February 22, 2012
HDI Trains Leaders of Ministry that Serves 500,000 Poor People Annually
HDI presented an introduction to the Four Essential Disciplines at a conference in the Dominican Republic December 6-9, 2011. The audience consisted of 80 hospital administrators, country directors and staff from Medical Ministry International (MMI). MMI serves 500,000 poor people annually in 22 countries through 17 hospitals and 80 short-term mission trips. Their services focus primarily on treating blindness and other poverty-related illnesses.
The team, led by HDI President Ken Hekman, included four healthcare executives: Quinton Friesen, Ron Stuursma, Paul Armerding MD, and Warren White. They were assisted by intern Laura Zavadil and four spouses. Funding for the event came from the volunteers and from a grant by the Canadian foundation, Stronger Together 2011.
HDI and MMI plan to continue working together through four mentoring relationships. Each of the four volunteer faculty members has been assigned to work with hospital administrators in Azerbaijan, Ghana, Honduras and Fiji, helping them develop their services under a model that balances economic sustainability with service to poor communities. Mentors plan to visit the hospitals annually and maintain monthly conference calls to tailor strategies for developing administrative skills and organizational improvements.
HDI Presents at World Congress for IHF
HDI’s board chair, Mark Huizenga, presented at the World Congress of the International Hospital Federation in Dubai, November 8-10, 2011. He was part of a panel discussion with Dr. Mohammed Aziz of the World Health Organization, focusing on ethics in TB management.
HDI Receives Grant
I am happy to announce that HDI has received its first foundation grant! HDI teamed up with Medical Ministry International (MMI) to request funding from Stronger Together 2011, a collaborative of Canadian Christian foundations. The grant request which was approved June 15 will be used to provide training for MMI hospital managers from over a dozen countries in a one-week workshop in the Dominican Republic in December, 2011. HDI faculty will present one day each on the four essential disciplines for healthcare leadership, using the curriculum outlined in our flagship book.
Survey Shows HDI’s Impact
A recent survey of management workshop participants in four countries showed HDI’s impact around the world. The survey went to 80 participants of the TB Managers workshops held in South Africa, China, India and Brazil, co-sponsored with the International Hospital Federation (IHF) and Eli Lilly & Co. The purpose of the opinion survey was to measure the self-perceived value of the workshop experience and the impact it has had on program effectiveness.
Nine out of ten participants indicated their personal skills as a manager improved and that they had been successful in using their skills to solve problems in their organizations. 72% of respondents also identified additional topics they would like to explore in future workshops.
HDI is working with Purdue University to refine research approaches to gauging its impact on workshop participants and client organizations. Pre- and post-engagement measures will be integrated with all of HDI’s services beginning in 2012 in an effort to demonstrate the value of training and the return on investment for healthcare programs that serve the poor.
HDI and IHF Cooperate
HDI and the International Hospital Federation (IHF) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate in providing management training and consultation support for IHF member hospitals around the world. The organizations have co-sponsored management workshops for TB Program managers in South Africa, China, India and Brazil with support from Eli Lilly & Co. since 2006, and HDI has contributed to IHF publications. IHF, based near Geneva, Switzerland, has encouraged national hospital associations and member hospitals around the globe since 1929. The professional association provides educational opportunities through its World Congress and other venues, and publishes research on healthcare management through a series of periodicals. HDI has been invited to participate in the November, 2011 World Congress in Dubai as a panelist in a discussion on ethics in TB management.
MMI and HDI Reach Agreement!
Medical Ministry International (MMI) and HDI have agreed to develop a training program for healthcare managers serving poor people around the globe. The organizations are planning an introductory four-day course in December, 2011 for MMI managers from 17 hospitals around the globe. The course will offer a sample of HDI’s core curriculum, examining how to achieve exemplary leadership, management, sustainability and service while delivering healthcare services to poor communities around the globe.
The organizations have also agreed to develop a more extensive management training program, building on each of HDI’s core disciplines with one-week courses, tentatively scheduled as one per quarter in 2012. The courses will be hosted by MMI’s flagship facility, Elias Santana Hospital, in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, but will be open to managers from a wide range of medical missions organizations. The HDI training curriculum will be based on the book, Four Essential Disciplines, A Training Guide for Healthcare Leaders Worldwide. The extended courses will also offer continuing education units (CEUs) from Purdue University, enabling participants to apply their educational experience as credits for graduate programs in other universities.
The agreement also opens the door for cross-cultural mentoring relationships between experienced healthcare leaders and consultants, allowing for guidance and strategic planning services tailored to the needs of those on the front lines of management with medical missions hospitals and clinics. HDI has a growing list of qualified mentors looking for ways to walk beside those who serve the poor.
Second Most Important Trip of My Life
I just returned from the Dominican Republic where I got a glimpse of the vision I’ve been pursuing for over a decade. I looked into the heart of a self-sustainable healthcare organization that serves only the poor. The model works, and it is replicable. In fact, Medical Ministry International has grown in 25 years to now serve 500,000 poor people per year around the world, and they have a vision for expanding that reach by exponential factors.
What’s more, they are inviting HDI to develop a model for training leaders and managers to help in the expansion, with internal sustainability at the core. We’re beginning to explore options for graduate-level training and research programs to build enduring and scalable healthcare delivery systems to serve the most vulnerable segments of the global society, with the poor paying their own way. Stay tuned for a wild ride.
So why am I calling this the second most important trip of my life? The first trip was in 1999 when I became engaged with the Dr. Luca Medical Center in Romania. That’s when I realized what I’m here for. That’s when I recognized, and accepted, a call to bring wise management to healthcare organizations in developing countries. I’ve been climbing a mountain ever since, and now I think I have caught a glimpse of the summit. The hardest part may be yet to come, but the view will be worth it.
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