast guest with the most spectacular mistake. And lesson learned! Onyeka Nchege  18:41That's a good thing. Nobody wants to be known for that! Carmen Canales  18:47Onyeka, as we draw to a close, tell our listeners what final leadership tips do you have for them? Onyeka Nchege  18:53Wow, final leadership tips. I think I'd anchor on what I call all five points. And all five points is begins with ownership. Right? Regardless of what you've heard, it, everything belongs to you, what you do belongs to you. You've got to figure out how you get it done, how you get things done, but it starts with you. And so if you don't have ownership on the inside, then no one's, no one's gonna be able to help you from a leadership perspective. And then secondly, it's, it's feedback. You gotta get, you got to get feedback. You got to be a student of feedback at all times. You know, I'm constantly and I know it gets on people's nerves. But I constantly ask, how did you experience me today? Right? How did you experience me today? And it gives folks permission to give you feedback. And you have to be willing to do just that. Get feedback. And then I talked about, you know, adaptability. As a leader, you have to learn the trait of being adaptable, right? You can't be so rigid that everything is just one way and that's the only way it is. And so, you have to, you have to learn how does adapt ability work and how do you, how do you, how do you lean into that? And then I talked about, you know, execution, right? It's the get 'er done, it the get ‘er done and those, that's table stakes, right? from a leadership perspective, if you're not a get 'er done kind of person. Right? It's tough to lead people or to be led. And so that's important. And then the last piece is I call it followership. Right? To be a good leader, you got to be a good follower. If you can't, if you're not a good follower, then how can you expect people to follow you when you're in a leadership role, right? So, you have to, you have to learn all of those and be good with that, to be a good leader. So that's my, that's my take now. Time will tell if I'm right. Carmen Canales  20:44Well, Onyeka, I have experienced you today in a very inspirational fashion. So, thank you for asking, and appreciate being our guest today on the Talent Talk podcast. Onyeka Nchege  20:56Thank you very much. This was great, Carmen, I really appreciate that. And thank you for the friendship and thank you for the partnership as well. Carmen Canales  21:03Thank you, friend. I hope you enjoyed today's podcast. Make sure to look for future episodes of Talent Talk where you typically listen to podcasts. Thank you for listening, and until next time, keep inspiring the talent around you!

Carmen Canales  00:03Hello, I'm Carmen Canales, Senior Vice President and Chief People and Belonging Officer at Novant Health. Welcome to Talent Talk, a podcast that focuses on leadership strategies for engagement, development, and retention for the modern workforce. In each episode of Talent Talk, I'll interview a different leader about their transformational practices in leading, engaging, and retaining teams and supporting our patients and communities. These conversations will leave you with a few key takeaways and actions you can put into place on your own teams. Our guest today is Jay Norton, Senior Vice President Chief Risk Officer at Novant Health. Jay is an executive leader with more than 20 years of risk management experience and expertise in leading high profile regulatory initiatives. Welcome, Jay! Jay Norton  00:56Thank you, Carmen. It's absolute pleasure to be here! Carmen Canales  00:58Jay, tell us about yourself and your background and now your role at Novant Health. Jay Norton  01:04Sure, thanks, Carmen. I'll start on the personal side first. So I'm originally from the Tampa Bay area, Florida, but have lived in Charlotte for almost 20 years now. Married for 22 years. Somone I met 30 years ago. I have two kids, one in college, one about to go to college and excited to see what empty nest is all about. But professionally, I started off as an attorney, I quickly learned that I liked much more the proactive side of that work and got into compliance and regulatory work there. And as well as operational risk. I've worked for some large financial institutions and had great opportunities to lead programs there and work on some really high profile regulatory initiatives. That certainly taught me a lot about leadership. Carmen Canales  01:44Fantastic! So Jay, tell us about your leadership style and what's your approach to leadership in general? Jay Norton  01:52Good question, Carmen, I think my leadership style, it feels like it adjusts to the environment and the situation that I'm in. So maybe it's a bit of a chameleon, but I still try to ground myself and what I think are sort of core leadership styles about myself and my brand, I would really like it to be, first and foremost is credible. And credible doesn't mean knowledgeable about your business, but credible and that people respect what you say they know, you're gonna do what you say. So credibility is really important to me. Also authenticity. What you see is what you get; sometimes for good sometimes for bad, but definitely believe that being authentic is a great quality as well. And then lastly, just action-oriented, I think the space that we're in, we really have to get a lot accomplished. And I don't like to sit around and wait. Sometimes that might scare people. But I do try to move quickly and move on to the next thing. So I think all together. That's really how I describe my leadership style. Carmen Canales  02:42Well, Jay, I think that's fantastic. I certainly seen the action-oriented, it tells me and our listeners that you really have adopted your years of expertise in other industries over to healthcare. Jay, what do you think about the concept of belonging? It's something that we know has emerged as really key to attracting and engaging talent. What does it mean to you? And how do you foster belonging on your team and among your colleagues? Jay Norton 03:06That's great! And belonging is really important to me, Carmen, I think you know, by now, one of my personality traits is I'm a relator. So I get a lot of energy out of relationships with the people that I work with. And so for me, that really contributes to a sense of belonging for me in an organization. And I really try to do that through personally connecting one on one with everybody. I try to meet everybody in person, if I can...certainly get out and meet folks that I work with every single day. And also with the team members that report up through me. I have skipped level meetings. I make a commitment to meet with every single person on my team at least once within a period of time. And that's just a way to get connected and foster that sense of belonging. But I think for those who maybe aren't as wired, like I am, it might take a little bit more. I try to, I try to encourage that there's some organic ways, certainly encouraging others or creating opportunities for team members to interact with each other in meaningful ways, not just sitting at your desk on your respective zoom meetings, but find whether it's projects or coffee hour, or just sort of that organic interaction that I really...helps develop that sense of belonging, which I think we've lost after the pandemic, and folks have really gotten used to working from home. So it's important for me to find those opportunities to bring folks together. The last two things I'll say about that is I think a sense of belonging really comes from connecting people from their work to what they do in the big picture and strategy organization. So seeing that what I'm doing makes a difference. And again, I think fosters that belonging, I belong here because I'm making a difference. I'm contributing to the goals of the organization. And then lastly, celebrating our success. Again, I think that just strengthens relationships when we can all step back and take credit and pat each other on the back or have someone pat me on the back for what I did. So those are the things I think about as a leader. Carmen Canales  04:52You know, Jay, some of your comments really resonate. I couldn't agree more that for all of the things that took place during the pandemic, one of the things that is as leaders we really need to pay attention to is this sense of connection and intentionally doing things to make sure that it's happening. So it sounds like you have some great strategies in place around that. So, Jay, tell us about your time at Novant. Health as a chief risk officer, have you noticed significant differences in risk related to healthcare as compared to your, your previous experiences in banking or elsewhere? Or what similarities have you experienced? Jay Norton  05:26Yeah, it's been an amazing experience Carmen. So coming from financial services, this, I mean, everything is new every day is an adventure. And there's some story that I just could never have appreciated, um, having not worked in, in healthcare. So every day is exciting for me. And the chief risk officer role that I have, I get to see different aspects of risk through different dimensions. So whether that's through the compliance program, privacy office, or audit or risk managers, I really feel like I've got a good appreciation for the types of risks that are present in a healthcare setting. And from that, I constantly try to calibrate and compare my experience in financial services. And certainly an obvious difference is the subject matter, right, the healthcare regulatory environment is very different. But it's also similar that it's highly complex, highly regulated, highly nuanced. So that has been an interesting aspect for me. A difference is that in financial services, if we got something wrong and had a financial impact, but you could also address that, you could refund, you could do something to right, the wrong. In healthcare the stakes are so high. If you get the risk wrong, that has real consequences, real impact. So for me, I feel especially accountable to ensure that we have a really strong control environment and are managing our risks appropriately, because we just can't afford to get it wrong. I think that also in financial services, I share the example that for the large banks that I worked for, you would have over 100, full-time federal regulators, auditors, and examiners exclusively focused on you. They're on you every single day, they're in your offices, they have laptops, they get access to everything, and they will find everything, and you have to address everything. So there's really no place to hide in that space. You really, in some cases, have to over engineer your response to risks in that environment. Here, certainly we don't have the same resources, we don't have the same number of folks on us. So it puts more obligation on us to make sure we're appropriately identifying the risks, that we're prioritizing the work that we need to do, and do it in a way that makes sense for certainly our patients first and foremost, but also for our system. So those are just some early observations, six months no, but it is, it is something that constantly weugh back and forth, Carmen, financial services versus healthcare. It's a very, I'm gonna write a paper, we'll do a separate podcast on it. Carmen Canales  07:33Sign me up. I can't wait! So Jay, one of the things that we strive to do here on talent talk is really to honor authenticity and to have humility. So to that end, will you tell our listeners about a mistake that you've made in your career? And importantly, besides telling us a good story, what did you learn from it? Jay Norton  07:53I think about this all the time, Carmen, I obsess over things like this, because I always am trying to improve myself and challenge sort of my assumptions. But the thing that comes to mind immediately is a number of years ago, I was working on a really, really complicated regulatory matter where we had to return money to customers working with really outdated information, incomplete information. And it was it was really tough, and there was a lot of pressure to get it right. And I was part of a team and my role there was to help sort of coordinate and be a liaison between the regulators and senior leadership and the folks who were actually making the changes and doing the work. And you know, it's a little bit tough, because we have different roles and responsibilities in that space. And I, in hindsight, should have been more proactive and helping the other folks on the team. So I had peers that were working on different pieces of it. And I had sort of adopt this mentality of stay in your lane, let them do what they're going to do. I recognize they might be struggling, but you know, I'm not really going to step on their toes or get in the way. And what happened from that as we really got sideways on something, got to our leaders kind of late, later than we should have. And at the time, I thought, well, you know, that was my peers' responsibility, or I didn't want to bother my boss with these issues that I thought what really mind to raise, and my leader rightfully came down on me and, and gave me an "inconsistently meets expectations" which was devastating for me. But as we talked about it, I get the light bulb on. I go, of course, I mean, first of all, as a leader, you're a leader, they can't help if they don't know, right, and you're not really protecting the information. Don't wait for that really big sort of moment where it's too late to do anything about so that has certainly changed the way that I bring matters to the attention of others. And don't wait too late, no surprises. But it really changed the dynamic of the way that I work with my peers who are also leaders trying to adjust that I'm not stepping on their toes. I really am here to help them and what can I do to assist? And sometimes avoid,you know not avoiding those really delicate conversations where you have to give a little bit of truth to your peers or say look, let's...it's time like we really need to step up and do something let's call the boss let's call and resources and that's uncomfortable because you you don't want to step on toes. You want to respect your peers. But that learned from me like, we can't do that. Because ultimately, we show up as a collective management team, we show up together, we all succeed together, we fail together. And so from that, it really has changed the way that I interact with folks. I'm a little bit more...uhh...always constructive, always diplomatic. But I'm a little more assertive that I've been in the past, but I come upon it as a point of luck. We're here to succeed together. Let's do it. And let's not have anybody surprised by this or miss an opportunity to address something before it's too late. So that is something that sticks with me. I think about it way more than I, maybe I should. But I will never repeat that mistake again.  Carmen Canales  10:33Jay, thank you for sharing that, the candor and vulnerability of that example. I'm sure it's gonna resonate with our listeners. As we close Jay, what final leadership tips would you share with our listeners? Jay Norton  10:46Yeah, I thought of three things, Carmen. First is, is carving out time for leadership development. And I think some of us are good about blocking off time for focus time on our calendars. But, I actually schedule it, like leadership development, and whatever that looks like for you. Whether it's reading something, whether it's being intentional about setting up meetings with folks who haven't talked to in a while. I think if you don't make time for it very quickly, your calendar is is gonna get away from you. So, try to be really intentional about developing your leadership is really crucial. The second thing I would offer is constantly solicit constructive feedback. And it's 360 feedback from the people you work with, the people you report to, and who report to you. I got into a lull where I thought, hey, I'm smart, I kind of know what I'm doing here. And I really missed out on some opportunity. So I really, really missed an opportunity to ask for constructive feedback. And I've got thicker skin over the years that I can take it and and I also offer it. So, constructive feedback is really really important as a leader. And then lastly, I would suggest that you find a competent, a confidant rather, a friend at work, someone that you can bounce things off, unload, someone you trust that you can share, really, honestly. You know, how's it going? Because as you know, as a leader, you kind of have to put on the leader persona sometimes. But you also need someone you can talk to about it and share ideas, maybe vent a little, but also ask for feedback. How would you handle this situation? And I feel very fortunate that I found a really few great folks like that where I'm at now and I've had him in the past. And it just makes such a difference as a leader to know you don't have to go it alone. You don't have to know it all. You have to figure it out. There are people around you that are great resources. Carmen Canales  12:20You know, Gallup would call that having a best friend that work, which I think is key at all levels. Well, Jay Norton, I want to thank you for sharing your lessons learned and your wisdom with our listeners today. Thank you so much, Jay! Jay Norton  12:33Thank you so much for having me, Carmen. I loved it! Carmen Canales  12:36I hope you enjoyed today's podcast. Make sure to look for future episodes of Talent Talk where you typically listen to podcasts. Thank you for listening and until next time, keep inspiring the talent around you.

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Carmen Canales  00:03Hello, I'm Carmen Canales, Senior Vice President and Chief People and Belonging Officer at Novant Health. Welcome to Talent Talk, a podcast that focuses on leadership strategies for engagement, development, and retention for the modern workforce. In each episode of Talent Talk, I'll interview a different leader about their transformational practices in leading teams and supportive our patients and our communities. These conversations will leave you with a few key takeaways and actions you can put into place on your own teams. Today's guest is Becky Beane, Senior Vice President, and Chief Pharmacy Officer at Novant Health. Becky is a pharmacy leader with 24 years of experience in the healthcare industry. In this role, she is responsible for the development and implementation of Novant Health strategy for system-wide pharmacy services. Becky, welcome! Will you take a moment to tell us about yourself and your role at Novant Health?  Becky Bean  01:08Absolutely, I'd love to! First of all, Carmen, thank you. Thank you for letting me join your talent talk really excited about chatting with you this morning. I will say just a little bit about me. So, I have lived most of my life in North Carolina. So, I grew up in North Carolina. Went to the University of Chapel Hill for both undergrad as well as pharmacy school. I can't believe it's been 24 years that I've been a pharmacist but have lived here much of my life. I currently live in Denver, which is we call it Denver of the East. But it's a little bit north of Charlotte, with my husband, my two dogs. Some of the things that I really enjoy doing when I'm not working or getting outside, I love to run. I have a little leash that attached to my waist, and I take my dogs running with me every morning. So that's what I do to de-stress and prepare for the workday. I will say I've done a lot in my pharmacy career. It took me a little bit of time to figure out my niche, you know, where I really felt like I belonged and where I really wanted to have an impact on people's lives and was fortunate enough to land here at Novant Health about 15 years ago. I started as a Clinical Pharmacist and just had opportunities along the way to grow on my leadership journey. So, I'm really grateful for all of the opportunities that have been afforded to me while I've been a part of Team Aubergine. In my current role, I'm the Senior Vice President Chief Pharmacy Executive for Novant Health. So, what that means is I support pharmacy across the enterprise. So, think about all of our acute care facilities, all of our infusion centers or cancer centers within infusion pharmacies located there, our retail, as well as our specialty pharmacy locations. I support that across the organization. It's really a privilege to both lead an amazing team, but also really be leading the strategy and the vision for what we're doing as a pharmacy team to deliver better health for the communities that we serve. So really excited to be here with you and chat this morning.  Carmen Canales  02:58Thank you, that's fantastic. Thanks for telling us a little bit about yourself. Not only your career here, but about your personal life. And about all of Becky. Tell us about your leadership style and your approach to leadership in general. Becky Bean  03:12Yeah, so I think about this a lot, like you get that question sometimes when you're interviewing candidates. I would say really strive to be a servant leader, like, my role is to support the team that I have the privilege of leading. So, I really try to focus in on leading from a place of humility. I am not the smartest person in the room, but I want to surround myself with the people who have all the answers. So as a team, we can accomplish great things. I really focus on listening first. So, trying not to form an opinion, or try to come up with my own solutions, but rather listening to what the team has to say in terms of ways to get to an outcome. I try to focus on things like trust. So, both extending trust, but also being somebody, who people trust. So, whether that's self-accountability, holding people accountable, really delivering on expectations, being clear about what expectations are. So, I really try to focus in on helping teams be successful so that we can achieve more as a team. Carmen Canales  04:12Well, clearly you're doing a great job at it, Becky, so you know, thank you and keep going! So, you first joined Novant Health in 2007. And since then, you've held positions of progressive responsibility. How have things changed since you've been part of Team Aubergine and what advice would you give to colleagues who are looking to advance their careers at Novant Health? Becky Bean  04:35Yeah, I would say Well, first of all, we weren't Team Aubergine when I started with Novant Health. So we weren't you know, we were Novant Health, but we didn't have the Novant Health brand that we have today. So much has changed just in terms of how we function as a system, how we collaborate across a system. That's a big change for the better that I've seen since I've been a part of the team. Technology is completely different today than what it was back when I joined the organization. So, think about we didn't have an EHR, we didn't have systems that talk to one another. So, there was a system for hospitals, our clinics were still on paper charts at the time, we were just starting to get into the electronic health record aspect of care. So, all of that has changed since I've started. And I would say, you know, the other piece that's changed is we were very much silos. And I'm not going to say that we've got everything right today. But I think we function a lot more effectively in terms of thinking about how patients interact with our system across the care continuum. So, lots of really positive momentum in the, in the time that I've been here, I would say, you know, I've been lucky, it's unusual for somebody to start as a Clinical Pharmacist, and then have an opportunity to lead that pharmacy team across the big organizations. I feel very invested in paying it forward, so to speak, Carmen. I really tried to focus on creating opportunities for the team. So, I was fortunate enough to have a couple of people who saw something in me that I probably didn't even see in myself, and just gave me those opportunities to start on my leadership journey. I never anticipated planned for it wasn't my goal in life to, to be a leader but had people that saw something in me. And so, I would say that there's a lot of opportunity here. And what I would tell people in terms of advice is be open to that. You really have to change your mindset, when it comes to change when it comes to opportunity. You have to see them and take advantage of them when they come up. So, I think that, that's really the key. The second thing that I would say, for folks is mentors. I mean, everybody needs a mentor and a sponsor in their life. So, when you look around the organization, and you see somebody that you admire, that really inspires you, take, take the advantage of trying to develop a relationship with that person. Really think about who can mentor you and sponsor you in a way that's going to help get you to where you want to go in your career. Carmen Canales  06:55Those are some really great things for our listeners to think about. Becky, thank you.  Becky Bean  06:59Absolutely! Carmen Canales  07:00You're talking a lot about team and your connection to them. So, tell us more. How do you create connection and foster culture in a hybrid or sometimes totally virtual environment. Becky Bean  07:12That's such a good question. And at the end of the day, I feel like that's probably my biggest responsibility as the Chief Pharmacy Executive is to set the culture. To really establish a culture that people want to be a part of, where people feel like they're getting invested in, they're achieving what they want to achieve. And it's not like I can't say you check these three boxes, and you're gonna have that culture that you want on the other end of it. So, it's really constant work. It's really constant work. And I would say the way you know I've approached it is just making sure that we personalize everything that we do and create a lot of different opportunities for people to connect in different ways. So, starting when somebody joins the organization, so we've done a lot of work to have very robust orientation processes. And new leaders when they come into the organization, we have a whole new leader orientation program for them. Same thing with frontline team members. So, there's a lot to learn when you join a big organization like Novant Health, as you know, so there's a lot to learn about the organization. But there's a lot to learn about the division that you're a part of. And so, we really try to give people a very warm welcome. Set them up for success, who are the right people, you know, who do you need to call when something is not working with your computer, like, like helping people understand where to go when they need things done. So that's, that's piece one. The second thing I would say we do is we really focus on engagement. So, we have created a lot of structure within pharmacy to focus on ways to engage people in a way that's meaningful to them. So, whether it's we have shared governance committees across all of the different units within pharmacy so that we can hear from the teams. What's important to you, what do you need help with. And then we can have shared learnings across all of those different teams. A lot of work has happened there just to identify the things that matter to our team members and the things that we can do to make the time that they spend at work more enjoyable and more aligned with purpose and passion inspiring. And then the last thing I'll share well, two more things. So, one is rounding. So, getting out there spending time with the teams having an opportunity to see what people are doing and recognize the amazing and remarkable things that they're doing every day. So that's a big part of creating culture. And then the last piece, which is something that I actually learned from what Carl does with his monthly Carl's Corners. I created a fireside chat with the pharmacy team. So, every month we do fireside chats that are meant to be just kind of casual updates around what's going on but a platform for people to be able to ask questions, engage with the senior leaders across pharmacy. So those are just a sampling of some of the things that we do to try to create a culture and really try to engage people knowing that now we're not all in one location. Virtual is a part of our reality. And we have hybrid work environments and we're spread out across the entire state of North Carolina. So, it does take a lot of work and time and attention to make sure that you're creating opportunities to connect with the team. Carmen Canales  10:05Well, I can see the you're so intentional about creating the culture, you have to Yeah, Becky Bean  10:10Yeah, you have to. You have to pay attention. You have to focus on it day in and day out. Carmen Canales  10:14That's wonderful. So, Becky, tell us about the pharmacy landscape. You know, what changes have you seen? And how have you prepared your team to thrive during times of change? Becky Bean  10:27Yeah, it's a really good question, Carmen So much has changed. I can remember, when I graduated from pharmacy school, and somebody told me in like two years, the drugs that you're dispensing are going to be totally different than the drugs that you're dispensing today, because that's how fast the drug pipeline works. And I didn't believe it at the time. But I will tell you, it has turned out to be spot on truth. I mean because there's so much development and evidence that's being formed with clinical trials. We learned so much over the years around how best to treat diseases. So that just the drug landscape is completely different than what it was 24 years ago. So that's one piece of it. We've seen a lot of growth in the Specialty Pharmacy space that didn't even exist when I got to pharmacy school, if you can imagine that. So, so many new drugs, really new segments within pharmacy that didn't used to be as relevant are really important to how we care for patients today. And a lot of the care that historically, maybe we gave in the hospital...so we would bring people in, we would keep them in the hospital for five days to give them chemotherapy, all of that has changed. There are drugs that now can be administered in the outpatient setting, so we can keep people in their homes where they're more comfortable. So just the places where we deliver care is completely different than what it was 24 years ago. So, it's a really changing landscape. And I would say preparing teams for change, it really just is helping people expect that change is always coming. So, if you are not changing, you're standing still, and the world is going by without you. So really helping people be prepared for what to expect that they can lead change and that it's coming and then try to at least have a vision into what we think or where do we think things are going in five years. So, we can position ourselves to be successful in that. One thing I will tell you that we do in pharmacy that I think is really helped people prepare for change every year, we put together a strategic plan that has the specific things that we hope to accomplish as a team. And we align that plan with the organizational priorities, to get everybody focused on what they can do to help us be successful. So, I think that helps people manage through the change when they at least can see the vision for where things are going. Carmen Canales  12:36That's wonderful, Becky. It's, it's just really exciting to understand more about how the landscape has changed and how your team reacts and moves right through it.  Becky Bean  12:46Absolutely! Carmen Canales  12:47So Becky, I'm sure our listeners are just enthralled by hearing your story and your perspective. But tell us about a time where you've made a mistake. You know, sometime along the way in your career...what have you learned from that? Becky Bean  13:01It's a great question, Carmen. I would say we all make mistakes every day, right? We wish we could go back and redo, but I'll tell you a couple things. It just you have moments in your life that feel like that you look back on that you remember, and you think about things totally different after those things occurred. So I'll tell you two stories. One, when I graduated from pharmacy school from Chapel Hill, I got a BS in pharmacy. And it was a time and pharmacy where many of the schools were transitioning to all PharmD programs. Meaning that in order to sit for your license in North Carolina, you would have to have a doctorate in pharmacy to sit for your license. And I was kind of in that in between phase because that had not started when I graduated from pharmacy school. So, I graduated with a Bachelor of Science in pharmacy and chose not to do a residency and chose not to go for an extra year to get that PharmD. Like, what was I thinking? Why would I not spend one year setting myself up for future success? I was so, um, disappointed in myself because I felt like I needed to get out there, start making money start my career. You know, I had a broke down car that was breaking down on the side. You know how it goes?  Carmen Canales  14:11Well done, Becky!  Becky Bean  14:12I needed a car to get to work! So, I made that decision and just regretted it because I found myself in a job that I just hated. I felt like I was going to work every day checking a box. I didn't feel like I was really bringing my true self and delivering what I thought I could do for patients in the community. So, what I did, what I learned is it's never too late. So, actually went back to school while I was working full-time and got my doctorate. So, UNC had a virtual program where you could get your PharmD by watching videos of lectures, testing locations, we did experiential learning at different facilities. So, I had an opportunity to go back and get the PharmD which I'm so glad that I did. Because it's really well two things that helped me kind of put the pieces together. So, after you have some clinical experience, you can kind of see how things fit together in a way that maybe I couldn't before. So, I felt like I learned a lot from the program but was able to really set my career on a different path after doing that. The second story, I'll tell you, this is what I'm curious if it will help. So, I had an opportunity. When I joined the organization, it was one year into a two-year grant where the organization decided we were going to hire some pharmacists to help patients who are transitioning out of the hospital into the home. So, what we would do is we'd call them go over their medications, make sure that they got the medications, and then give that communication back to the physician if there were any concerns about side effects, interactions, that sort of thing. But I always thought, well, I don't know how long is my job going to be here, if it's a grant funded position, and it's two years? And fortunately, we had a lot of success. But because of that success, we had an opportunity to represent Novant Health on a national stage. So, the American Society of Health System Pharmacists awarded us a Best Practice Award, which is a big deal in the world of pharmacy, not everybody gets those. So, our transition of care program was successful, we got this award, and my boss came to me and she's like, I want you to be in the video. And I want you to go to San Francisco, or wherever it was, and accept this award on my behalf, because she felt like I had done a lot of work to help us get there. And I turned her down, I said, no I don't think that I want to go, let's let somebody else take that award, let somebody else do the video. And I really have no excuse for not doing that other than I just felt uncomfortable. I felt uncomfortable about being on a video, I was like, I don't know if I want to put myself out there. So, what I learned is you just have to be comfortable with being uncomfortable. And sometimes when you feel nervous or fearful about something, the best thing to do is lean in and learn something and grow as a result. So, I told myself after that minute, I'm never going to turn something down again, when an opportunity presents that I feel like I can do something here and it's a good opportunity for me, I'm going to lean in and take advantage of that opportunity. Carmen Canales  17:03Becky, thank you for sharing those examples that really show your humility. And, I don't know your candor, and, and just sharing lessons learned with, with our listeners.  Becky Bean  17:13Yeah! Carmen Canales  17:14So as we close out today, Becky, what pro leadership tips will you share with our listeners? What would you like to leave our listeners with?  Becky Bean  17:23I'll share a couple of things. Little, just little kind of snapshots of leadership advice. So, one, if you care first, your team will care. So, I try to always be very caring and really care for the person that I'm supporting. Because then they're going to care about the work that they're doing. Trust is key, you've got to honor your commitments, you've got to own your mistakes, you've got to be clear about what expectations are, and really hold others accountable. And sometimes that's a challenge when you first start in your leadership on your leadership journey. But it's really important for teams to be successful. Opportunities don't always come when you think you're ready. So, most of the time and opportunity arises and you don't think you're quite ready for it. And so, changing your mindset that being ready is a decision that you do need to take advantage of those opportunities when they arise is something...a piece of advice that I learned along the way based on the mistake that I shared with you. So, I wanted to share that. Another little snippet. And a lot of these are things that people told me along the way, so I thought they were really impactful. Never stop growing and learning. So, the skill set that brought you to where you are today is not the skill set that you need for your future self. So, you have to always look for opportunities to grow. And then the last thing I'll share is just to be true to yourself. Don't try, try to change who you are, how you show up, the work that you do, or be like anybody else, because really the best gifts that you bring only come out when you're living authentically and bringing all of the things that naturally are a part of who you are as a person to the work that you do every day. So, that's what I'll leave you with.  Carmen Canales  18:58Well, Becky, what a treat to spend some time with you. I've really enjoyed our conversation. And I know that our leaders and our team members will enjoy it as well.  Becky Bean  19:08Absolutely! Again, thank you for the opportunity as always love spending time with you, Carmen. So, thanks for giving me the stage today! Carmen Canales  19:16Thank you, Becky. I hope you enjoyed today's podcast. Make sure to look out for future episodes of Talent Talk where you typically listen to podcasts. Thank you for listening, and until next time, keep inspiring the talents around you!

