Twelve months ago, Kona Community Hospital launched a new program to develop health care leaders in West Hawaii. The West Hawaii Healthcare Leadership Series is a year-long program that focuses on leadership and organizational development, financial and quantitative analysis and topics specific to the health care industry. The participants include managers from Kona Community Hospital, Ali’i Health, West Hawaii Community Health Center and North Hawaii Community Hospital. The program enriches the participant’s experience by linking theory to practical application and enhances their knowledge and skills that will assist them in their daily work.
The program manifested when Earl Greenia, CEO of Kona Community Hospital (KCH) and Kohala Hospital, and Richard Taaffe, Executive Director of West Hawaii Community Health Center, wanted to create an educational series that would assist health care leaders in becoming better health care leaders in our community.
Greg Chun, volunteer faculty and Kamehameha Schools executive, commented “For me, this program is like sharpening a saw. We can always refine what we know and make ourselves better. You never stop learning and as an instructor I get the benefit of learning from the participants as well.”
“We all learned from each other. The individuals participating in this program have significant experience and bring a lot to the table,” said Faith Rossman, volunteer faculty and Registered Nurse.
Course topics included Leadership and Management, Creativity, Innovation and Organization Development, Communication, Influence and Conflict Management, Creating Change and Implementing Initiatives, Introduction to Finance and Accounting, Measuring Performance Standards, Managerial Decision Making, Identifying and Solving Problems, Health Care Organizations and Delivery Systems, Health Law and Ethics, Health Economics, Financial Management, and Strategic Management.
The last session is scheduled for Tuesday, August 17 and will discuss The Future of Healthcare that will be led by a panel comprising of Earl Greenia (CEO of KCH and Kohala Hospital), John White (CEO of North Hawaii Community Hospital), and Richard Taaffe (Executive Director of West Hawaii Community Health Center). It will also include a special ceremony for this year’s cohort with a certificate of completion awarded to each participant.
Dawn Brewer, Leadership Series participant and KCH Surgical Services Nurse Manager, stated, “I believe that each session had a valuable topic to offer. As a group representing a variety of different healthcare organizations, it was beneficial for us to openly discuss, problem-solve and collaborate to make our workplace and our delivery of services better for our community. I am honored to be part of this program.”