Quoteworthy
What I love as a leader is the direct interactions I get to have with my staff members. I’ve learned a lot working with people who are compassionate and kind. All of us want to do what’s right, valuing every single individual we encounter, whether they’re patients or co-workers.
Tracy Farley

Most Recent
Five Ways to Practice Trauma-informed Leadership

We are surrounded by trauma—from patients, to coworkers, to our own experiences. University of Utah Health Madsen family practice leaders share how we recognize and normalize employees’ trauma experiences so they can continue to heal and provide quality care.

A Blueprint to Build a Successful Career in Academic Medicine

We all make lots of mistakes early on in our careers. Hospitalist and mentorship expert Valerie Vaughn sets us up for success by sharing her expertise on how to take control of your long-term career path.

How To Build (Not Find) Meaning In Your Work

Manager Jenn Tuero has held jobs throughout the health care system all focused on one thing: easing the burden of patients and clinicians. In the process, she has mastered the art of integrating meaning into everyday work. We asked Jenn how she builds meaning for her team and makes every employee feel that they are never “just” an enrollment specialist.

Cultivating Organizational Culture: A New Approach

Director of Organizational Development Chris Fairbank introduces WE CARE—a model for leaders that focuses on what makes their teams unique so they can enhance and sustain a stronger organizational culture.

Now More Than Ever, We Need Relational Leadership

Our moment calls for new ways of leading. Kyle Turner and Michelle Vo, relational leadership trainers, explain how this concept brings us to the task. While traditional leadership theories focus on the what and how, relational leadership asks us to place more emphasis on who.

A Nurse Mentor-Leader Model for Professional Growth

For years, nurse manager Emily Baarz has mentored millennial nurses joining Neuro Critical Care (NCC). But new nurse graduates weren’t always prepared for the high-acuity setting. So Emily created the Axon/Dendrite program, a mentor-leader model to support her staff’s professional growth.

Digging In To The Outward Mindset

In the new series Book Club for Busy People, Accelerate shares highlights of books we’re hearing about from the community. First up: how thinking about others’ needs strengthens teams and increases civility in The Outward Mindset.

The Effective Communicator: How to Run a Meeting

The Effective Communicator returns this week to remedy the bane of our existences: endless, often pointless, meetings. Yes, you can run them better.

The Formula For Transforming Health Care

Ever had an idea everyone agrees with but still takes a year to implement? Nutrition Services Director Carissa Christensen faced a dilemma as she developed a weight management program for patients struggling with obesity: even after you’ve defined your vision, how do you engage an entire system in an ambitious improvement project?

The Wisdom of Leaders: How to Cultivate Teams

Leaders embody U of U Health’s focus on patient-centered care, respect for people, and continued improvement. Recently, Jessica Rivera, Carissa Christensen, Sue Childress, and Tracy Farley described their efforts to deliver a better health care experience for patients by taking care of their teams. In advance of individual articles from each leader, below are four big takeaways that can be put into action today.

Want To Transform Health Care? Work on a "Boring" Project

Claire Ciarkowski is on a journey to reduce unnecessary labs for inpatients at University of Utah Health. As a junior faculty member, she volunteered to work on the project when it didn’t sound exciting. But she is changing culture by asking the hard questions and delivering better care to patients at a lower cost. Accelerate’s Mari Ransco asked what she has learned.

Why Rounding Demonstrates Respect for Patients and Teams

Rounding–the act of connecting with patients and staff–is a leadership best practice. While few find rounding easy to start, those who master it are hooked. It is a daily habit that improves patient care, experience and engages the team. Susan Clark and her medical director, Dr. Dana DeWitt, have taken the practice one step further by rounding together as a leadership dyad, resulting in a more connected and authentic team.