From the Vice President for Medical Affairs

Dear friends and colleagues,

As we reflect on the many exciting advances of the previous fiscal year, we are reminded of a management book by Jim Collins, titled Good to Great. In it he contrasts the flywheel, a rotating disk that stores kinetic energy, with the enthusiasm inside companies as they transition from good to great. As the flywheel begins inching forward, its movement is hardly noticeable. Keep pushing and this remarkable mechanical device moves faster and faster.

At some point, with continued effort, the flywheel resists change in its rotational speed and achieves its objective—unstoppable momentum.

This concept of momentum accurately describes how faculty, staff, and volunteers have pulled together to improve our environment of patient-centered quality care. Toward that end I am particularly proud that we have successfully begun the integration of our three organizations: University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, the UI Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, and UI Physicians, the largest multi-specialty group practice in Iowa.

Working together, we have taken important steps toward achieving new efficiencies and organizational improvements that will benefit all Iowans. Taken individually, these changes are impressive. However, their real strength—just like the flywheel—lies in the powerful momentum created by their collective impact.

Many of the changes are operational improvements, including new operational efficiencies in our clinics, service-related enhancements tied to patient satisfaction, and safety improvements that benefit patients and staff alike.

Others include recently completed additions and renovations, including our world-class Patient and Visitor Center, our new Ambulatory Surgery Center, and the renovated pediatric inpatient units within UI Children’s Hospital.

These changes occurred under the reorganized administrative structure of our integrated clinical enterprise—a re-organization made possible by the combined efforts of many visionary people. We sincerely thank them all for helping us achieve the momentum highlighted in this annual report.

As you will see, momentum is more than a concept in the mechanical world of the flywheel. It also accurately describes how we view change and the pursuit of continuous improvement as essential components of high-quality patient care in our newly integrated University of Iowa Health Care enterprise.

Jean Robillard, MD
Vice President for Medical Affairs
University of Iowa Health Care
Dean, UI Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine