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Weekly UpdatesAs president and chief executive officer of BryanLGH Health System in Lincoln, Nebraska, Kimberly A. Russel, FACHE, is responsible for overseeing an urban tertiary medical center, a rural critical access hospital, a multispecialty physician network, a foundation, a heart institute, and the College of Health Sciences. Before taking the helm at BryanLGH in 2008, Ms. Russel served as president and chief executive officer of Mary Greeley Medical Center (Ames, Iowa) for more than a decade. Since the mid-1980s, she has held leadership positions at various healthcare organizations.
Ms. Russel is an active member of the board of directors of the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce, the Lincoln Partnership for Economic Development, and the Lincoln Medical Education Partnership. Also, she is the chair of the Mayor's Health Care Safety Net Task Force in Lincoln, and she has served on the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Health Care Pilot Evaluation Team. In 2008, she was a recipient of the Distinguished Service Award from the American College of Healthcare Executives, and in 1997, she was named on Modern Healthcare's Up and Comers list. In addition, she has published articles in several healthcare publications.
Ms. Russel holds a bachelor's degree in general management from Purdue University and a master's degree in health administration from Washington University. She is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.
Dr. Grazier: You have been president and chief executive officer of BryanLGH Health System since March 2008. Before this, you filled various senior leadership roles for many years. To what do you attribute your advancement in the field?
Ms. Russel: I am fortunate to have an outstanding mentor and to have worked for organizations that have presented a lot of opportunities. I have been in the right place at the right time.
Dr. Grazier: What are your responsibilities as a CEO?
Ms. Russel: Our health system is made up of a broad spectrum of services, including a tertiary acute care medical center, a critical access hospital, a physician network, the College of Health Sciences, a foundation, and various subsidiaries. Each of these entities is led by capable leaders. Also, the system has an active board, which consists of members of local businesses and educational institutions. My primary job is to advocate for the system's mission to advance the health of individuals in our region through collaboration with physicians and communities. I am proud to be part of BryanLGH.
Dr. Grazier: How have your previous leadership positions prepared you for this current role?
Ms. Russel: My exposure to a variety of healthcare settings--public and private, community and state, academic and religious, small and large--has been helpful. Those experiences taught me how to be a generalist and to better understand the challenges and priorities of institutions just like ours.
Dr. Grazier: Please describe your leadership style. What do you think has shaped this style over the years?
Ms. Russel: I lead and manage by consensus. The healthcare field is so complex that no single individual, not even the most experienced CEO, knows all the solutions. Teamwork is a necessity in healthcare; the best decisions come from considering the input of team members and those who are involved in or are affected by a process. Of course, sometimes a decision rests solely on the shoulders of the CEO, but even then a CEO who listens to his or her staff can make a decision that is informed by others' perspectives. For me, working side by side with excellent physicians, administrative staff, and other coworkers is an incredible motivator.
Experience has confirmed what I've always believed in: Good communication skills are paramount to a successful healthcare career. An ability to interact well with all types of people in all types of settings is more valuable in healthcare than placing at the top of the class or being an "A" student. I learned and saw this in action while I was in graduate school.
Dr. Grazier: Did you seek your mentor, or did your mentor find you?
Ms. Russel: My mentor was a preceptor during my administrative internship and residency. He trusted my abilities and gave me a lot of responsibility right from the start. Over the years, our work evolved into a mentoring relationship. People should be open to and seek good mentoring opportunities, but the relationship itself cannot be forced. It has to evolve naturally. I strongly support ACHE's stance of encouraging senior leaders to become mentors as a way of giving back to the healthcare field.
Dr. Grazier: What advice would you offer to new careerists or graduates?
Ms. Russel: First and foremost, do not get turned off by the current economic crisis and the mass layoffs and restructuring happening in the industry. There will always be a great demand for well-educated and dedicated healthcare professionals. Instead of being paralyzed by today's short-term conditions, gain as much experience as possible in the workplace. My internship and residency not only provided wonderful learning and growth opportunities but also solidified my career path.
Also, focus on lifelong learning. That term is kicked around a lot, but continuing education is a critical companion in an ever-changing healthcare environment. Read healthcare journals and magazines. Keep up with current events and trends, nationally and internationally. Attend seminars, classes, and other educational or networking events offered by healthcare organizations such as ACHE. The challenges in this field are so immense that our best defense is continuous learning.
Dr. Grazier: When you look toward the future, what healthcare trends and challenges do you see?
Ms. Russel: In general, we will see more collaboration between organizations. Especially because of the difficult economic times, many hospitals will examine consolidation or partnerships with other entities to continue their operations. Many of our challenges revolve around finances, and this was a fact even before the global market crash. The constant cutbacks on Medicare reimbursement combined with the rising demand for healthcare services and greater consumer expectations have put a lot of financial pressure on most healthcare facilities. This may be a primary motivator for organizations to get creative and to work together to find needed resources that allow us to provide dependable, high-quality services.
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