Carmen Canales  00:03Hello, I'm Carmen Canales, Senior Vice President and Chief People and Belonging Officer at Novant Health. Welcome to Talent Talk, a podcast that focuses on leadership strategies for engagement, development, and retention for the modern workforce. In each episode of Talent Talk, I'll interview a different leader about their transformational practices in leading teams in support of our patients and our communities. These conversations will leave you with a few key takeaways and actions you can put into place on your own teams. Our guest today is Dr. David priest, Senior Vice President of Safety, Quality, and Epidemiology at Novant Health. Welcome, Dr. Priest. Dr. David Priest  00:52Thank you, Carmen, excited to be here. Carmen Canales  00:54Dr. Priest, will you tell us a little bit about yourself and your journey to Novant Health and your journey into healthcare? Dr. David Priest  01:01Yeah, absolutely. So, I am an infectious diseases physician., I practice clinically in the greater Winston-Salem market. Back as early as high school thought I had some interest in going into medicine. And my first desire was actually to become a pediatrician. And I think I did that just because in high school, if you told girls that you were going to become a pediatrician, they all said, “Aww, isn't that sweet?” And great, right? That's, that's the very noble calling I had into medicine was probably just getting dates in high school. But thankfully, I got through what can be a difficult pre-medical time and all of that just kind of stayed on the train. And the funny thing is I went into adult infectious diseases, which is almost the opposite end of pediatrics. But I was really interested actually in oncology for a time. And Leukemia was actually the, the thing that I did a lot of in training and enjoyed caring for those with leukemia, but I got interested in the infections again. And then I got really interested in caring for those with HIV AIDS. And that's who I still love to care for. And they do so well now and that's very, very rewarding. So, I ended up over in the infectious disease world. I was in private practice for a time in Charlotte. So, I've had the privilege of being on, on the medical staff in several hospitals within the Novant Health system, which has really helped me in my current role. And then as an infectious disease physician, I started doing some system work in infection prevention and antimicrobial stewardship. And then that led to my current role as the Chief Safety and Quality Officer. Carmen Canales  02:43Wonderful! Well, that's fascinating. So, the past couple of years certainly have been really interesting for all of us, especially people in frontline roles and in leadership roles. And I would say that you have to have a little bit of both there. Will you tell us about your leadership style? And your approach to leadership in general? How has it changed throughout the pandemic, if at all? Dr. David Priest  03:06Yeah, what a great question. So I think it has changed. In a lot of ways, I've told people that I was in this role of just for about a year when the pandemic hit. And so, I think in many ways, the pandemic accelerated my leadership journey. And in other ways it hampered it, right? Because there were things that I just didn't have time to grow into or learn about. And so, you know, in some ways, people knew who I was now, and it just happened to be that with a pandemic hit, the Chief Safety and Quality Officer was an infectious disease doctor. And that worked out for me and I hopefully for the organization, but then there were things that I thought I just didn't get to and probably stunted my leadership growth in some ways. Fortunately, I had a very veteran team that was in our institute that it was regulatory or clinical excellence or infection prevention, that those leaders were continuing to do what they do and do it very well. And that allowed me to kind of focus on, on a lot of things in the pandemic. So, I do think it's changed in some ways, probably all along my leadership approach is to be is to be low drama, not, don't get too high, don't get too low. I want the team to know what to expect from me day-to-day and what to emotionally expect from me. I don't want them to have to manage me or my mood, right? You hear about leaders, I say, oh, was he in a good mood today? Is he in a good mood today? Or you know how he is, you know? I didn't want I want to be like that. I want to be very consistent and approachable. I think one thing we learn from the pandemic as it pertains to leadership is just reiterating the importance of communication. You know, and when Carl and you, Carmen, and others have been leading these calls, communication is so important. I think was one of the strengths of the organization through the pandemic. Carl's call was every week and people really pulling together to do the right thing. And so I realized as a leader communication was, was super important. And very precise communication. You know, we have all we have so much in the way of communication these days, cell phones and computers and tweeting and all that stuff, and yet, it becomes very imprecise. And then you have to be very specific when you're communicating. So, I try to be specific in my communication. You know, a few other little tidbits I use as a leader, one is, I tried to give credit, where credit's due. I have this great fear of taking credit for something that I didn't do. And I want my teams to get credit for what they do. I try to overdo "thank you' s", you know, thank people publicly…it's a good idea, and not in a manipulative way. But when they deserve it, you got to thank them. I tell our teams, you know, try to live like you've got nothing to prove or trying to lead, like, you've got nothing to prove, you know. I think if I got hit by a bus tomorrow, I did alright. You know, and so I don't have to prove anything, or climb over anybody or climb up some ladders. If we all kind of just acted like we didn't have anything else left to prove that, would I think really kind of keep the drama low and we really move in the right direction. And the other thing that's changed in the pandemic, in terms of my leadership is I'm much more of a cheerleader than I used to be. I didn't consider myself like a sunshine pumper at all, you know. I'm like a child of the late 80s, early 90s. And like, the culture was kind of cynical and sarcastic. And I felt a little bit like that. And during the pandemic, things...people were really down, and I thought, good golly, if I'm the cheerleader, now things must be really bad. Because I don't think of myself as a positive, "We can do this!". But I have kind of become one a little bit, which I think is just the circumstances around me changed. And I realized the importance of encouraging others and to get through it. So, those are some of the lessons I've learned during the pandemic. Carmen Canales  06:50How did you do that? How did you make the move to be more of a cheerleader, if that's not your natural inclination? Dr. David Priest  06:56Yeah, you know, I think I just realized that it was what the moment called for, you know, and I thought if, if no one else, me, people are just so cynical and pessimistic. And I understand why the world we're in and the politics and the pandemic. And just so many challenges, so many people are facing at home and at work and at school and all the things they're facing, I felt like, you know, it just changed my perspective on things. I couldn't be that kind of snarky person in the corner. If I was going to lead people, I was going to have to kind of say, appeal to, hey, there's a lot of positive going on here and we can do this. And so, it was kind of a change in mindset. That wasn't my natural way of thinking about things. And I listen, I still have a sarcastic quip in my head all the time. But, I feel like people responded to it. I think they were looking; they're looking for somebody to do that and help them and say, "We can do this. I know, it's hard, we can do it." And frankly, I think it changed because I was just inspired by what people in healthcare were doing. You know, you think about those nurses in the ICU and all that, how hard they worked. And the least I can do is to be a little more positive and try to get people to move in the right direction. So, I think it was all of those things together, probably. Carmen Canales  08:08Well, you know, what a great story for other leaders to not be set in our ways, and to really have an opportunity to be nimble to employ situational leadership. So, thank you for sharing that with us.  Dr. David Priest  08:18Yeah, absolutely.  Carmen Canales  08:19So, Dr. Priest, today's theme is "thriving through change". And I'd love to hear your thoughts about how have you seen clinical teams thrive amid change? You know, especially given the past couple of years that we've had. What have they done to create momentum and to really use this as an opportunity to thrive? Dr. David Priest  08:39Yeah, and I'll say what's one of the remarkable things about Novant about many things is how the clinical teams, despite the pandemic, have really kept their eye on the ball and caring for patients in, at a time when healthcare across the country has been really, really challenged. If you look at our annual dashboards, our annual goals, you can see what they've done not only have they have survived, they have thrived and which is pretty amazing. I mean, there's just a lot of will that they do that I think as we try to speak to clinical teams about this, this work and keep them positive and moving in the right direction, despite the changes, we try to appeal to why they went into healthcare. You know, most people that went into health care did so for the right reasons. And at their core, they still want to put the patient first, even when there's chaos and challenges and things that are really, really difficult. And it's because for many of them, healthcare is not a job, it's a calling. And so, I think when there's a time when things get really hard, and they think, "Can I do this anymore?", I think you we need to appeal to, to remember this as a calling. And we really hang our hat on that you assume the best of people and you assume their motivations are good and you appeal to that kind of best motivation. And so, I felt like if we kept them remembering or kept all of us remembering why we do this, and then we support them, then we would still get to where we needed to go. You know, we need to acknowledge problems when they occur. I think it was one of the things about Carl's call and the work that was being done during the pandemic, just transparency. This is what we know, this is what we don't know, this is the way it could go, this the way it might not go, this is why we're making this decision. People didn't always like that, got some emails and snail mail that people obviously didn't like those decisions. But I think the majority of people felt like we now see why you are doing this. We have a calling, and you seem to be working in good faith to make this better, and you are giving us information, then they can, they can say, I think they've got it, we're going to keep doing what we do. I think people in healthcare are very data driven. I think I think physicians and APPs and nurses they want to, when you show them information in a meaningful way that tells the story, and they will, they'll understand it, and then they will respond. And so, I think communication, information, transparency, appealing to what people got into medicine for, were all key to keeping us moving and caring for the patients at a time that was unprecedented in healthcare, at least in the time I've been in it. Carmen Canales  11:08So, you've talked a little bit about the importance of communication frequently and with specificity. What else would you say is important to involving a team in change, to making sure that they're a part of the process, even though ultimately, you're the leader of a particular group? Dr. David Priest  11:26Yeah, these are hard Carmen. These are really challenging for leaders, right? I think it goes on one level, it does go back to the mission, right? We remind people with the mission, it lets agree on what the mission is, even if we don't always agree about how the mission is going to be accomplished. And I think in healthcare, it's the constant reminder, at the end of this, there's a patient. And we may have this conversation in a room that's not even in a hospital or healthcare facility. But, down the line, these decisions affect someone in a bed somewhere, in a clinic somewhere. And I think all of us whether you're non-clinical, or even if you're clinical, and you're not always in the clinical space, there's this we're kind of tempted to forget that. Like, this is the family business, right? If Novant Health is a family, the family business is patients and healthcare. And so how do we constantly remember that? And so, I would say the first thing if you're going to help people kind of move through tough transitions is alright, let's all agree with what we're in the business of. And that's taking care of patients. And then once you agree, kind of on the mission, you have to think about, well, what's the method here? How do we all pull the rope in the same direction? And so, you know, I try to let people work. I don't want to be a micromanager. So as a leader, I try to say this, this is something that's yours, those, those people are often content experts more than I am in that thing. And I try to say, "Okay, this is, this is yours. You do what you want to with it, you get your team's doing, you know, the right thing with it." I don't micromanage them. At the same time, I think you can be too distant, right? So, I think it's, you know, if you are so distant, you have no clue what anybody's working on, then I think people often feel kind of alone and don't have support, but they also don't want you in their business all the time. So how do you strike knowing enough about what's happening everywhere, but not really getting in the way? And so, I think when people feel like you're there, but not too much there, then they will engage and they will change, and they will move forward. So, when you have those difficult conversations with people, you tend to be on the same page. Carmen Canales  13:29So, what tips do you have for our listeners today, Dr. Priest? How do you trust but verify? Dr. David Priest  13:35You know, I think it's again, communication, not only with your direct reports and people in the organization with patients, but I think it's having honest conversations, creating an environment where they feel like they can come to you and say, "Hey, this is where I'm stuck, I need you to move this or not move it. What do you think?" And giving them a little reason to, you know, a little room, I shouldn't say reason, a little room to fail, or not quite get through in the right way or learn a lesson. And so, I think it's, it's having those relationships where there's a lot of trust. So, where we talk about a lot, and I think you have to earn that trust by being reliable and being there. And I think when they know they can trust you with it, then I think they feel like they're part of the process. And they come to you if there's trouble. You know, and again, it can be just a quick text, "Hey, I need…let's chat a little later. I've got something I'm working on, what do you think?" And then, letting them do it. Carmen Canales  14:27So, Dr. Priest, you lead a pretty key area of the system. And so, there isn't much room for error when it comes to safety and quality. Having said that, will you tell us about a failure that you've experienced? How have you moved through it? What have you learned from it? Dr. David Priest  14:45Yeah, so you in the in the safety and quality world, we, there's some non-negotiables, right? We have a very low tolerance for failure around patient safety, right? It's too important. And so, we have to be risk averse in kind of the safety space. Whereas there's some other things we do if we're trying to innovate in a, you know, artificial intelligence product or develop something that's not touching patients, yet...we have, we're less risk averse, we're more willing to try something new. Especially if it doesn't cost a lot of money, right? Let's, let's give it a shot, right? And see how it goes. And so, if it doesn't work, we want to, we want to fail fast, and recognize that quickly, and not get too attached to it. I mean, sometimes projects become, people get very personal about them, this is my baby. And we all want this to let this go. But sometimes you got to say, look, we're all in this together, these are all our children, sometimes they don't work, and we have to kind of move on. And every year, we fail to some extent, we don't quite get to the quality metric we want to get to. We don't quite get that project in the right way. We don't get this thing off the ground. And I think we have to kind of regroup. Like I said, fail fast, understand what happened, do some do some post-event analysis, and work to try to not make that happen again. But I think in most regards, and we keep it simple and meaningful and straightforward, and we give communication, we communicate with people and give them information - we get there. I mean, year after year, we hit these quality metrics and targets because we're super-focused and pay attention to it every single day, we know the importance of the organization, and more importantly, the importance to the patients. So, you know, that's kind of the approach we take. What you do learn in healthcare is that biological systems really do not care at all about your quality metrics, or your projects. They really don't care. So, bacteria, viruses…they don't care about anything you do in quality, right? And, and human behavior is another wild card in all of that. So, between biological systems and human behavior, often things go in a direction you weren't expecting. And so, you have to have the humility to realize that all these things are very hard to anticipate, and sometimes you don't quite get there, and you try to be a little better the next time. Carmen Canales  16:57Great counsel for all of us, Dr. Priest. Research tells us that music can tap into both the right brain and left brain. Would you talk to us a little bit about your relationship with music and how does it feed your work? Dr. David Priest  17:11Yes, funny...in our institute a couple of years ago, we had to do, we wanted to do a safety quality symposium and we did it on Zoom. Unfortunately, it was in 2020, the height of the pandemic, and the theme was music. And we tried to make it a little lighter because there's so much serious stuff was going on. And so, we had people come and they were dressed up like their favorite music stars or their favorite concert t-shirt or and I gave actually a talk that was month-by-month what happened in 2020 as it relates to the pandemic. And I picked a theme song for that month, and I would play the song we'd kind of do a "name that tune" kind of thing and then I would reveal it and so I think my team knows it's pretty obvious that music plays a pretty important part of my life. And both listening to it and attempting to play it.  Carmen Canales  17:58What do you play? What do you attempt to play?  Dr. David Priest  18:00Well guitar and bass and mandolin, generally stringed instruments. There's a piano in my house I noodle with a little bit, but my, my daughter is the real the real talent. I'm kind of a just a stubborn enough guy to keep "messing with it" kind of person. You know, as far as listening goes, music is very soothing to me. So, I have vinyl records. So, on a Friday night, I will sit in my living room...vinyl is very popular now. You know, it's the number one application that's, that's not streaming right now. If you're buying something physical, vinyl is number one which is kind of amazing. But I will sit in my living room, maybe with an adult beverage, and put on records and stare out the window. And after a hard week and that's, that's very soothing to me. You know, I listen in my car. And sometimes I use music maybe to understand my own emotions, right? Elation, or melancholy, or anger...it's been a bad day I put some blues on. If it's been a better week, I put some jazz on. If I'm angry, I'll put a hard rock record on. And you know, lyrics are also very important to me, like some people listen to music and have no clue what the lyrics are. But I'm not one of those people. Like something very meaningful, or a set of words will come through...it's like poetry in a way that kind of actually will move me and I repeat and think about. And so, it's funny, it's the way my brain works. And sometimes someone will say something, and I realize it's a lyric from a song and immediately that song starts in my head or I'll start singing it to my wife and she'll get very annoyed. My brain ties words into music pretty, pretty easily. Carmen Canales  18:27Doesn't everybody think in lyrics? Dr. David Priest  19:04I do. I don't know how anybody lives without it. But so, in terms in terms of playing it, you know, I think sometimes people think that people who go into sciences or healthcare or whatever, aren't creative. But a lot of physicians and scientists are very creative, and you can almost approach music like a math problem. People with math brains sometimes are very good at music, so I don't have a lot of musical talent per se, but like I said, I'm just stubborn enough to stick with it. And I'll tell you, I shouldn't be quitting my day job as far as that goes. Carmen Canales  20:07Please don't, please don't! Do you have a favorite artist? Dr. David Priest  20:10I have a lot! And I listen to a lot of genres. Jazz on vinyl is so good! There's something about the pops in the...especially a live jazz album. But I love U2. I had the opportunity to be a guest...kind of a DJ on their Sirius XM channel in 2020, during the pandemic which was a real thrill for me. But I love all genres and have records from, from many different groups. Carmen Canales  20:38Wonderful, thank you for sharing that with us, David. And then lastly, what tips do you have on leadership? If you could leave our listeners with a few key things to think about, whether they're a new leader or a have been doing this for some time, any pro tips on leadership? Dr. David Priest  20:56I think low drama, like we talked about before, is a really important piece of it. And just day after day, they know what to expect. And you mean, you're very consistent. Even if you don't feel consistent in your own mind or your own heart, or you're not sure quite what to do. I don't mean to put on a false facade, you want to show vulnerability to your teams, and they want to be able to see that. But at the same time, you know, I think taking a deep breath and not getting too high or too low is really important. And I do think that idea of leading and living like you've got nothing to prove is a hard thing to do. Look, we all have egos, we all want to be recognized. I like awards as much as the next person. But at the end of the day, those awards aren't going to mean a whole lot, right? Your teams will remember how you treated them, not that you won awards. And so again, I'm not saying don't give me awards. They're great, but they're very fleeting, right? Speaking of music, you know, I told somebody on my team this the other day, awards are great. People need to be recognized. I understand that. But I don't know if you've ever seen this, there's a music video, Johnny Cash put out a number of years ago for a song called "Hurt". And the hurt song was originally done by Nine Inch Nails. And Johnny Cash did a version of it, much slower version of it. And in the video, there's footage of him as a young man. And there's footage of him as an old man sitting in his house, I guess, surrounded by trophies. And there's a line in the song where he says, you know, he talks about my "empire of dirt". And he's like pouring dirt out of some award he's won. I think he's recognized in his own life that these awards were nice at the time. But now at the end of my life, I don't know what they mean. But I think he would say the relationships I had with people and how I treated people whether on my team or my family or my friends or whatever, they're going to remember that. No one's going to remember these gold trinkets that you know when I'm gone won't mean anything. And so that whole, like "live like you got nothing to prove", if you can do that, and practice that, I think it's contagious, and it rubs off on people around you. Because then you don't really care about who gets credit, right? Your team can get credit because you don't care. And you're quick to recognize people when they've done a good job. And you're quick to thank them publicly. And you're quick to point out how great they're doing. And that kind of thing, I think is more important than awards. And so, I'm not always perfect at any of this, believe me. I have my days where I go home, like what the heck did I do today? But I think if I strive to do that in such a way that the team feels like I got their back, I recognize when they do good work. And I think because of that they want to be around here. That's what I try to do. And the last thing I'll say is, I would love for our team...I've told them this before, you know, let's say you got a great head coach in the NFL or on a volleyball team or whatever. When that coach accomplishes a lot or the team accomplishes a lot, people come and pick off the assistant coaches, right? I'm not a Patriots fan, per se, but Bill Belichick has coaches all over the league because he has a lot of success. And people say, "Oh, I'm gonna go pick off their assistants." I don't think it's a bad thing. I would love for members of our team to get picked off over the years, because they're doing great work. And they're going on to bigger and better things, right? I wouldn't want to hold them back. Most of them have jobs right now in our institute. That's not the last job they'll ever have. But I want them to leave because something bigger and greater and something awesome has happened because we helped facilitate that. And so, you almost have a coaching tree of your team that's spread out maybe all over the country. You can say oh yeah, we used to work in nobody is your safety quality. That's where I got my start. I learned a ton. And then I went on to this thing over here because I would love to, in my retirement days be sitting on a pier somewhere fishing and having people that work for me, calling me going, "Hey, what do I do about this?" and I'll say, "I don't know...you're screwed. I'm retired, good luck." No, I'd like them to call and say, “I really appreciate it. That was such a great time and you helped facilitate that.” So, I think thinking like that to...where is my team going and maybe they're staying there forever? That may be their calling and they want that position forever. But there'll be others who want to do other things, and why not we help them do that, whether at Novant or elsewhere if it's, it's really what they're pursuing. So, I try to have that kind of attitude, too. Let me support you and help you get to where you want to go.   Carmen Canales  25:12What a great approach to support our team members in getting to where they want to be. Whether that's in a leadership role themselves or continuing a great career here at Novant Health.   Dr. David Priest  25:21Yeah, absolutely. Novant is so big. There are often those opportunities here, right? There within the organization. And I love seeing that, hey, I'm gonna go over here and this other part of Novant, because it really speaks to my interests and my skill set. And yeah, absolutely. Let's make that happen. It's really, it's really fun to see that.   Carmen Canales  25:41We're talking about zigzag career growth, so you don't have to leave to lead.   Dr. David Priest  25:47Yeah. There's the official PC, People and Culture term, right? That I didn't know...zigzag.  Carmen Canales  25:54Well, Dr. David Priest, I'd like to thank you again for being our inaugural guest. Thank you so much for your wisdom and your perspective on leadership, and on leading change. Dr. David Priest  26:06Great. Thanks for having me. Carmen Canales  26:09I hope you enjoyed today's podcast. Make sure to look out for future episodes of "Talent Talk” where you typically listen to podcasts. Thank you for listening, and until next time, keep inspiring the talent around you!

