As the world of business continues to evolve rapidly in 2024, the role of CEOs and entrepreneurs has become more challenging and dynamic than ever before. In an exclusive interview, we explore the insights of a visionary leader at the helm of DoorSpace, a company making significant strides in the healthcare industry.
“CEOs and entrepreneurs need to be really clear about their unique value proposition and values. This is particularly true if you’re in the consumer space where the younger generations are now the majority buyer demographic. Far more than previous generations, these groups – the ‘Millennials’ and ‘Gen Z’ – they shop at the businesses that share their values. So as the leaders of our companies, we need to be clear on our values and make sure our company culture demonstrates these values clearly to our customers,” shares Sarah M. Worthy, CEO of DoorSpace.
When asked about DoorSpace’s focus on the healthcare industry, Worthy highlighted the sector’s unique challenges and opportunities. The healthcare industry, more than many others, presents a unique set of difficulties due to its ever-evolving technological demands, regulatory environments, and the critical need for high-quality patient care. At the same time immense opportunities arise from these challenges, such as the potential for innovation in patient care delivery, the integration of back-end technology, and the improvement of healthcare management systems. These factors create a fertile ground for companies to introduce transformative solutions, thereby not only contributing to the betterment of healthcare outcomes but also positioning themselves at the forefront of a rapidly advancing industry.
“From both a business and a technical standpoint, healthcare is the best industry for DoorSpace to be in right now. The healthcare industry spends more money than any other industry on their workforces – yet is struggling across the board to effectively utilize employee data to retain and develop their clinical workforces. Every hospital system in this country is struggling to maintain safe nurse-to-patient ratios. The majority of hospitals can’t meet the primary care needs of their communities right now due to PCP shortages. There is a huge need for new technologies that can replace the 20+ year old antiquated and fragmented systems and tools that are preventing healthcare leaders from creating great employee experiences that retain and develop top quality clinical talent,” Worthy shares.
In the healthcare sector, a prevalent issue is the vast collection of employee data by most organizations, which, however, remains largely underutilized, leading to a cycle where compliance overshadows meaningful outcomes. While these entities efficiently gather extensive data encompassing performance metrics, training records, and patient interactions, the focus predominantly lies on fulfilling regulatory requirements rather than leveraging this data for operational improvement, employee engagement, or enhanced patient care. This underutilization is often exacerbated by data fragmentation across different systems and the lack of effective analytics tools, preventing a holistic view of employee information and hindering the ability of management to make informed decisions. As a result, this compliance-centric approach not only misses out on potential insights for workforce optimization but also limits the organization’s capability to adapt to changing dynamics and provide the highest standard of patient care, underscoring the need for a more outcome-focused strategy in the handling and application of employee data within the healthcare industry. For DoorSpace, most healthcare entities collect vast amounts of employee data, only to underutilize it, leading to a cycle of compliance without meaningful outcomes.
Worthy explains, “Healthcare organizations today are collecting vast amounts of data from their clinical talent for the purpose of checking a compliance box every year, and then effectively tossing that data out so they can repeat the box checking process again. This data is fragmented, often stored across multiple systems with differing versions of the same information – and it prevents managers and HR teams from effectively supporting their team. If it takes 3 months or longer before managers are even made aware of an issue, that’s going to lead to burnout and turnover. If managers don’t know a nurse has a skills gap in a specific area – they risk placing that nurse in an understaffed environment with patients they’re not properly trained to care for.”
This gap in the industry is the crucial point of turnover.
“Right now, healthcare organizations are not effectively managing their clinical talent and that’s the root cause of the turnover crisis as well as a large factor in the rise of preventable medical errors. DoorSpace provides organizations with a suite of tools to enable them to effectively and efficiently manage their employee data – both to check those boxes and then also to make real time, strategic decisions that are personalized to the needs of their clinical employees. This improves retention, ensures a top quality workforce, and ultimately leads to better patient care.”
Sarah M. Worthy sheds light on the evolving challenges and opportunities in the healthcare industry in 2024. Emphasizing the importance of aligning company values with the preferences of younger generations, Worthy highlights the necessity for businesses to adapt to their markets meaningfully. The focus of DoorSpace on the healthcare sector, particularly in optimizing the use of employee data, marks a significant shift from mere compliance to strategic, outcome-focused management. This approach not only aims to improve operational efficiency and employee well-being but is also crucial for enhancing patient care. DoorSpace’s innovative strategies and visionary leadership exemplify the kind of dynamic problem-solving essential for success in today’s fast-paced business environment, setting new standards for the effective use of technology and data in healthcare.