New Book Blog! Still Standing - Leading Well-Being in Crisis-Tested Healthcare Systems
BooK Blog:
Still Standing - Leading Well-Being in Crisis-Tested Healthcare Systems
Kimberly Pierce Burke | Executive Director,
AIAMC
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What’s
Unusual About This Book
I read it in one sitting. It is that good.
Granted, I admit to being motivated to see the AIAMC’s National Initiatives
referenced (chapter 8) and the AIAMC as first organization
listed in the opening acknowledgements. That aside, what made this book unique
to me was how quickly I was drawn into Dr. Calongne’s personal story, starting
with her early career days as a clinical social worker. Trauma can be a daily
occurrence in this field, and to top it off, Laurinda worked in southern
Louisiana, where hurricanes and flooding abound. As she wrote, “Crisis was not
abstract; it was Tuesday.”
The author’s personal traumas painted pictures so vivid
that my heart felt heavy and my eyes filled with tears. Dr. Calongne’s memories
were incredibly moving: keeping her two-month-old
daughter Emilie safe; her sister sweeping away mud after their childhood home after
being ravaged by Hurricane Rita; and her colleague’s grandmother dying while
waiting on an ambulance during Rita. The colleague, by the way, directed the
hospital’s emergency command center. Her nickname was “The General.” But she still could not save her own
grandmother. Resilience, anyone?
Breaking
it Down:
The book has three major
components:
1.
Understanding burnout and depletion
2.
The operating system and “recovery-first
leadership”
3.
Measurement and momentum.
Systems, of course, cannot change without strong leadership. In the AIAMC, we often talk about leaders needing to be big-thinking visionaries AND providing them with practical “tools in their toolkit.” It is not just publishing white papers; it is taking meaningful actions that result in outcomes. What I particularly admire about this book is the author’s ability to merge evidence-based rigor and personal stories with truly practical approach and tips.
Examples
of Practical Approaches & Tips
Throughout her writing,
Laurinda drops short snippets of wisdom that stay with the reader. Some of my
favorites included:
· Resilience
keeps you standing. Recovery makes you human.
· Resilience
without recovery is endurance, and endurance runs out.
· Real
change does not happen from slogans. It happens from structures.
· People
need time – not platitudes or pizza.
· Healing
systems begin by healing their people.
Five Commitments to Carry
Forward: I will…
1.
Ask, “how are you doing” and wait for the
answer.
2.
Treat rest and recovery as a responsibility,
not a reward.
3. Acknowledge
moral distress and seek solutions, not silence.
4. Advocate
for well-being like any critical clinical tool.
5. Not
confuse professionalism with emotional suppression.
Powerful
stuff.
During my 20+ year tenure with the AIAMC, I have had the
privilege of meeting some truly exceptional and extraordinary leaders. Dr.
Laurinda Calongne is one of them. And I am so incredibly thankful that she has
crafted an extraordinary book for us all to continue learning from her
expertise and wisdom.
PS – Be on the lookout for a podcast
episode with Dr. Laurinda Calongne discussing her book with me next month!
About Kimberly Pierce Burke, MA has
been the Executive Director of the AIAMC since July 2003. She loves reading,
hosting family gatherings, and cheering on her beloved Buckeye football team
from THE Ohio State University.