Featured guests:  Elizabeth Outten, senior director of external affairs, Government Relations and External Affairs team. Kristen Barnhardt, strategic relationship lead, Government Relations and External Affairs team. This episode of Inside Remarkable was edited by Gina DiPietro of Novant Health Public Relations.  Looking for more information? This resource guide, available on I-Connect, guides team members throughout elections. Election activity guide, also available on I-Connect, includes a list of do's and don'ts for nonprofits and election activity. Register to vote in North Carolina. Request a mail-in ballot, also referred to as an absentee ballot, from the North Carolina State Board of Elections. 

Local administrator access, or “local admin” for short, is a form of elevated access that gives a user more control over a device or system.  In this episode of “Within These Firewalls,” listen to learn why someone would need local admin access, why we separate it from standard accounts and how to get local admin if you need it.

In this episode of “Within These Firewalls,” listen in to hear how unapproved software on Novant Health computers could affect our security. Our host, Drew Walker, cybersecurity threat intel analyst, discusses why we only allow approved software on our computers and how to request new software for yourself. Listen in to get cyber smart.

(Part 2 of 2) We continue our discussion with Candace Williams to learn more about how BRG leadership impacted her and what her plans are for the future.Ashleigh Hargrave  00:05Welcome to Mosaic, your Novant Health podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity. You'll learn more about the mosaic of similarities and differences that make us stronger, and how health equity benefits us all. Piece by piece. We're telling the stories of the beautiful mosaic of Novant Health. Becky Knight  00:25Welcome to part two of our conversation with Candace Williams, immediate past co-leader of our award winning women's business resource group at Novant Health. In part one, we focused on the work that has garnered some accolades, and on this episode, we are going to focus on how BRG leadership has impacted Candace. Candace, leading such a large BRG, even one with a strong co leader, executive sponsor and committee leaders -- It takes a lot of time and energy. With so many groups you could volunteer to serve, why did you choose to be a BRG leader? Candace Williams  00:58To your point, it is a growth opportunity, I saw it as that I saw. It as an opportunity to meet new people in the organization to grow my own skills. And really for the women's BRG, I've always been, I shouldn't say always, but like, as long as I can remember for many years, very personally passionate about helping people grow developing people, and it's particularly women. So the opportunity to help my colleagues to grow, to be able to identify different people to come in and to really pour into them with information and knowledge and learning to be able to plan and strategize how you know, what is this year look like? Are we focusing on mental health? Are we focusing on domestic violence and making sure that women are taking care of themselves is an international women's day and we get to collaborate with other BRG to do something fabulous and honor the contributions that women have made. It just has been, for me, it was just this opportunity to use a lot of the skills that I get to use at work, but maybe in a very different way to be able to be creative and working on our videos that we submitted with our application to be able to like I said, bring in these amazing speakers. So I just really saw it as a way to really sort of feed my passion like I care about it. It's exciting to hear people grow. It's exciting when people reach out to us and say that a speaker impacted them or something that we said impacted them. It's just amazing. So that it was it was for both my personal and professional development personally, I was fed my soul was fed as a result of it, it fed me. And then I also had an opportunity to feed others and the opportunity to learn from more amazing people because the big leader, you're able to connect with all these other amazing leaders across the organization. It's just fabulous. I mean, I really had so much it was like really hard to let go. But I think part of that is making room for someone else. Like I would have happily continued to do this for years to come. But they're amazing people who also want any that same opportunity. Becky Knight  03:21I would love to learn what is next for you. Candace Williams  03:24So outside of work, I'll say within Novant Health, I still will be very active with the BRG. I'm a member of the Women's BRG and the African American BRG still able to support the new chairs with finding speakers and just anything I can do to help them as they transition. So I'll remain active there and love that and be able to step up with African American BRG because when I took on the chair role women's BRG, I had to step back so I'm so I'm excited about continuing to support the BRGs. Outside of work, I'm very active. I'm in my last year as PTO President, my youngest son is a senior in high school. And so I've been President for probably six years and I've always been on the board of the PTO or PTA and some call it at their schools. I'm in my last year of Jack and Jill of America, which is a an organization of historically black Organization of Women, moms. And so it's really a mother organization, we support our kids and I've been active in that. And so I'm I'm able to kind of step back from that. I'm a sustainer and Junior League of Charlotte, and then recently joined, became a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, which is a historically black sorority, and we strive to be of service to all mankind. And so with that, I know I'll be able to continue to give back to the community. And one of the things that being a big leader did and I said I was passionate about women and growth and development, but it really also sort of sparked this desire in me to do more and what does it look like so capacity for you? I shared that I spoke with the local university. I've actually got two speaking engagements in queue over the next couple of months. And I'm really excited about and really hope to do more of that because I love actually enjoy public speaking and enjoy sharing things that help feed women and help us to grow. I recently had an opportunity to share on the women's BRG call for the first time because all the years it was sort of like I was always scheduling other people and thought, oh, wait, what if I shared you know and so Jill and mothering allow me to share and actually Candace Whitfield who shared with me is going to be coming back and sharing soon as well. And then I, I've started coaching, so I've got some clients that I'm coaching because really, like I said, it's like pouring into women and the BRG really helped me to kind of unlock that gift, that desire that was in me and what does it look like for me to serve and give back to other women? Becky Knight  05:57Well, thank you. I am very thankful just personally for what the BRG has done for me as a team member at Novant Health and also in my role as a BRG administrative coordinator. Your leadership of the women's BRG, in your partnership on so many things has really raised the level for all of our BRGs. And so I thank you for what you've done the last few years and I'm excited for what lies ahead for you. So thank you so much for joining us today. I appreciate it. Candace Williams  06:27Thank you, but Becky, before we go, I want to thank you too. You are an amazing support. As a BRG coordinator you are they're all extremely supportive. Novant Health didn't just come to the big game like this isn't something new. It's not a result of anything that just happened in culture. This has been going off for years, we've got amazing support all the way across the organization. It's clear that BRGs are valued at Novant Health and you're one of the reasons that we are also successful. So thank you Ashleigh Hargrave  06:59Thanks for listening to mosaic your podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity and Novant Health. Stay tuned for our next exciting episode.

