148: Transforming the Healthcare Transportation Sector with Nathalie Occean, MHA, CPHQ

The Healthcare QualityCast

Meet today's guest, Nathalie Occean, Chief Operating Officer for MedHaul, a healthcare tech startup based in Memphis, Tennessee, which essentially connects healthcare organizations to specialized transportation providers to aid patients with major mobility difficulties. With experience in academic medical centers and Healthcare Administration, Nathalie quickly realized she had a mindset for operations and a passion for healthcare quality. In this episode, Nathalie narrates her journey into the healthcare industry and her work as a part of the growing technological changes in the healthcare industry. Top Takeaways • [09:27] The pandemic brought out the importance of the MedHaul service as patients who needed to continue hospital visits could take advantage of the platform after the shutdown of public transportation. This has only emphasized the need for leaders to adopt change in healthcare, especially in the digital healthcare space. • [12:17] Lessons from failure: Getting into grad school was very tough and this helped Nathalie realize her resilience and determination towards her passion. In this process, she also discovered the importance of communication as she had to reach out for insight from the faculty while trying to get in. • [16:48] Tips for team building: Let the team members be experts in their own rights, but find out what is working or not working for them, then help them connect the dots, so in the end, they can feel connected to the solution. • [20:40] Leaders need to recognize the importance of setting boundaries in and out of the workplace. Another key point for leaders is to lead by example when it comes to accountability; this involves dutifully carrying out your own role for team members to see how it relates to theirs. Follow-up is another critical tool for accountability. • [24:06] Best 'Aha' moment: This was the realization that it's okay to not know all the answers, although rather than simply accept you don't know, give a response that shows you plan to work on it. Learning the right people to ask questions saves a lot of time. • [28:07] What is the N.A.H.S.E Case Competition? The organization is aimed at promoting minorities and executives in healthcare. The case competition is for graduate students to present solutions as if in the shoes of consultants. • [34:50] Ongoing changes across the healthcare industry: Technology and the digital health space are being embraced more widely in healthcare. • [50:55] Keeping a habit of having a baseline before starting a project helps measure how much work has been done at any point in time. • [52:34] Website recommendation: Slack for communication, and Asana for project or team management. • [54:02] Professional society recommendation: N.A.H.S.E, National Association for Healthcare Quality (N.A.H.Q), I.H.I • [57:38] Nathalie’s message to herself in the past; Trust your gut. In the future, she would remind herself to remember why she started. • [01:00:14] Final advice from Nathalie: Understand the full scope of quality in whatever organization you're in or trying to get into, as this varies from one organization to another. Be open to opportunity. Key Quotes: "Always advocate for service" "What are the things that you're not willing to accept failure in?" "We are not in a position to be resistant to change" Connect: Find | Nathalie Occean LinkedIn – Nathalie Occean --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/healthcarequalitycast/message