Q&A with CIO Mathew Gaug, Part 1: “We Have to Build Brick by Brick.”

For many people, the key to a successful balance in life is in keeping work and family separate; ensuring the two worlds never collide. Some, however, have a completely different – and perhaps, more realistic – approach. Mathew Gaug, CIO at Memorial Hospital and Health Care Center, views his team as family, often applying the same conflict resolution and communication strategies as he does in his own home. “We’re together for the majority of the week, and so there are going to be struggles,” he said in a recent interview. “The ability to work through that, to talk through it, and to be open and honest with each other really helps drive that commitment and engagement.”

Gaug, who started with Memorial this past summer, talked about his initial priorities as CIO (which included selling the organization on an integrated EHR platform and choosing a vendor), how his team is involving multiple stakeholders in major decisions, and the keys to growing an IT department at an appropriate rate. He also discussed the importance of effective vendor management, his open-door leadership philosophy, and how his family is adjusting to life in Indiana.

Chapter 1



* About Memorial Hospital & Health Care Center

* Onboarding done right – “Everybody here is extremely welcoming.”

* Orientation checklists

* From best of breed to an integrated approach – “We didn’t want to reinvent the wheel.”

* 4 components of the EHR selection process

* Partnership over software

* Growing the IT department “brick by brick.”

* Using visualization to sell integration: “It drove home why we needed to do this.”

* Memorial’s mission to “be for others”



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Bold Statements

Choosing a new EHR isn’t something where we’re breaking new ground; where we are breaking new ground is in how we choose an EHR for our organization.

I didn’t have to go in and say, ‘This isn’t an IT project.’ They already knew when I came in that this was going to be an organizational project.

Being able to visualize that and see a color-coded map of the multitude of applications we had really changed that perspective. It really drove home why we needed to do this. It opened up everybody’s eyes.

I don’t want to implement technology looking to solve a problem, or have to create a justification for having the technology. I want to partner with providers and with the clinical staff to learn and understand the business so we can create solutions using technology to improve patient care.

We’re taking the idea it’s not just about ‘me’; it’s about a department or a certain workflow. It’s more about our workflow and how can we ‘be for others’ through our integrated process.

Gamble:  Hi Mat, thanks so much for joining us today. Let’s start with some basic information about Memorial Hospital and Health Care Center, which is located in Indiana. Can you talk about some of the care offerings?

Gaug:  Sure. We’re located in Jasper, which is in Southern Indiana, and we offer multiple different services. We’re a Trauma II healthcare center. We offer services around cardiology for the area. We also have multiple specialty and family practice clinics in seven different surrounding counties, so we’re spread out a bit. Basically, we run the gamut when it comes to healthcare and the services that we provide for our community, but I would say oncology, cardiology, and surgical practices are our big hitters.

 

Gamble:  Memorial covers a pretty large geographic area. Are you fairly rural?

Gaug:  We are.

 

Gamble:  And you’ve been with Memorial since August. It’s always an interesting time when you’re starting with a new organization.