(Part 1 of 2) Candace Williams talks about her term as co-leader of the Women Business Resource Group at Novant Health. Learn why their work was awarded the #1 spot at the national Impact Awards. Then join us for Part 2 where Candace shares how BRG leadership impacted her and how that's opening up new opportunities for her.Ashleigh Hargrave  00:05Welcome to mosaic, your Novant Health podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity. You'll learn more about the mosaic of similarities and differences that make us stronger, and how health equity benefits us all. Piece by piece, we're telling the stories of the beautiful mosaic of Novant Health. Becky Knight  00:24Hello, happy to have you with us for this episode of mosaic, where we focus on what Novant Health is doing in the areas of diversity, inclusion and equity. This episode will highlight the work of our Women's Business Resource Group or BRG at Novant Health. All of our BRGs are impactful and so so instrumental in embedding our value of diversity, inclusion and equity in every aspect of our organization. And the Women BRG is our most award winning. Their mission statement is the women BRG strives to offer a safe place for hard topics, a resource to gain tools for self-care and a place to increase skill, confidence and competence for team members in reaching their professional goals. And they have done just that. With me today is Candace Williams, who recently completed her term as Co- leader of the Women BRG, here to talk about how the BRG impacted our team members, and also how leadership impacted her personally and professionally. Candace, welcome, so glad to have you on this episode. Can you begin by telling us a bit about yourself and your role at Novant Health? Candace Williams  01:27Thanks so much, Becky. As you said, my name is Candace Williams, I serve as Director of Patient Advocacy and health humanities. What that means is I have the pleasure of supporting work across the organization that supports our patients and their loved ones. I think at Novant Health we're all advocates. And my role, I get to do things like our patient rights video in English and in Spanish to make sure our patients understand their rights, support our community voice patient family advisory councils, which is a way that we bring the voice of patients and loved ones in as we're making decisions and coming up with ways to better care for our patients. And then on the health community side, really the pleasure of the arts, bringing the arts into our facilities, partnering with other teams, like guests and volunteer services. And recently we've begun installing murals in our parking decks just to create a new environment. So it's about the patient and family member experience, and a team member experience and how can we use art to impact that? Becky Knight  02:31And Candace, you just ended a very successful term as C0-leader of the Women's BRG here at Novant Health. In 2020, the BRG placed number two at the impact Awards, which are a national recognition, and in 2021, you took the top spot -- number one! What did that moment feel like and what was running through your mind? Candace Williams  02:52Going into it, Becky, all we knew was that we were in the top 25. We didn't know where we fell in the top 25. We just knew we were there. And honestly, in 2021, I was feeling a lot of pressure. Because when you've been number two, where do you go the next year? you want number one! And so in my mind, I thought, Is it even possible could it be but this is what we want. We want to continue to improve and get better. So there was just a lot of anxiety. So as the countdown was happening, I was absolutely on pins and needles. I was actually in the car driving my youngest daughter back from college for the weekend and was listening in. And the closer we got like I'm screaming in the car, I'm making all sorts of noise in the car. And when we got to I think it was like number four, number five, and we still hadn't been called. I very wisely pulled over at a rest stop because I was kind of losing it and pulled over the rest stop. And I'm just sitting there just waiting. And when they said when they announced the number two spot, which meant we were the number one spot. I absolutely lost it. I was screaming, I was crying. My daughter was like looking at me like it was also strange. It was amazing. It was so amazing to hear that. And I think at some point during the night, I thought am I right? Like, I think we're in the top 25. But the numbers are still going down and they haven't gotten to us yet. Like it was very surreal. It was an awesome experience. Becky Knight  04:18Yes, that was very exciting. And you definitely, I recall, kind of putting out the intention of you wanted to be number one, and you would share that on calls. And so what did you do to earn the number one spot what was the work that was recognized?  Candace Williams  04:35Definitely was believing for that number one spot and we were saying it all the time as a BRG and just were really amazed when it happened. In terms of work itself, we saw an opportunity to create something for our team members frontline through supervisory roles. Now, while Novant Health has a training and personal development available, we really saw an opportunity to leverage some existing training. It was available in sort of a self-paced way and really create some accountability. And the way we did that was by selecting specific modules that we thought would help a team member who wanted to grow in their career. We also set specific timelines there were, there were timelines by which certain things had to be completed. We worked with this company to provide coaching sessions for our team members. So as an organization, Novant Health would cover team members to coaching sessions for free. And additional coaching sessions were $10 Each, we wanted to make sure that even that $10 wasn't an obstacle. So we agreed and determined that we would support any team member who needed that assistance with that $10. So that that even wouldn't be an obstacle for the team members. And so it was really amazing the feedback we received from those who participated in it, because they weren't taking advantage of what was already there. So instead of us we thought about do we want to build something from scratch, but we didn't need to completely reinvent the wheel, what we needed to do was present it in a way, like I said, that created that buy in, that created that level of accountability that encouraged people to take advantage of coaching, which is so valuable, and so many people don't understand the value of it. And so everybody who participated, agreed to a certain number of coaching sessions, a certain number of modules to work on resumes, and interviewing skills, and all those things. And so I think it really produced something wonderful. And those who participated gave wonderful feedback about it. Becky Knight  06:34That is, that is, yeah, great work, and was so thrilled that it was recognized, and I think sets the standard for what other people and other companies can do for their team members. And I like what you said about you don't necessarily have to reinvent it, but customize it. Know who, who your members are and what they need and create something that is accessible and relevant to that was so well done. And you did have a lot of other things that you did during your two years. When you look back, are there other moments that stand out as meaningful? Candace Williams  07:15Yeah, there are lots of things are a few things. One that I think about is how we work together to really build an eboard. When I first joined the women's BRG, it was really me and the other leader at the time, who was wonderful, but it was really just the two of us when I joined. And so we saw an opportunity to really create opportunities for other women, our organization to grow by being able to step up into these leadership roles. So I'm really proud of where we landed with this amazing group of women serving together to make things happen. Another thing that I'm really proud of is the speakers that we've been able to bring to our BRG. As I mentioned before, we're really focused on personal and professional development. So we've been able to look out at the year ahead, what are the things that we can do for our members, we've surveyed our members to hear what's important to them as well, and have just brought some really powerful speakers. One of the things at the end of each call that we ask them to do is to give us a call to action, what's the call to action for everyone who's participated on the call, because sometimes you can hear someone and you don't know what to do if they've said 15 things. What do you do? What's the one thing? So I'm really proud of the speakers, and that commitment to make sure all of our members leave each call with something specific that we want them to commit to being able to do. Another opportunity that serving open for me and for Candace Whitfield, who co-chaired with me until we both gave the opportunity to others, is that we've been able to actually speak at a local university to their women in graduate programs. And that's been amazing. And I know that that was a door that was open because of the BRG very proud, like I said, of the surveys being able to survey our members for what they want, what do they need? How do they feel about the things that took place throughout the year we send out a survey and after every meeting and invite feedback and we take the time to look at that and have it helped us shape the next year. And then the final thing I'll share is I had the honor of serving and representing Novant Health at the ERG and councils conference this year on a panel that talked about BRGs and was able to share with BRG leaders really across the world about what we're doing here at Novant Health and that was really awesome. Becky Knight  09:33All right, well, we will end there for now and continue our discussion on the next episode, where we will hear from Candace and how the BRG leadership experience impacted her. And what's next for her. I hope you'll join us Ashleigh Hargrave  09:51Thanks for listening to mosaic your podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity and Novant Health. Stay tuned for our next exciting episode.

What does the Veterans BRG do for team members, patients and the community? Find out on this episode of Mosaic when co-chair Elizabeth Lee and events committee chair, Cee Cee Thomas, invite BRG member David Cloer to share his thoughts.

On this episode we continue our conversation with members of the Novant Health Pride BRG. They discuss waht it means to be an ally and advocate for the LGBT community, including addressing health inequities.

We are kicking off Season 2 of Mosaic! Becky Knight, Business Resource Group (BRG) coordinator, talks with members of the Novant Health Pride BRG about what coming out means and why it is still relevant, even thought it has been more than 30 years since the first Coming Out Day.

Yvonne Dixon, a health director for Novant Health shares her reason for taking the Covid 19 vaccine and the historic and recent health inequities that may deter African-Americans and people of color from receiving theirs.The  Covid 19 Vaccine: A Reflection on Impact and Equity - Yvonne DixonJanuary 2021 Welcome to Mosaic, your Novant Health podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity. You'll learn more about the mosaic of similarities and differences that make us stronger, and how health equity benefits us all. Piece by piece, we're telling the stories of the beautiful mosaic of Novant Health. Ashleigh Hargrave  0:28  I'm Ashleigh Hargrave. Today's episode features a leadership reflection with the spotlight on health equity. We'll hear from Yvonne Dixon, Director of health equity, as she shares her personal reflection on the COVID-19 vaccine and equity in medicine. Yvonne Dixon  0:47  Hello, everyone, this is Yvonne Dixon, Director of health equity from the Office of diversity, inclusion and equity. really, you know, I want you to hear something, do you hear that sound in the background. it's a tick tock sound? It is  an actual clock there, I have an antique clock on the wall, and I'm sitting up under this clock. And it's called an eight day clock. This clock is about 100 years old, or I'll say is over 100 years old, it was my great grandfather's clock. So yes, it's over 100 years old, but I'm sitting under this clock, just to remind me and you of what time it is. You know, there are times in which I am sitting in the same room with this clock. And although the tick tock is very loud. Sometimes I don't hear it.I have become so accustomed to hearing this tick tock sound, that I can be in the same room with it sometimes, and I don't hear it. I bring that up because there are times in which when we are called, we are called to do something that is so very right, we don't do what is needed because we don't hear it. We don't hear the call. Because we believe that, you know, sometimes maybe we don't need to hear that call. Or we can become immune to hearing that call  if needed for need. Unknown Speaker  2:28  Again, confirmed cases within North Carolina is 6274. We also have a number of deaths, meaning 7328. Again, this is a call I want you to hear this call, not become immune to this call.Because the call is for all of us to really and truly highly consider taking the COVID vaccine injection.I have taken this injection.3:07  And that was on the 22nd of December. I'll be due for my second injection on the 18th of January. And I'm looking forward to taking the second part of that vaccine. Why? No, I don't like to get stuck. But at the same time, I know that it's beneficial for me. And I'm very thankful that we have the opportunity to be able to take this vaccine. I know that there are several people, I've talked with several people that are not interested in taking this vaccine and really not having a real good reason as to why. But I do understand, especially when we're talking about previous history, especially as it relates to African Americans. You know, for black people, we have had a very bad history when it comes to how we have been treated as a relates to medicine. One of those stories relating to the Tuskegee experiment, and how so many men were not treated appropriately because of the the diagnosis of syphilis, and not given the treatment to eradicate  syphilis, only doing some of those things such as what we can hear about now kind of like that watch and wait and see what happens. But the watch and waiting for those individuals for over 40 years during the course of this experiment did not provide for great benefits. Matter of fact, death occurred. And then we think about in the past the story about Henrietta Lacks and howher body was used for science, although the outcome of that science was good,  her family was not, did not provide for approval to be able to use her body. Again, one of those inequities in science.   5:19  And as we look to the present right now, there are so many individuals that are not receiving equitable care, based upon sometimes those social determinants of healththat befall us. But at the same time, there is truth, and there is appropriate treatment for all of us. And we must speak that truth, I say to you, and to all of us to seek getting that treatment of the COVID vaccine. 5:55  Number one, I told you,  I have received the treatment and am going back to the second portion of that vaccine. Also, as an African American, and female, black female, I know that I am at that age where COVID is is really taken us out those individuals that are over 60 years old, I fall into that category, also African American, I am in that category. And I also have someone here that lives with me, my 92 year old father, who definitely has comorbidities that would if he were to obtain thevirus, that would definitely befall him as a health care provider, as a nurse entering in and out of these facilities and definitely don't want to carry anything with me. So just knowing what's been in the past as to why African Americans do not want to take it and then knowing what's current, in terms of inequities in health care, and there are,but there's no reason for you to not take care of yourself. I urge you, I contend that this vaccine is something that we all need to take. But I am mostly impressing upon my African American brothers and sisters, to please take this vaccine.   7:36  Because as you can hear in the background once again of the ticking clock.It is important for us to know what time it is. Ashleigh Hargrave  7:46  Thank you, Yvonne for sharing your insight and personal reflections on equity and the necessity for care, especially as it relates to the COVID-19 vaccine, and all of our communities. Listeners, please contact your healthcare provider for more information as your health care provider is a valuable partner in looking after your health and helping you make decisions about your care.  8:17  Thanks for listening to mosaic your podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity at Novant Health. Stay tuned for our next exciting episode.

Becky Knight  0:00  Thank you for joining us today with me is Sonia Hart. And she's going to be with us to talk about the significance of Black History Month, really the significance of what's happened in the last year and how that's impacting the members of the Business Resource Group. And then what she sees is the future.Sonia, welcome. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself by way of introduction.Sonia Hart  0:21  Thank you Becky, for having me here. Um, my name is Sonia heart. I am in my day job, the program manager for heart failure for the Greater Charlotte market. I'm also the former chair for the African American BRG had been in that role for the last couple of years and was really excited to be able to pass that torch on to our new chairs. I have been with Novant for 21 years. So and we've seen a lot of changes throughout that time and just really excited about what the future holds.Becky Knight  0:56  Well, we are recording this in February, which is Black History Month. And I thought we'd begin with a reflection from you on a historical figure or maybe someone that is personally meaningful to you, someone that you think of this month and the contributions that they've made to Black history and American history.Sonia Hart  1:14  I think for me right now, the person that comes to mind is Cicely Tyson. And with her recent passing, just really learning about her life, and she had lived for 96 years. So she had a very full life. Also reading her book right now, which is very interesting. And just to kind of see the parallels of the things that she went through to get where she was as this world renowned actress, um, she's very introverted, very thoughtful. So she really reminds me of myself in a lot of ways as far as really being thoughtful about what's the next step or what's the next plan, and always having a purpose in mind. So I think for me, that's who comes to mind for me as a historical figure.Becky Knight  2:03  So you are a part of this modern history. So this last summer 2020, and really the whole year 2020 is one that will go down in the history books as being quite memorable for several reasons, both for the COVID-19 pandemic, and also the racial and social unrest following the killing of George Floyd. And I wondered if you had any thoughts on what it was like to be a part of the the leadership of the BRG, which is over 600 members strong, and what that was like to be a part of this time in history and to lead folks during such an upheaval and such a time filled with so many emotions.Sonia Hart  2:48  I think for me, personally, what I saw the BRG do was two things, it was a safe space, for those people of color, to really kind of just, you know, get together to talk about the issues that were at hand, especially with the pandemic and having to social distance. And then with the social unrest with George Floyd and, you know, trying to still remain professional at work, we're still having these feelings of how do I cope with this as an individual, and we did some really great sessions during the summer to really kind of bring home the point of it is okay to have the feelings that you have, and to make sure that they have outlets to be able to express their feelings and to know that they had support in the BRG and I thought we did a really good job of facilitating that and providing that safe space for them.Becky Knight  3:49  As someone who's been here, you said 21 years? How do you see or do you see a change in how maybe Novant Health would have responded 20 years ago to how it responded now? Have you seen a change in how we're able to talk about race and racism?Sonia Hart  4:06  I will honestly say I really applaud Carl Amato and his efforts as well as the executive team for the insight that they have on things and really taking a stand when it may not be the most popular at the time. We're always taught as young people that two things that you don't discuss in the workplace is your salary, and politics, or racism, or any of those types, untouchable subjects and I really think this past year in particular, that those subjects have now come to the forefront and it's important to have those discussions and share those feelings and have people be able to voice their concerns or their opinion respectful way, but to know that they everybody is not going to be the same or everybody is not going to agree and it's okay to be disagreeable, but just to always be respectful and I think call and the executive team did a really good job of showing that with their leadership.Becky Knight  5:08  How do you see the African American BRG as a place for understanding both the past, and also what's going on in the present?Sonia Hart  5:17  I will say to that question, Becky, that I do feel like we still have a ways to go with addressing the present. I think there are opportunities out there for us as BRGs to really reach across the aisle and have those courageous conversations and discussions to move race relations forward, as well as you know, developments of equity in our hiring practices, as well as just in general in day to day reactions with other employees, I think we still have, I think we've come a long way, in especially the part of being able to have conversations with a co-worker that may not look like you or may not have the same belief that you have, but I still feel as if there is still much more work to be done in that area.Becky Knight  6:12  Any last parting thoughts or words of wisdom as we close our episode?Sonia Hart  6:17  I would probably just say, in closing that I feel like Novant Health is on the cutting edge of what diversity and inclusion looks like. And I think that we have a really significant blueprint that I think other companies really want to learn from and follow. So I'm extremely proud to say that I have been a part of that for a very long time and still look forward to see what's next.Becky Knight  17:10  We're very fortunate to have you as a 20 plus veteran of Novant Health and hope you'll continue to to be with us and I know you're still involved in the Black + African American BRG as kind of a senior sage leader. And so really value that that history and that perspective that you bring as someone who's been involved for a long time, and people come in with energy and ideas. And we need those kind of elders in the group who can share their wisdom and expertise. So thank you for all that you've done for the BRG and for Novant Health as a whole. And thank you for being our guest today on Mosaic.Sonia Hart  17:46  Thank you BeckyTranscribed by https://otter.ai

