October 22, 2024 • 21 mins
Rick Hundorfean, CEO, MUSC Health Rehabilitation Hospital, an affiliate of Encompass Health
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
iHeart Media Presents CEOs. You should know. Welcome to iHeartMedia
Charleston CEOs. You should know where we highlight great people
doing big things right here in the low Country. Today
is Rick Hunterfiend, CEO of m USC Health Rehabilitation Hospital,
which is an affiliate of Encompass Health, the leading provider
in impatient rehabilitation for life changing illness and injury right
(00:20):
in North Charleston.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Welcome Rick, good morning. Thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Awesome, It's great to have you. So we were talking earlier.
You've been in Charleston three years? Is twenty twenty one?
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Correct, that's right, that's right.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
How you love in the low Country?
Speaker 2 (00:32):
Oh, we love it. Yeah. My wife, my son and me.
We were taking advantage of all the great restaurants and
the beaches that we were talking about earlier, and we
just absolutely love it awesome.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
So originally from Ohio, Ohio University, right.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
That's right. Yeah, Bobcats, go Bobcats, Bobcats.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
And you were a baseball player there for a while.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
I was. Yeah. I took in everything that college had
to offer. I played baseball. I graduated with an engineering degree,
so get to use all of that. I took away
from the university, but really enjoyed my time there. So
what was your trajectory?
Speaker 1 (01:04):
I know, you had a degree in industrial manufacturing and
engineering and then you got your MBA with a focus
on health correct, Sure, what was it trajectory from industrial engineering,
manufacturing to healthcare.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
Yeah. When you go through an engineering program, at least
the one I went through, you have to do a
formalized co op which is kind of like an internship
on steroids almost, And I did mine for three years
at the Cleveland Clinic up in Cleveland, Ohio, and I
did a lot of process improvement type work. And from there,
when I graduated, I was fortunate enough to get a
(01:37):
job with the Cleveland Clinic in their engineering department, which
was their process improvement department, and it was a bunch
of really brilliant engineers and I was the most junior
of the team, but came in and they look at
ways to improve efficiency or do cost reduction initiatives to
help really lean out the organization. And then from there,
(01:58):
you know, I just I took on projects. You know,
people would say, Rick, do you want to hop on
this initiative or beyond this project? And every opportunity I could,
I said yes, and that just led me in different
paths throughout my career and eventually got me to the
role I'm in now, which is a CEO of a hospital.
Speaker 1 (02:14):
How important is that? I think you said something that
I've heard before, is saying the importance of saying yes
to an opportunity.
Speaker 2 (02:21):
You never know what you're turning down, right, So for me,
it was it was learning something new. You always hear
people in healthcare talking about adding new tools to your belt.
To me, whether that's a failure and you learn to
add a new tool to your belt because now you
know the path not to go down, or it's doing
a new experience or opportunity, those are all things I
(02:43):
think that shape your life and shape your career. So
I think it's extremely important.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
So yeah, I agree saying yes and just even if
you feel uncomfortable and you don't know the process or
what's before you, you're learning something new.
Speaker 2 (02:55):
Yeah, we should always be growing. So I think if
you're if you're stalling out and whatever your career is,
jump on a new initiative or a new team that's
going to challenge you. You're going to fail along the way,
But that's a good thing you're learning, and I think
that's allowing you to grow and be a better person.
That's right.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
So you were in healthcare. You've been healthcare for twelve
years prior to coming to the Low Country. Anything stand
out in those twelve years as a highlight of an accomplishment.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
Yeah, I've done so many. I had so many opportunities
to work with so many great teams, and that's what
I think for me, has been the thing that I've
loved the most. And healthcare people are super collaborative and
they really always have one goal in mind, and that's
to take care of patients and offer really great quality care.
(03:46):
Really is a blessing to be in the healthcare industry.
It's calling almost, I truly think that. But we've done
a lot of amazing things just between adding new hospital
site locations. I had an opportunity work over in Abu
Dhabi when I worked for the Cleveland Clinic and we
open up that hospital. So as part of a team
that you know was working on a specific project to
(04:08):
help launch that hospital, We've added new brilliant surgeons to
different teams that you know did groundbreaking procedures or innovative
care for patients that you know. Now we're able to
multiply that for other people all across the nation. So
I think it's the people that I've been able to
(04:28):
work with and the different opportunities and worked in neuro neurosurgery, spine,
pain management, now the rehab world. They're all different, and
I love it. I love the variety of the different
healthcare industries you can be in.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
Well, it's also it's got to be gratifying to be
in the industry you're in because you're you're helping people
back on their feet after some traumatic injuries or illnesses.
Speaker 2 (04:50):
Correct, sure. Yeah. In my line of work and in
patient rehab, patients are coming in from an acute event,
typically right like a stroke or they have a brain
injury or a major multiple trauma incident that happened to them.
They go to the hospital and they get some type
of intervention that occurs, but they're still too sick to
(05:10):
go home and they come to my hospital and that's
where we treat them. They're usually with us for about
ten twelve days and they get intense rehab. I tell
people on the outside, for people who don't know impatient
rehabit it's like having a personal trainer with you for
three hours a day for about fifteen hours a week,
and they're working you hard. That's our physical therapist, occupational respiratory,
(05:33):
speech therapists, the doctors that are all working with you,
and other care team members of course, nursing and other groups.
But they are working you hard. And when you leave
after that ten twelve days, you're a completely different person.
And that's extremely important. I mean all the research says
if you've had one of those episodes inpatient, rehab will
will very much prolong your life just by you coming
(05:57):
and having that short ten to twelve days of care ability.
Yeah too.
Speaker 1 (06:01):
Yeah, So being the CEO, you know of the rehability
rehabilitation segment of MUSC, anything stand out as a difference
that MUSC has in regards to your previous experience.
Speaker 2 (06:12):
Yeah, I would say MEOC to me. First of all,
my hospital is a fifty to fifty joint venture between
MUSC Health and Encompass Health, so I get the best
of both worlds of taking the advantage of all the
resources that MUSC Health has to offer, seven hundred and
fifty locations, all the different services, the network that comes
with being a part of a bigger group as well.
(06:34):
On the Encompass health side. You know, they have over
one hundred and sixty hospitals across the nation. We're in
most of the states throughout the country thirty five plus.
As well as we're an international presence, so we we
have all of the resources that come along with that.
So being able to tap into that network of everything
from all the different vendors, all the staff, the resources,
(06:56):
those are two really well oiled companies that might staff
can tap into I can to be able to make
sure we're taking great care patients.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
So in reading a value, I've read a lot about
work culture hospital culture. Is that a large part of
your philosophy?
Speaker 2 (07:11):
It is? Yeah. You know, we always talk about servant leadership,
and it's not just that we're going out there and
that we're serving the staff just at a high level.
I truly mean that. When we go through orientation, I
tell our new employees, I am here as your CEO,
and my leadership team is here to serve you. Meaning
when we walk down the hallway and we say, hey,
(07:33):
how are you Is there anything that you need? We
genuinely are asking is there something that you need? Whether
it's a resource or even as simple as a notebook
that maybe you feel you don't have the daily tools
to do your job right. That's something that I immediately
will go back to the office. I'll talk to whoever
it is that we need to work with to get
that resource for you. Or maybe it's a barrier or
(07:55):
an issue you're running into every day to be able
to really at possible way to be able to take
care of patients. Let's break that down. Let's get you
the tools, Let's get you the equipment to be able
to do your job. So that to me is serving leadership.
When somebody calls out in a different department, that the
leadership team can step up or step in to that
(08:15):
job to be able to make sure that the ship
keeps moving forward.
Speaker 1 (08:18):
Right. Well, is there anybody from your background that has
a that had a big impact on your leadership currently?
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Yeah, you know, honestly, I've had a lot of really
great people that I've worked with leaders. I've had a
lot of great supervisors or bosses as you will. I've
also had some people that I've learned from from an
opportunity standpoint of different directions of where not to go.
Current leadership team that I have now with my current role,
(08:45):
and a lot of the board members are phenomenal. They
are influential, they're servant leaders themselves. They're really great people.
I always know I can lean on them for resources
or just be able to pick up the phone if
I'm running into an issue, and I love that, just
the communication and their availability. I'd also say my parents.
You know, my dad worked in manufacturing, my mom worked
(09:07):
in healthcare. Learned a lot both from them of just
different paths of where to go, where not to go.
And you know, anytime there's an opportunity that comes up,
I always run the different idea by them. You know,
what do you think about this? Is this something that's
going to helped strengthen me as a person as a man,
Is something that's going to help my family? They give
me great feedback on it. So it was your data
(09:28):
baseball player. He was not he I mean, he played
all kinds of different sports growing up, but he just
always wanted me to be the best at everything I
could do and had me try a all kinds of
different sports growing up, and baseball just ended up naturally
being the one that I really enjoyed the most.
Speaker 1 (09:43):
What part of baseball and playing baseball in college and
just you know growing up. How does that impact your leadership?
Speaker 2 (09:49):
Yeah, you know, sports teaches you discipline, and it teaches
you structure and what's really needed and hard work to
get something done. It also so teaches you that it
requires a team, right, you can't just go into it
and be the leader every time. And you know, for
say quarterback, in every situation, you really need the team
(10:10):
in order to be able to let's say, win a
championship or be successful and you know launching a new
a new initiative. So for me, it really taught me
that the most. But discipline every day, you know, whether
it's high school sports or college sports. You know, you
need to show up on time or ahead of time.
You need to be prepared, you need to practice, you
(10:31):
need to lean on your your team ultimately to be
able to be successful in whatever you're doing.
Speaker 1 (10:36):
It kind of teaches it the talents and traits that
costs nothing. Of course, the little things they turn out
to be big things.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
Yeah. Sure, in kind of culture.
Speaker 1 (10:42):
As well, because when you look at a team, how
a coach deals with the team and addresses toxicity and
addresses you know that servant leadership that you talk about,
you can take that right from a field or a
court into any business.
Speaker 2 (10:54):
Really, yeah, it's super important that you weed out that
that the toxicity in any environment. But at least for me,
and maybe it's just a maturity thing over time. It's
maybe when I was younger, I would be a little
bit more forward to just hey, maybe we don't have
the right people on the bus. Let's go either hire
new talent to come in. Now, I really try to
(11:16):
focus on working with those individuals because maybe it's a
maybe the organization or myself as a leader did not
set that person up for success. So I try to
do everything possible to give them the tools, set the
expectations very clearly, and then from there, if it's still
not working, try to have a general agreement with the person, Hey,
(11:37):
maybe this is not working out. Let's try to find
the right role for you, whether it's in our current
organization or somewhere out in the community.
Speaker 1 (11:43):
Anything that you read or watch that influences leadership.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
I read a lot of different business journals and articles,
so I'm always taking in new pieces of information. You know,
Modern Healthcare is a perfect example of you know, different
magazine that comes out often that you know, I get
a lot of different pieces of best practice information from
other hospital leaders across the country. I listen to a
lot of different radio stations and podcasts, which you know,
(12:08):
I pull in all kinds of different information from those
different sources. But the companies I work for as well,
you know, they pull it together a lot of different
information of what's happening, even just across our own networks
that the recipes for success that I can tap into
to launch at my hospital.
Speaker 1 (12:24):
MUSC and encompassing like trendsetters in the space, they are
pioneering the healthcare space.
Speaker 2 (12:29):
MUSC is biggest healthcare provider in the state and one
of the best in some instances, the best in the
different markets. Encompasses the largest provider of impatient rehab in
the entire country. So I mean, you really have, just
as you said, two big trendsetters that are leading in
their own individual fields.
