I arrived in Rochester, MN last night for meetings this week with the Mayo Clinic.  As I jumped into my cab, I noticed an unusual sight at a small regional airport.  Parked to the side of the jet way were two beautiful 747 airplanes.  Normally this would not be unusual except for the branding on the airplanes.  The 747s were labeled “Saudi Arabian Airlines”. 

The question is “Why would someone or a group of people travel 7,000 miles to receive care?”  The answer is relatively simple.  The level of care and patient experience is worth it.  The reason for this blog is to stress the importance of culture and the idea of putting the patient first.  Performance and reputation soar when hospitals focus on what is important.

For those of you not familiar with Mayo, let me give you a brief overview.  Mayo Clinic is the first and largest integrated, not-for-profit group practice in the world.  Doctors from every medical specialty work together to care for patients, joined by common systems and a philosophy of "the needs of the patient come first."  More than 3,300 physicians, scientists and researchers and 46,000 allied health staff work at Mayo Clinic, which has sites in Rochester, Minn., Jacksonville, Fla., and Scottsdale/Phoenix, Ariz. Collectively, the three locations treat more than half a million people each year.

The culture at Mayo is unique.  Let’s talk about the patient.  Patients are assigned a physician when arriving at Mayo.  That physician is ultimately responsible for the patient experience at Mayo.  The most important part of a patient’s experience is quality treatment that is obtained through collaboration of incredibly talented caregivers.  The physician responsible for the patient manages the collaboration occurring between multiple physicians throughout their stay.  Patients are not simply transferred to the next department for tests ordered by the previous department.  Patients feel as if treatment is being administered by a team led by a coach who is ultimately responsible for the results.  I experienced treatment within hospitals frequently the last few months with different members of my family.  I can say the experience created at MAYO is far superior than I’ve experienced at the systems where my loved ones received care. 

Collaboration works when a team atmosphere is created.  At many organizations, physicians are compensated based on incentives for reaching certain milestones.  Every physician at Mayo is salaried which creates an atmosphere that focuses on the patient.   Placing incentives on numbers encourages certain behavior.  This behavior can be good and bad.  In Mayo’s case, allowing the physicians to focus only on what is best for the patient encourages the RIGHT behavior.

I found this quote from a patient at Mayo:

"I tell people about Mayo Clinic every day," says Luna. "From the beginning to the end of my treatment, I always felt like a person not just a number. The genuine compassion I received by all of my doctors and the staff was amazing. I always knew that I was receiving the best care possible by professionals who really cared about me and wanted to fight for my life too. It really helps in your will to survive this disease. Mayo made a huge difference along with my family during this journey. During my time there, I felt like I was in heaven."

I felt like I was in heaven!  This is incredible feedback from someone who was going through an extraordinarily tough battle.

Mayo’s message:

The patient’s interest is the only interest to be considered.” It is at once both commitment and question. It challenges everyone at Mayo to continuously ask and answer the questions, “What is the patient’s interest? And how do we best serve it?”

I wrote this to emphasize the big picture.  When you focus and get your hospitals to focus on the patient, everything else falls into place.  Lead with what is right for the patient, period.  Then figure out how Microsoft can help our partners achieve that vision.  It worked for Mayo.  Just ask the 30 Saudis in the lobby of the Mayo Marriott.