Ashleigh Hargrave  0:05  Welcome to Mosaic, your Novant Health podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity. You'll learn more about the mosaic of similarities and differences that make us stronger, and how health equity benefits us all. Piece by piece, we're telling the stories of the beautiful mosaic of Novant Health. Becky Knight  0:24  One critical piece of the Novant Health mosaic is our Business Resource Groups are BRG's. They are voluntary groups of team members united around a common identity and their work positively impacts our patients, our organization and the communities we serve. With me on this episode is Lauri, a Novant Health team member and BRG member here to share about her cancer journey. We are in the midst of Colorectal Cancer Awareness month, and a few weeks ago was International Women's Day where the theme was "choose to challenge" and I can't imagine a much bigger challenge to face than cancer. So Lauri, thank you so much for being here and sharing your story. Can we begin with you telling us a little bit about yourself? Lauri  1:04  Sure, thank you. My husband and I moved down here to North Carolina about three years ago as we were searching for warmer weather. I began my career at Novant Health at that time, I am also the Secretary to our Native American BRG, and I really enjoy that. We've been married for 23 years. We don't have any children, but we do have three dogs. In my spare time, I like to go golfing, camping and help rescue dogs find their forever homes. Becky Knight  1:36  Wonderful Lauri  1:38  I'm also a colon cancer survivor of almost nine years.  Becky Knight  1:42  Yeah, so tell me more about that. You know, in researching this and being Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, I just found out that colon cancer is a lot more prevalent than I expected and a lot more deadly. And it's actually, when you look at men and women combined, it's the third most diagnosed cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death. So what was that like to hear that you were diagnosed? Lauri  2:10  Yeah, I don't know that I could ever truly explain the feelings that overcome you when you get a cancer diagnosis. But I have to say first, I was shocked. I was only 42 years old. And I thought colon cancer only happened to the elderly. The only symptoms that I was having was I was having some episodes of diarrhea, which actually was unusual for me. And then I started having some abdominal pain. So at that point, I did go to my primary care doctor, she referred me to a colorectal specialist. She thought that I had irritable bowel syndrome. But in order to get that diagnosis, you have to have everything else ruled out. So that was obviously not the diagnosis that I got. So after I met with the colorectal surgeon, he did tell me that I had stage three colon cancer, and that it was nearly obstructing my bowel and that I needed surgery right away. And I honestly don't think I heard anything he said after he said that. It took me... it took a while for the initial shock to wear off. And then I was definitely scared. I wasn't sure what to expect as I embarked on this new cancer journey. It was definitely a scary time. Becky Knight  3:27  Wow. Yeah. And like you said, you think of it as something that happens, you know, to older folks, and the median age is 68 for men and 72. For women, though, the median age for onset is getting earlier and earlier. So yes, so some of the shock of not only the the diagnosis, but to feel so young and to have something so significant happen. Lauri  3:54  I have to say they have found that younger people are getting colon cancer much more than they had in the past. And there are some organizations that now recommend starting your colon cancer screening at age 45 instead of the age 50 that it's always been. Becky Knight  4:13  Yeah, and when African American Actor Chadwick Boseman. When it came out in the news that he had died last year of colon cancer. He was only 43. Did you have any reactions when you heard that news? Lauri  4:25  Yeah, when I heard the news, of course it brought back all the feelings I had when I was diagnosed. I wondered why I lived and Chadwick, who was a superhero, had to die. I thought about how strong he was as he continued to work through his multiple surgeries and chemotherapy. I also felt very sad for his family and everything that he must have had to go through during the last three years of his life. I also tried to think about anything positive and then I realized that his high profile death has definitely raised awareness of colon cancer. I hoped that with that increased awareness that would encourage others to get screened, because I cannot stress how important early screening is because the survival rate is significantly higher the earlier that you can catch colon cancer. Becky Knight  5:17  Yes, screening is so important. And I wanted to look at the data too. I mentioned earlier that colorectal cancer is the third most diagnosed cancer among men and women combined. But when we look deeper into that data, we do see there are racial disparities. You shared that you're involved with the Native American business resource group, and one of the goals of our BRG's is to work on reducing health disparities. So looking at the data on Native Americans, they are more likely to get diagnosed with colorectal cancer. Their diagnosis occurs later in the progression of their cancer, and they experience higher colorectal cancer death rates compared to the US as a whole. And while the incidence rates are declining for white Americans, they remain unchanged for indigenous populations. So it's vital that we recognize the disparities and work to close the gaps because everyone needs and deserves access to lifesaving screenings, and treatments. And speaking of treatment, you mentioned how Chadwick worked during the last few years as he was battling cancer. I imagine he must have had people close to him, supporting him through such a difficult and demanding time. What was treatment like for you? Did you have a lot of support during your treatments? Lauri  6:32  So my journey began, of course, when I got the colon cancer diagnosis, and then I started with I needed to have a colon resection where they removed the tumor and they also removed about 12 inches of my large intestine. Unfortunately, on the fourth day after surgery, I developed fevers and the pain became unbearable. So I had a CT scan, which showed that I had an ns an osanastomosis leak, which is a leak where they had reconnected the two ends of my colon during the previous surgery. So I had to go back to surgery. They also had to create a temporary ileostomy so that the surgical repair would have time to heal. Even though I had been a nurse for 20 years, I have to say learning to manage my own ileostomy bag was more than I ever imagined. I just would have never thought that I would ever have to do that for myself. The progress through the remainder of my hospital stay was slow, but I was finally able to leave the hospital after 18 days. The normal time in the hospital after the surgery is maybe five or six days. So I have to say while I was in the hospital, it was probably the first time I thought I might not survive this. I went home after my hospital stay and I recuperated from surgeries and worked on regaining my strength. And then about a month later I started my chemotherapy regimen which was supposed to be about six months, I would go in for chemotherapy every two weeks, and each dose would take about five or six hours to deliver. And then I would go home with another chemotherapy medication that would infuse over the next two days, my family was instrumental. Somebody always either one of my family or friends always drove me to chemo and stayed there the entire time with me while it was infusing, I had a lot of help. They would offer to drop off food, take me to chemo or just do whatever I needed. So at one point, I did end up having to shave my head because my hair was thinning. And this was a very difficult time for me as I adjusted to my new image of a 42 year old bald woman with an ileostomy bag. But finally after eight months, I completed my chemotherapy and I had a follow up CT scan that showed that I was cancer free. Becky Knight  8:59  What a challenging time in your life. How does that affect you now when you look back, you know hearing news of someone else who's been diagnosed or just having gone through this challenge does it affect how you live today? Lauri  9:11  I realized how important life is and my new motto is dream as if you'll live forever and live as if you'll die today. I've tried to spend more time with family and friends because you never know what the future holds. And if you'll get a chance to do those things that you put off until tomorrow. I like to openly tell my story because colon cancer can be very difficult to talk about and I just always am interested in encouraging everyone to get screened because it is so important. Becky Knight  9:41  With the pandemic, like so many things people, are not getting screened. And the numbers have plummeted. So what would you say to someone who is in the the age bracket or family history where they should be getting screened, but they're hesitant or they just don't want to think about it and they avoid it. Lauri  10:03  I challenge everyone to not be afraid to speak up if you experience any of the signs of colon cancer, such as changing bowel habits, blood in your stool, abdominal pain, unexplained weight loss to name a few. Routine screening is so important because in the early stages of colon cancer, there may not be symptoms. And if you can identify polyps at that early stage, they can be removed before they even turn into cancer. I would say, don't be afraid to get a colonoscopy. The endoscopy centers they use moderate sedation or anesthesia, so you'll not have any discomfort during the procedure. You may not even remember the procedure at all. I wanted to tell my story today because as you mentioned earlier, March is Colorectal Cancer Month and I hope those that hear my story will get the courage to talk about symptoms and to get screened so that one day we can be free of colon cancer. Becky Knight  11:03  Lauri, thank you so much for sharing your story with us here today and for reminding us why preventative screenings are so important. We are so thankful to have you on the Novant Health team and in our Native American business resource group and we wish you many more years of good health.  Lauri  11:19  Thank you Becky. Ashleigh Hargrave  11:27  Thanks for listening to mosaic your podcast for diversity inclusion and equity a Novant Health. Stay tuned for our next exciting episode. Transcribed by https://otter.ai

Ashleigh Hargrave  00:05Welcome to Mosaic, your Novant Health podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity. You'll learn more about the mosaic of similarities and differences that make us stronger, and how health equity benefits us all. Piece by piece, we're telling the stories of the beautiful mosaic of Novant Health. Becky Knight  00:24This is Becky Knight and I have the privilege of working with Novant Health BRGs. Business Resource Groups or BRG's play a critical role in our goal to embed diversity, inclusion and equity throughout the organization. BRGs are groups of team members gathered around a dimension of diversity. They're a forum for the exchange of ideas, experiences, and perspectives. BRGs help us better understand ourselves and each other, and they help us keep our Novant Health promise to relentlessly pursue remarkable care every day, so patients get the compassionate, expert and personal experience they deserve. On a previous episode, I spoke with the founder of our newest BRG Rebound, whose vision is to create an open and supportive environment to raise awareness of mental health and substance abuse diagnoses. On this episode, we'll hear from a member of the Rebound BRG about how the group has supported her and her thoughts on reducing stigma in the workplace. We'll also hear from a member of our Women Physicians BRG to get a clinical perspective on mental health. Tanya, thank you so much for joining me for this episode. Can you tell me a bit about your role as a transporter in our organization? 01:40I am responsible for taking patients to procedures and taking patients up to the roof when they've been admitted. And I have a lot of interaction with patients. So I really enjoy just speaking with patients and helping them to get their mind off of things and just being there to support them in a unique role. Becky Knight  02:06Can you tell me a bit about the BRG you're involved in? 02:10Well, in New Hanover, we have a BRG that is focused on mental health awareness. It's called Rebound. And we are just trying to create a safe space for people to speak about what they may or may not be going through, what their family members may or may not be going through, just for them to be able to get help without being stigmatized by common misconceptions surrounding mental health. Becky Knight  02:55Would you mind sharing with me why you wanted to join the rebound Business Resource Group? 03:01I actually had a experience lately where I had to go in for a reactions with the medication and that reaction induced anxiety. Just that stigma of being afraid of going in for an issue that might coexist with anxiety. That is is the stigma that we're trying to combat. Becky Knight  03:35I spoke with Sarah Arthur in a previous episode, and she mentioned that in starting the BRG at first people were reluctant. And that's understandable, especially for a mental health group in the workplace. But that didn't stop you. Why not? 03:50I just have a great interest in helping people understand these issues and helping people understand that it's a medical issue, that there's a chemical imbalance in brain like we've all heard about. But we don't really know what to do with that information. That's just a sad thing, because it doesn't create that safe space that people should be able to feel when they go to a hospital for help. Becky Knight  04:18Yeah, definitely hospitals should be a safe space for sure. And I just appreciate what the BRG is doing because I think it's a good thing to be conscious of, for one thing, the words that we use to describe people and how even if we're talking, you know, among co workers, you think, well the patient can't hear you -- but your coworker hears you, your coworker hears what you're saying, and that might make them think twice about if you're a safe person or not for them to talk to. 04:48Everybody needs help sometimes whether that help is just talking to a friend or family member or a colleague or if they need to come in and get help from a doctor, you know, that's okay. And we're trying to create an environment where people feel safe to do that. Becky Knight  05:08Thank you, Tanya. I appreciate your dedication to your transporter role, and for helping our patients feel more at ease as you navigate them around the hospital. And I also appreciate your willingness to work towards educating all of us on how to be more compassionate with each other. At this point, I'd like to welcome Dr. Michelle Constantino to the discussion. She is a licensed clinical psychologist with Bariatric Solutions. She helps patients prepare for weight loss surgery, as well as help them live well after surgery. She's also a member of our Women Physicians Business Resource Group. Michelle, welcome. And thank you for being a part of this episode, I wanted to start with your thoughts on how the pandemic is affecting mental health. Michelle Constantino  05:55Yeah, I think it's been a huge change for people. I think people were isolated. And that was hard, especially people who lived alone. And then, I guess there's just different layers to it, because then there was people who are trying to also homeschool children and work full time jobs. So there was that stressor for people.  Becky Knight  06:16Yeah. And you've likely seen the reports by McKinsey, the Brookings Institution and others about how the pandemic has disproportionately affected women, especially women of color. So obviously, this is affecting our our team members, and they are feeling the impact at work and at home. A report from the Kaiser Family Foundation for women under 30, in particular found that 69% feel that the pandemic has harmed their mental health. So this is affecting our team members in their clinics in the hospitals and our corporate offices. It's something we need to address. And so if we're concerned about a family member or friend, coworker, or ourselves, What are the signs that the issue is more than just the normal day to day blues and blahs? When do we need to seek help? Michelle Constantino  07:07I think anything chronic so you know, we all have our days where we might just want to be left alone and might not pick up our phone or want to do something social. So that's, you know, normal, like I just want to kind of relax and you know, turn off from the outside world. But when that becomes a consistent pattern, so when you see someone doing that days on end, maybe coming home from work, and just isolating in their room, not picking up their phone, or missing work, you know, days of not showing up or not performing well. And, you know, your appetite changes, you can be more or less hungry for days. It's usually I mean depression, you see it, they say it's typically about two weeks. And that's when you want you want to know that something's going on. What else changes, um, you might sleep more, you might sleep less you you your sleep cycle can get disrupted, you might wake up really early or have middle the night awakening. So those are lots of signs and symptoms. Becky Knight  08:11So considering that mental health has long been difficult to access for many people, What tips do you have for how to access the help that you need? 08:24A couple ways to reach out for help are I mean, you can always just, you know, talk to a friend. At Novant, you can go through your employee assistance program. If you work for the hospital, you can see a therapist for free. You can also just call your insurance company, like call the number on the back of the card and they will tell you providers that accept your insurance. There is a website also psychologytoday.com. I love this website. When I've had a therapist in the past, it's honestly how I have found my therapist. You can go type in your zip code, you can check box, your insurance company and whatever you want to work on. Or you don't have to check any of those things. But you can see if you're working on depression, anxiety, just like life adjustments, relationship issues. And then it will populate profiles with pictures. And so you can read people's profiles see their picture and kind of get a feel for who might be a match for you. And then you can just email them or call them. And usually most therapists will give you like a free like consult. And so you can see if they're a good fit. And that's like the number one most important thing is to have a good rapport and a good relationship with your therapist. If you connection, you're probably not going to want to keep talking to them. So interview people . Interview and find a good connection. Becky Knight  09:46Do you have any tips for maybe for those of us who are working in healthcare, why it's so important to not stigmatize mental health and also for those who want to, you know, seek help, how to not let that be a barrier to them. It's okay to talk to somebody, it's okay. And it doesn't mean that somebody even has a diagnosis. And even if they do have a diagnosis, that's okay too. But don't make assumptions about anybody, like, you don't know what's going on in their personal lives. Like, they could have lost a family member during COVID. And they're supposed to sit there and dealt with that on their own like, it's okay, if they need to go talk to a therapist. A lot of mental health diagnoses are inherited. So there's a high percentage of you getting a disease from your family line. And when that happens, there's nothing you can do to change that, chemically speaking, right? You get your.. we all get what we get. And so what you can do is get support. And that looks like the right medication management. And I always say to my patients who come in and they're opening up for the first time I tell them, if you have asthma, you would use your inhaler to breathe, right? If you have diabetes, you take your insulin, so your sugar levels are where they need to be right? And so literally what mental health is hormonal imbalances in your brain. And so medication literally helps bring your hormones to where they need to be. There's a feedback loop between the brain and the body that works all day long to regulate all of our hormones. And sometimes that feedback loop just has a little miscommunication. And what medication does is get that communication back on track. So there's nothing wrong with that.  And any last words of wisdom or encouragement for folks to get the help that they might need? You're changing generations of dealing with mental health from, you know, maybe unhealthy coping to healthy coping, and people are changing that for their children as well. And I think it's a beautiful thing when someone can reach out and get help and make those changes. And so I think just you know, thinking about it, just like any other medical condition, you want your friend to take care of their bodies, they need to take care of their minds too. Dr. Michelle Constantino, thank you so much for being here and sharing your wisdom with us. And thank you to my earlier guests, Tanya, as well from New Hanover Regional Medical Center. I know that this will be useful information for many people. So thank you so much. Ashleigh Hargrave  12:28Thanks for listening to mosaic your podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity and Novant Health. Stay tuned for our next exciting episode.