Speaker 1 (12:48):
Well you're talking about also the biggest you were referencing,
the biggest philanthropic event in the state being your affiliation
with the American Heart Association in that.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
Walk, Yeah, that's all a little bit about that. Yeah, yeah,
So the American Heart Association low Country Heart Walk is
one of the biggest, if not the biggest philanthropic event
in the state of South Carolina that's held annually. We
usually held it hold the event, the actual walk. There
are several events that lead up to it, but the
annual walk is typically held in February. Ours is February
(13:18):
twenty second of twenty twenty five, and it is it's
a great event in itself. There's live music, there's food,
all kinds of great entertainment. We just recently moved into
the River Dog Stadium, so you know, we get the
luxuries of having a handicap accessible, great parking, it's easy
to get to. It's right downtown, so people oftentimes, you know,
right after the event like to go downtown and go
(13:40):
to a local restaurant or whatnot. But it brings together
so many people, so many people that have been impacted
by stroke or heart disease, which is you know, a
leading killer of people in the United States today and
across the world. But people get to share their stories
and get to you know, come and sometimes miser right
(14:00):
with each other of what they've gone through. And that
is such a great opportunity for it. And we get
to celebrate those people who are on their recovery journey
and working their way up. I invite so many of
the patients and families that come to my rehab hospital
to attend that event, as well as our staff that
have you know, had loved ones that have suffered from
heart disease or from stroke. It's just so prevalent in
(14:20):
our country today, and we have this great event that
really memorializes that every year and celebrates those people that
are on their recovery journeys.
Speaker 1 (14:29):
So, like you said that the heart, I'll say heart
problem and we're out there at the cell realize you're
talking about heart conditions being one of the main conditions
that people face. Someone in your family where yourself probably has.
You know, if I want to get involved with that,
you do it every February. Where can people get more information?
Speaker 2 (14:46):
Yeah, we put information out all over different different channels,
So you'll see stuff that will be coming out in
the news. There'll be radio segments that we'll do with
different various vendors throughout the Low Country. There's a website
you just type in twenty twenty five Low Country Heart
Walk and you can go up and you could sign up.
You can join a team, you can join as a walker,
(15:08):
you can join just to contribute from a donation standpoint,
and those funds. I tell people this all the time
because I used to donate to all kinds of different
funds in my past, whether it be Leukemian lephoma, American
Heart Association for heart disease and for stroke, and other
various charities and philanthropic events. But I would donate and
(15:30):
I never really knew where my money was going, but
I knew it was the right thing. It just felt
right to donate to those causes. My son is a
survivor of congenital heart defect and has had various procedures
and surgeries that monies that have gone to the American
Heart Association, in a roundabout way, have helped fund some
of those experimental procedures that were done and that happened
(15:51):
every day across the country. So I got to see
it firsthand and how it impacted me, not just from
my hospital standpoint and the people that we care for,
but on a personal level, and that just helped fuel
my involvement in the American Heart Association even more.
Speaker 1 (16:06):
Absolutely, absolutely would. I think everybody has kind of a
personal reference point on someone with a heart effect, someone
who needed help knowing those costs that up as well,
and talk a little bit about that. The American Heart Association,
the support that they give financially is tremendous. Correct.
Speaker 2 (16:25):
They do all kinds of stuff. It's not even just
for things like I talked about from my son. They just,
for instance, this past year, chowed construction to a partnership
with the American Heart Association. Through our combined collective efforts.
They're going out to all the three school districts in
Charleston and they're doing CPR training with mannequins. So they're
going out to the schools, they're teaching the school nurses,
(16:46):
they're teaching the kids what to do for hands only
CPR just in case that does come up, which it
comes up all the time across the country on a
daily basis, or somebody goes into cardiac arrest and and
they're teaching them. They're educating them to not be afraid
of being able to do hands only CPR, so that way,
(17:07):
if something does happen, if you're at an airport, at
a grocery store, you'll be equipped and you'll know how
to just jump right in and take action because it
could save a life.
Speaker 1 (17:14):
That's great training. I mean, everybody's likely to face at
its own point, same reason. They have the fibrillators, all right,
and most public facility.
Speaker 2 (17:21):
That's exactly right.
Speaker 1 (17:22):
So being from Ohio moving down here, what are the
some of the big differences between Ohio and the Low Country.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
Well, of course the obvious is, you know, moving to
the coast, right, So now I have the luxury of
being by the ocean and taking full advantage of that.