00:05Welcome to Mosaic, your Novant Health podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity. You'll learn more about the mosaic of similarities and differences that make us stronger, and how health equity benefits us all. Piece by piece, we're telling the stories of the beautiful mosaic of Novant Health. 00:25Hi, this is Becky Knight BRG administrative coordinator, and on a previous podcast I talked with Sarah Arthur about the creation of the Rebound Business Resource Group. This new BRG provides an open and supportive environment to raise awareness of mental health and substance use diagnoses. On this episode, we will hear more about addressing stigma and what Rebound has planned for the future. And I'll wrap up with some easy to access resources if you or someone you know needs assistance. 00:56Courage is one of our values. And I'm encouraged to learn more about how people are taking advantage of this resource for themselves and their families, and by extension our community. Is there a general stigma about mental health and substance use and even more so in certain communities? I was wondering what have you observed? And how is the BRG addressing stigma and making these conversations.. 01:23So we want to make every employee feel comfortable. Now a lot of times people rely on their friends and family and peers for support. And that's okay. But when you hear that one of them has also utilized a formal counseling service or a physician or a certain medication, you're more willing to try it yourself and actually utilize that help. I think that when you see someone like yourself as well, you don't feel as alone and isolated when it comes to certain feelings that you may be having. And it often helps if you can have a friend tell you, Hey, I noticed that you're acting a little differently. And that's why we also promote through this group knowing ways in which to bring about the subject of mental health. We share you know with throughout our system, the five ways to bring up mental health. We share things like Mental Health First Aid training, just to give people the tools because it's an uncomfortable subject. You don't want to trigger someone, you don't want to bring up a conversation that then you don't know what to do about it if someone is really in crisis, and you don't want to be the result of anyone's downfall either. 03:21So to wrap up, I'd love to know a little bit about your plans for this coming year. What's on the horizon? 03:30Yes, we had a really big focus last month on Mental Health Awareness Month, we had a lot of testimonials from people within the group, to again, try and break down that stigma and encourage more people to join rebound. The group, we have several different components that we're working on when it comes to education, reducing stigma, and then looking at our different policies and procedures within the hospital system. So one thing in particular, when it comes to policies, we noticed several employees within the group had been on medications from their physician, but through our policy, because it's considered a controlled substance. They didn't necessarily know that they needed to report that to employee health. And then in other instances, it came about where you know, a leader may have just heard that they were on this medication, and then had a perception of how it made the person act or maybe what diagnosis went along with it. Again, making the person feel like they had done something wrong for taking something that they were prescribed. So we're going to work with employee health and how we can educate new employees that are coming in, as well as current employees to make people feel like they can take their needed medication. Oftentimes, people may not do it because they want to keep their job, which isn't good for their mental health. So that's one thing. And then when it comes to education, we're continuing to promote mental health first aid training throughout our organization, specifically for leaders so that they feel like they have the tools to help their employees. And we're working with HR on the companion support team or compassion support team. So you have a peer that can support you in a crisis. 05:36If this conversation has sparked in you a desire to reach out for help, I did want to close with some resources. First Novant Health has a behavioral health call center. It is operated 24/7/365 and staffed by masters level therapists who can assist individuals and family members in navigating the world of treatment for substance use and mental health issues. We're going to give that number is 1-800-718-3550 and it's available to all team members, providers, patients, community members, to everyone. 06:27You can also contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, a branch of the US Department of Health and Human Services. Their national hotline is 1-800-6TO-HELP or 1-800-662-4357. And they do have a free confidential referral Information Service and it's available in English and Spanish. Finally, I just want to say thank you to Sarah for being with me and sharing about this important BRG and the work that they're doing and I know is going to just be so impactful in the year to come as we all try to get well and on the road to recovery. Thank you, Sara. 07:22Join us next time where I'll have with me a member of the Rebound BRG to share with me about how the group has supported her and how she's working to decrease stigma in the organization and among her fellow team members. And I'll also be joined by a physician from the women physicians BRG, which we have at Novant Health. And she's going to give a clinical perspective and some additional resources for team members and for those in the community who may need assistance. Thank you so much. Join us next time. 08:04Thanks for listening to Mosaic, your podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity and Novant Health. Stay tuned for our next exciting episode.

00:05Welcome to Mosaic, your Novant Health podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity. You'll learn more about the mosaic of similarities and differences that make us stronger, and how health equity benefits us all. Piece by piece, we're telling the stories of the beautiful mosaic of Novant Health. 00:24Welcome, this is Becky Knight and I have the privilege of working with Novant Health BRGs. Business Resource Groups (or BRGs) play a critical role in our goal to embed diversity, inclusion and equity throughout the organization. BRG's are groups of team members gathered around a dimension of diversity. We currently have 14 groups, a few of which include pride for LGBT team members and allies, veterans, Latino/Hispanic and coexist our interfaith BRG. The newest addition to our big lineup is rebound, whose vision is to create an open and supportive environment to raise awareness of mental health and substance abuse diagnoses. We'll hear from the founder in just a moment. But first, I wanted to share some sobering statistics. Yes, our health care workers are heroes, for sure. But first and foremost, they're very human. Health care has always been a rewarding, but demanding calling and the recent past has showed us just how demanding it can be. While others waited out the pandemic at home our frontline workers faced it head on. From June to September 2020. Mental Health America surveyed health care workers to get a feel for their mental health and wellness. They have responses from over 1100 health care workers. And the statistics are pretty sobering. 93% of healthcare workers were experiencing stress 86% reported experiencing anxiety 77 reported frustration 76 reported exhaustion and burnout, and 75%. So they were overwhelmed. Clearly, our helpers need help. To find out more about this Business Resource Group and how it is supporting team members and the community. I have with me, Sarah Arthur. Sarah, can you share about your personal and professional background a bit. 02:30Thank you for having me. I act as the manager of community engagement here at New Hanover and previous to this job, I worked as a inpatient social worker, and a clinical social worker doing therapy with patients in the community. So I've always been really engaged and passionate about working with people that have a diagnosis of mental health or have struggled with substance use. I also have a connection with my family. Several members of my family have struggle with substance use disorder, alcoholism, opioid use disorder and bipolar disorder. So growing up as a child, you know, I truly remember several events that were pivotal to awaken me to this population and what my family was truly dealing with. One particular event my house almost caught on fire, because my cousin had taken too many opioids and was nodding off while smoking in our house. So I, you know, I struggled in the beginning as to whether I really wanted to work with people that has substance use disorder and pushed through that to find that I care about them so much, not only because they are part of my family, but because I can truly understand where they're coming from. 04:06How did those experiences inform your decision to try to start this group? 04:12So this BRG started because I feel that there was no voice for these employees within our system. I knew that we had patient family advisory councils for a lot of our different Institute's like our behavioral health hospital or Cancer Center. And also I knew about these BRG's that focus on different populations to give them a voice within our system and I just saw where this was truly missing. 04:48Was there anything surprising about the process of starting the BRG? 04:53It has taken quite a while to get people willing to join, especially leaders within our organization, because they didn't want to be treated differently for being a part of the group. But it's definitely taken off. And I've been amazed at how comfortable people feel at sharing their story and how supportive they feel about other employees that maybe have gone through an issue with employee health because of a certain medication they're on or they've been talked about by other employees because of some different behavior that they may be experiencing because of their mental health disorder. So I think that you know, the sky's the limit with this group. We named it rebound because truly those in recovery rebound higher. That's kind of our slogan for this group, just to give some hope for a lot of people, we have a lot of family members that have joined the group as well, and gotten support as they work to support their family and themselves. 06:10Thank you, Sarah, for persevering and for getting this rebound BRG off the ground, your tenacity, and your compassion is quite evident. So thank you for sharing that story with us. And I hope you'll join me to talk on the next episode about what the BRG is doing in the future, what your plans are and how those plans will impact both our team members and our community. Thank you so much. 07:34Thanks for listening to mosaic your podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity and Novant Health. Stay tuned for our next exciting episode.

Ashleigh Hargrave  0:05  Welcome to Mosaic, your Novant Health podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity. You'll learn more about the mosaic of similarities and differences that make us stronger, and how health equity benefits us all. Piece by piece, we're telling the stories of the beautiful mosaic of Novant Health. Welcome to this week's episode of mosaic. I'm Ashleigh Hargrave senior director of diversity, inclusion and equity. And this week, I'm delighted to have with me, a member of our foundation who's going to tell you about philanthropy, but also how do the words diversity, inclusion and equity all become Incorporated, and the way that Novant Health gives back to our community and the way that we integrate into the fiber of the communities that we serve. so delighted to have with me today, Sharon Harrington, one of the leaders in our Novant Health Foundation, Sharon Harrington, is our Novant Health Foundation's chief of staff. Sharon, welcome to the show.Sharon Harrington  1:06  Thank you, Ashleigh, I'm so happy to be here today to talk to you about some of the work that we're doing at the Novant Health Foundation.Ashleigh Hargrave  1:14  Thank you, Sharon. And so, you know, I spoke about the words diversity, inclusion and equity. What do those words mean to you from both a professional and a personal standpoint,Sharon Harrington  1:28  you know, actually diversity, equity and inclusion for me, personally and professionally, our core drivers, core values and social drivers. For me, it means that I am part of an organization and a community that allows me to bring my unique life experience to the table without judgment, without bias. And so as a mother, daughter, a wife, a woman of color, of someone who's a first generation college graduate, and in my family, I can bring that experience to the table at Novant Health and bring my authentic voice. And by working in an organization that is tolerant, and even bold and courageous and really encourages that, I think it means that we are able to support and serve members of the community that may look like me that may have a common experience. And so that's what it means to me. But in addition to it serving me as a unique individual, I get to stretch myself, because I'm still on our journey to learn individuals, and about other life experiences that may be different from mine. And so every day at Novant Health I get to take part in training conversations, Business Resource Groups, that helped me stretch myself around diversity, equity inclusion.Ashleigh Hargrave  2:57  And I think it's so powerful, what you said share it, especially about the word supporting and serving. I think when people think about philanthropy, a lot of times, of course, people automatically go to to the dollar, which is important. But I think when we also think about the word philanthropy, what it means to support an organization, what it means to support a cause, and how those dollars and that support can go into our community. So let's talk about that. Let's talk about philanthropy, for those of our listeners who may not even understand what is that word philanthropy mean? And what is and why is that even important?Sharon Harrington  3:31  It's, it's an incredible word, but I'm going to break it down. What it really means to me, is making an intentional choice to be part of the community, and to help help one's fellow neighbor. And there are many types of gifts, obviously, that are traditional gifts, I'm writing a check in and making and making a fiscal transfer to someone. But you know what, there are so many types of gifts that one could give. I look, I look back at 2020 in the pandemic, and how our team members and community members stepped up to volunteer when we put out the call to action to say, we need volunteers around this, this this community challenge. We have members who stepped up and donated 1000s of hours to the organization. That's philanthropy. Some community members wrote a check. They gave, you know, gifts large and small. That's philanthropy. I look at our team members each year who participate in giving serving together which is our system wide campaign that helps the foundation to deliver programs and initiatives at the healthcare organization helps fellow team members who may be experienced a personal hardship. And frankly, this year, we really focus on the hope Fund, which helps some of our frontline workers again, who were hurting financially because of the pandemic that's falling out. There'll be. So as you can see, or or maybe I'll add one more, maybe you're someone who helps us get out the message around our needs. You connect this to other community members. That's philanthropy. And so I hope that they're one of those four or five examples. All of us can find a way to become philanthropists.Ashleigh Hargrave  5:21  That was such a great definition, sharing and really sharing how all of us, no matter our financial state, no matter what community we live in, no matter the resources, we all have something that we can give, and something that we can give to and towards. And I think, as you said, especially during the pandemic, we all could share a story, we all had a family member, someone that we loved a team member, someone in community that we could think about, and what ways could we have served that person? And frankly, for some of us, what ways did we need to be served during that time. So appreciate you sharing about the ways that we are all able to give. And one of the ways that I think is really exciting, and especially in our work, and the work we get to do together is really the way that Novant Health has shown our commitment to inclusion in philanthropy. There's a new fund that some of our members and community have heard about, and they've already donated to which we're very, very excited for. But for those that may not know, can you talk about our imagined better campaign and that fund and who that special person is? That has been the face and the leader in that work?Sharon Harrington 6:30  Now, absolutely. Ashleigh, we are so excited to launch the imagine better campaign honoring Dr. Garmin Brown, we're starting this, this campaign will address the overarching issues of health equity, we want to advance health equity in our communities through several kind of evidence based programs that we are doing at Novant Health to really serve and customize our care in our most vulnerable communities. As you may know, in 2014, Charlotte start with Charlotte, there was a national study conducted by Harvard University, it looked at the top 50 or so metropolitan areas, and evaluated how to families navigate poverty in those communities. Unfortunately, what this what the study revealed is that we were last Charlotte was last number 50 out of 50, in terms of individuals being able to overcome poverty. And so if you're born poor in Charlotte, you're likely to that's not something you can overcome. When you know, in Charlotte, we have lots of businesses, civic leaders who stepped up, I said, that's just not enough. We want that that's not going to be the signature for Charlotte. And so Dr. Gorman Brown, led a group of business leaders to begin discussing, how do we overcome intergenerational poverty. And we looked at health outcomes, we looked at education, we looked at housing, move that workforce development and, and so with our fund, I'm going to bring us forward, we're going to continue some of that work. It's called leading opportunity, and do that work around health equity and health disparities that we know exists in our Charlotte community, but in every, every part of our footprint. And of course, we're doing it in the name of Dr. Gorman Brown, because again, we we notice she started that really good, great work. What we'll do with this fun is we're going to begin to address those social determinants of health. I know you're familiar, these are conditions under which people are born grow live work, age, they, they may be the way that their childhood development, education, economic, their physical surroundings, these are behaviors and locations locational issues that really result in health outcomes or can be negative health outcomes. And so through this farm, we're going to begin to put together some outreach strategies. We're going to start we've started with a very modest goal of $10 million. We want to raise those dollars and Charlotte, and what we'll do is with the phone is we've got about three major issues. One is access to care. So with access to care, we're going to see to expand our healthcare on wheels initiative. As you know, our bills are our community care cruisers. We want to have community care cruises in every major footprint on Novant Health footprint. We're starting in Charlotte, we're moving to Winston Salem, we're now going to have the opportunity to have a healthcare with all wheels initiative in coastal North Carolina. So we will add an expand our healthcare on wheels fleet through this campaign. In addition community health workers, cohort. community health workers are individuals who come from those most vulnerable communities, and who work in lockstep with families that are that we're finding our high emergency room utilizers. They work with those families, one health issues. But also we find that many, in many cases, families have social services needs. So that health worker is really a navigator around health services, social services, and getting those families connected to the service to overall needs that they may have. We currently have community health workers in our major markets, but we want to grow and expand that cohort of workers. In addition, we're looking at workforce development. Ashleigh, as you know, Novant Health employs 35,000 employees across the footprint that is a major, we can have a major impact around workforce development, we've created a couple programs where we take some of our CNAs Who are these are individuals that are the glue to our healthcare service, and we're approaching the our CNAs, who may have a financial burden, and we're encouraging them to become rn. In many cases, these individuals wanted to become Rn or even doctors, but because of a family circumstance or or some other obstacle in their way, they weren't able to join that professional that professional path. We're now creating the upward mobility scholarship on we're starting with CNAs to RNs. We've had great results there. And we know that we're going to be able to expand that to some of the other allied science of allied health professions. But what we do with that program, in addition to giving them dollars to attend nursing school, we also provide a nursing mentor, a professional career coach, administrative leave, to pursue the the rigorous nursing curriculum, we've had great results. We've had about 30, we've got about 35 scholarships today. And over the last three years, we're looking to recruit a new cohort of scholars for this year. And so as you can see, this is a multifaceted campaign. Some will support communities after community work as our community engagement work in those vulnerable communities. And some will support our own team members who, again are members of those communities. We're really excited about doing this work and expanding it throughout our footprint.Ashleigh Hargrave  12:44  So Sharon, if people are interested in connecting directly with you to find out more information on giving and any of the work that's happening in any of our Novant Health foundations across our Novant Health footprint, how can they get in contact with you?Sharon Harrington  12:57  Ashleigh, I welcome the opportunity to talk with fellow team members and community members about this campaign to share more about our vision, our impact, and potential outcomes of supporting the campaign. Making a gift is a significant personal decision. And so I always always want to have a conversation. I want those individuals to see the leaders and our mission and really get to know us as they make that investment. This to me is one of the most important things we do as community members is to decide to make gifts to an organization. And so they want to do it on the website. That's fine. But I much more prefer to have a conversation please feel free to contact me at my email, which is s c. Harrington at Novant health.or. We can also we can zoom or have a telephone conversation. But we have so many great folks in the foundation that want to connect you to this incredible, incredible and impactful mission.Ashleigh Hargrave  14:06  Thanks for listening to mosaic your podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity and Novant Health. Stay tuned for our next exciting episode.