We love to go out boating all the time. And
you know, my son could go to the beach today
and see a starfish just right there in the sand,
and that's just so cool and unique. And being able
to see dolphins, you know, every day. That's just it's
(17:49):
so cool, and it's so different than what I grew
up to. Ohio is beautiful. I have the change of
the seasons, which you have a little bit of that here.
It's not as hot in Ohio, you know, so I
I've really got adjusted to that here and almost grown
to love it. You know, when I get off the airplane,
if I'm ever traveling for worker for personal reasons, I
get off the airplane and before I even get my bags,
(18:10):
I just step outside just to take it all in
the heat. And I love that. And you really get
to use more of the year being now in a
warmer climate, just because you get to do more things
throughout the wintertime. Not that you couldn't with snow, but
you know, I'd had to get up pretty early in
the morning to snowplow the driveway or whatever it was
(18:30):
to be able to do that, and it just felt
like you could utilize less of the year. And I
love that here. The people in the Low Country are phenomenal.
They are the most kind people I've ever met. I
drive down the street and everybody's wave into each other,
and it just really feels like a small town feel.
And it is still a metro, you know, so it
(18:51):
still has its bigger city type vibes in certain areas.
But we just love Charleston.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
Charming that we're a lot.
Speaker 2 (18:59):
They're really is.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
And it is funny to hear, you know you Ohio
and New Jersey and New Yorkers when you when you wave,
you can tell because they'll say this guy's do I
know that guy?
Speaker 2 (19:09):
Yeah? No, we just wave it everybody. Yeah, that's right,
that's right. Something that I did have to really adjust
to up North. I was so used to and I
think it's just the business culture there. I was so
used to starting a meeting and immediate that I would
just jump right in, we talk about the metrics or
you know, what was working, what wasn't working, and you
just got into action plans immediately. Uh. In the Southern culture,
(19:31):
what I've I've learned you really got to take in
people want to talk a little bit more in the
beginning parts of whether it's a meeting or or just
in general one on one conversations. How's your family, you know,
how are you good morning? You know, let's just let's
just talk a little bit about that. Yeah, yeah, right,
And I love that. I appreciate that so much. When
(19:52):
I look back when I go to retire one day,
you know, it's those experiences and those memories and talking
about families that I'm going to remember the moment. And
it was a really good thing for me overall to
be able to come here to the Low Country to
be able to experience that.
Speaker 1 (20:07):
So I have one last question. It's probably the most
important sure as a former pitcher, you get to face
one batter of your choice who are you picking?
Speaker 2 (20:16):
That's that's a really good question. You know. I loved that.
I don't even know if this is a term, but
that the power dynamic of facing the really big hitters,
the three four hitters. That was something to me that
if I could strike a three four hitter out, I
could just turn around on the mound and really just
have that internal reflection moment of you know, yes, yeah,
(20:38):
I got it. Those were the batters that I just
I knew. You know, you do research on batters before.
You you'd go to the mound before games or before innings,
and you knew what their preferences were, you knew really
where they just they dominated the plate. So getting those
those three four batters were was clutched. But now you know,
(21:01):
but there's also some of those batters that you know,
just get your you have your number every time, you know,
the like the Wan Sotos, that's just when you get
up there, you just you gotta get them. So I
don't know if I have a person in mind per se,
but really those three four five hitters were the clutch
ones for me. I knew I walked out of the inning.
If I could strike those guys out.
Speaker 1 (21:20):
That's an interesting question. I can tell you're competitive because
you just picked any of the best hitters. Yeah right, yeah,
give me the best, right, that's right, three, four or five,
give me the best. I love it.
Speaker 2 (21:29):
I love it.
Speaker 1 (21:29):
I'm reading it into that a lot. Well, Rick, thank
you very much for joining us. It's awesome to have
you in the low Country. I think I speak for everybody.
You're with a big name facility in usc and Compass Health,
big names in the area, and we look forward to
seeing you do more great things here.