Tax season is upon us, and we are all in the process of filing our tax returns. Criminals know this and use this time to conduct tax scams attempting to trick you out of your personal information, or worse, your money. Scams take many shapes and forms, such as phone calls, letters and emails. Many Internal Revenue Service impersonators use threats to intimidate and bully people into paying a fabricated tax bill. That's why it is important to be vigilant and know what to do if you are the target of one of these scams. Listen in to get cyber smart. 

Ashleigh Hargrave  00:05Welcome to mosaic, your Novant Health podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity. You'll learn more about the mosaic of similarities and differences that make us stronger, and how health equity benefits us all. Piece by piece, we're telling the stories of the beautiful mosaic of Novant Health. Becky Knight  00:24Monday, Jan. 17, 2022 marked the 39th observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, the US Federal holiday that celebrates the life and legacy of Dr. King. At Novant Health we follow Dr. King's vision in our commitment to do the right thing for our patients, communities and each other. In years past, we have celebrated this day together with events that honor Dr. King's many achievements. This year, as we continue through another COVID-19 surge, our recognition was a bit different. Our spiritual care team, business resource groups, and others curated a presentation of poetry, prayer, and this powerful keynote by Raki McGregor, Novant Health vice president of new business growth. We share it again in this format in hopes that it may inspire and encourage you to stand up for what is right. Quoting Dr. King, the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. Raki McGregor  01:27As we talk about a new day of hope. I reflect back on Dr. Martin Luther King, and the many examples of servant leadership that he's shown us. I look back on March 17 2020. And I think about how our lives were forever changed that day. How we work, how we engage one another, how we live, where it is that we work. And I think about our frontline teams, our clinical team, and how they will yet again, put to the test and have been put to the test before that day and certainly ever since. And I know that it's a time where we have gotten weary, all of us have gotten weary. And then I reflect back on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and I say to myself, who encouraged him? What was he thinking about? Before he gave the speeches that are forever ingrained in our mind? What challenges was he facing? Through all of that effort and adversity and being thrown for a loop and the unexpected? On the journey. He continued to step to the podium. He continued to rise to the occasion. I remember a quote where he specifically was viewing or looking at health care. You may know the quote, It goes something like this. Of all the forms of inequity, injustice and health care is the most shocking and inhumane. We think about the disproportionately impacted the communities that need us the most and how they were impacted the greatest during this pandemic. Those who have pre existing conditions. Those that were what, from the older populations, those that we're here to protect, needed. And we rose to that occasion. We stepped in the gap. We encourage them we encourage each other. We encourage their family during times of unprecedented pandemic and change. I think back on how we're actually living, the embodiment of Dr. Martin Luther King's vision as it pertains to health care. I think back on when he was assassinated, April 4 1968. And the challenge and the shock and the uncertainty that we all felt yet the seeds that he had sown outlived him. The dreams that he spoke about, had not yet been seen. but because of his advocacy, because of this life, because when he was uncertain, he still stepped to the podium. And he used his gifts and talents to encourage us to bring forth a new day of hope. So as we think through that, we should only hope that we can be as fortunate, as Dr. Martin Luther King, that our dreams outlive us so that our children and our children's children can reap the benefit of what we are all building, and healthcare. So it's not just what you do. But Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. also showed us it's important how you do it. It's the value system that we leverage to do it. It's compassion, ensuring that our families, our patients, they know that we're here to give them kindness, empathy, and respect. That from a diversity and inclusion standpoint, we recognize that all voices should have an opportunity to be heard. Personal excellence bringing your best self to work. That has been a difficult task for us to do every day, during this pandemic journey. I would imagine, it was a difficult task for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. But yet, he rose to the podium. And yet we have team members day in and day out that rise to the occasion that teamwork is necessary for us to make the impact on the commitment of our vision and our mission. What is our mission is simple. Our mission is to improve the health of our communities, one person at a time, our community, the underserved communities. That is our mission. And how do we do that? By being courageous, by standing up for what's right, by being present. And above all, doing it in a safe manner and ensuring that we first do no harm. And so I am thankful I am elated to be here to celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King's legacy. And I want us all to keep fighting for solution and a new day of hope. Let's continue his legacy. Through all of us. Thank you Ashleigh Hargrave  08:21Thanks for listening to mosaic your podcast for diversity, inclusion and equity and Novant Health. Stay tuned for our next exciting episode.

In this episode of "Within These Firewalls," listen in to hear how a common password used by several team members could have affected our systems. Our host, Drew Walker, cybersecurity threat intel analyst, covers the importance of choosing a unique passphrase and the easy methods you can use to create one. Listen in and get cybersmart. 

In this episode of "Within These Firewalls," we chat with Jim about the importance of reporting suspicious cybersecurity issues. Hear how the things our team members share with the cybersecurity team help us secure our environment and how you can report suspicious events. Listen in and get cybersmart.

In this episode of "Within These Firewalls,” we hear from Traci about a phone call she received from a ‘visher’ impersonating the social security administration. Hear how she paused and prevented falling victim to the attack. We also speak to Joel from the Novant Health cybersecurity products and services team about common strategies vishers take when trying to fool you on the phone and steps you can take to protect yourself from these scammers. Listen in and get cybersmart.

Tune in to the final episode in a three-part series that explores the experiences of Novant Health nurses who have been on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. On this episode of Bedside Report, Michael and Daria speak with Paris Lawhorn, BSN, RN, Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center, Fallon Houk, BSN, RN, Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center, and Heather Blackburn, RN, Novant Health Kernersville Medical Center. All three talk about the contribution of emergency nurses in navigating the early days of COVID-19, and what they are seeing one year later.

In this episode of "Within These Firewalls,” we speak with Anthony and hear his story about personal account compromise. We talk to Anthony about the impact the event has had on his life and the actions he has taken to protect himself in the future. Listen in and get cybersmart.

In this episode, we speak with Brittany Samuels, a Novant Health nurse,  about the Novant Health Upward Mobility RN Scholarship Program. Your generous pledges through Giving. Serving. Together helped Brittany to fulfill her dream of becoming a registered nurse.

In this episode of CyberSmart, we hear about Amy’s careful response to an email with an urgent message. We learn about techniques cybercriminals use to trick us, how to spot a phish and what to do when we suspect a phish. Listen in to learn ways that you can help protect Novant Health from cybercriminals.

In this episode, we follow-up with Nikki Nissen, senior director and chief nursing officer, NHMG. In our episode Accidental Leadership, Nikki shared that she tried finding her high school mentor for years, but has never had any luck. We check back in with her after some Novant Health team members made a reunion possible.

In this episode, Kirsten Royster, president of Novant Health Kernersville Medical Center and Novant Health system chief patient experience officer, talks with John Linkous and Renae Caldwell, directors of patient experience, about how we bring the human experience to life at Novant Health.

Novant Health has and always will be committed to ensuring a safe and secure environment for our team members. We sat down with Kathy Haddix-Hill, vice president of emergency and trauma services, and Kip Clark, director of public safety, to learn why violence is so prevalent in healthcare, what are the warning signs and how they are leading efforts to keep Novant Health a safe place to work and receive care. 

Pam Oliver, MD, executive vice president, Novant Health and president, Novant Health Physician Network, shares her journey from her childhood in eastern North Carolina to her leadership delivering remarkable at Novant Health.

One day, Bill Gavett, emergency services paramedic at Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center, found himself no longer in need of his Toyota Camry. His fellow team member, Johnisha Conner, had recently been in a car accident and could not afford another car. In an inspiring act of kindness, Bill decided to give his car to Johnisha. This story shows us our people credo in action and reminds us that one act of compassion can have a long-lasting impact on the life of a friend.

Stacy-Ann Whitton, early intervention specialist, has dedicated her career to helping children with developmental delays and disabilities. Her passion for her profession comes from her own experience watching her son struggle with serious illness as a baby. Hear her story and how she creates a remarkable experience for our youngest patients and their families.

In this episode, we speak with the Lippard family about their lifelong ties to Novant Health.

Trang Vuong, MD, shares her story of how escaping communist Vietnam now impacts how she cares for her patients at Novant Health Primary Care Poplar Tent.

What could possibly go wrong? That's a question David Priest, MD, chief safety, quality and epidemiology officer, often asks — and he wants every Novant Health team member to ask themselves, too. Find out what Novant Health is doing to ensure every patient's experience is safe and remarkable and how you can use our safety behaviors to support our journey to First, Do No Harm.

In this episode of Inside Remarkable, we speak with Julie Barfield, a Great 100 nurse, about the importance of taking chances and making a difference in the lives of our patients.

Today, we sit down with Tonya Robinson, a volunteer coordinator at Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center. She always felt the calling to help others and knew that healthcare would be the best place to serve her community. Listen on to hear more about Tonya’s role at Novant Health and how she earned the honor of representing North Carolina as a Lung Force Hero at Congress in March 2020.

Chief safety, quality and epidemiology officer David Priest, MD, discusses different safety and quality rating programs. In this episode he covers Leapfrog Group safety grades, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services five-star quality rating system and more.

In this episode we hear from Kimberly “Kitty” Webb, Novant Health patient partnership specialist, about how she often felt vulnerable as a child growing up in foster care. Her understanding of what it means to be vulnerable now helps Kitty relate to patients, who can also feel vulnerable at times.

In this episode of Novant Health Inside Remarkable, we hear from self-described perfectionist, Tory King, MD, clinical physician executive. Dr. King shares how her failures are the defining moments in her life and why she embraces imperfection now.

In this episode we hear from Jean Miller, outreach resource specialist at Novant Health Today’s Woman OB/GYN and recipient of the Mark, our team member recognition program. Jean works tirelessly to reduce infant mortality rates by connecting patients with resources that can positively impact their babies’ health, things like education, food, transportation, counseling and housing. Jean’s story of inspiring patients and going the extra mile reveals to us the secret to receiving the Mark.

In October, Novant Health Mint Hill Medical Center celebrated its one year anniversary. In those 365 days, our team members have provided a remarkable patient experience for thousands of patients. Now, Joy Greear, the president and chief operating officer at Mint Hill, takes us on the hospital’s journey from planning the layout and breaking ground to caring for patients today.

In this episode, we speak with Chandra Swaim, a nurse at Novant Health Clemmons Medical Center, about how a scary experience as a patient inspired her to become a nurse and the unexpected way she was reconnected with her past.