Speaker 2 (21:43):
Thank you guys so much for having me, Thanks for
joining
Speaker 1 (21:45):
You've been listening to iHeart Radios CEOs you should know,
heard every Tuesday and Saturday morning right here on this
iHeart Radio station.
iHeart Media Presents CEOs. You should know. Welcome to iHeartMedia
Charleston CEOs. You should know where we highlight great people
doing big things right here in the low Country. Today
is Rick Hunterfiend, CEO of m USC Health Rehabilitation Hospital,
which is an affiliate of Encompass Health, the leading provider
in impatient rehabilitation for life changing illness and injury right
(00:20):
in North Charleston.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Welcome Rick, good morning. Thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Awesome, It's great to have you. So we were talking earlier.
You've been in Charleston three years? Is twenty twenty one?
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Correct, that's right, that's right.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
How you love in the low Country?
Speaker 2 (00:32):
Oh, we love it. Yeah. My wife, my son and me.
We were taking advantage of all the great restaurants and
the beaches that we were talking about earlier, and we
just absolutely love it awesome.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
So originally from Ohio, Ohio University, right.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
That's right. Yeah, Bobcats, go Bobcats, Bobcats.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
And you were a baseball player there for a while.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
I was. Yeah. I took in everything that college had
to offer. I played baseball. I graduated with an engineering degree,
so get to use all of that. I took away
from the university, but really enjoyed my time there. So
what was your trajectory?
Speaker 1 (01:04):
I know, you had a degree in industrial manufacturing and
engineering and then you got your MBA with a focus
on health correct, Sure, what was it trajectory from industrial engineering,
manufacturing to healthcare.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
Yeah. When you go through an engineering program, at least
the one I went through, you have to do a
formalized co op which is kind of like an internship
on steroids almost, And I did mine for three years
at the Cleveland Clinic up in Cleveland, Ohio, and I
did a lot of process improvement type work. And from there,
when I graduated, I was fortunate enough to get a
(01:37):
job with the Cleveland Clinic in their engineering department, which
was their process improvement department, and it was a bunch
of really brilliant engineers and I was the most junior
of the team, but came in and they look at
ways to improve efficiency or do cost reduction initiatives to
help really lean out the organization. And then from there,
(01:58):
you know, I just I took on projects. You know,
people would say, Rick, do you want to hop on
this initiative or beyond this project? And every opportunity I could,
I said yes, and that just led me in different
paths throughout my career and eventually got me to the
role I'm in now, which is a CEO of a hospital.
Speaker 1 (02:14):
How important is that? I think you said something that
I've heard before, is saying the importance of saying yes
to an opportunity.
Speaker 2 (02:21):
You never know what you're turning down, right, So for me,
it was it was learning something new. You always hear
people in healthcare talking about adding new tools to your belt.
To me, whether that's a failure and you learn to
add a new tool to your belt because now you
know the path not to go down, or it's doing
a new experience or opportunity, those are all things I
(02:43):
think that shape your life and shape your career. So
I think it's extremely important.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
So yeah, I agree saying yes and just even if
you feel uncomfortable and you don't know the process or
what's before you, you're learning something new.
Speaker 2 (02:55):
Yeah, we should always be growing. So I think if
you're if you're stalling out and whatever your career is,
jump on a new initiative or a new team that's
going to challenge you. You're going to fail along the way,
But that's a good thing you're learning, and I think
that's allowing you to grow and be a better person.
That's right.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
So you were in healthcare. You've been healthcare for twelve
years prior to coming to the Low Country. Anything stand
out in those twelve years as a highlight of an accomplishment.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
Yeah, I've done so many. I had so many opportunities
to work with so many great teams, and that's what
I think for me, has been the thing that I've
loved the most. And healthcare people are super collaborative and
they really always have one goal in mind, and that's
to take care of patients and offer really great quality care.
(03:46):
Really is a blessing to be in the healthcare industry.
It's calling almost, I truly think that. But we've done
a lot of amazing things just between adding new hospital
site locations. I had an opportunity work over in Abu
Dhabi when I worked for the Cleveland Clinic and we
open up that hospital. So as part of a team
that you know was working on a specific project to
(04:08):
help launch that hospital, We've added new brilliant surgeons to
different teams that you know did groundbreaking procedures or innovative
care for patients that you know. Now we're able to
multiply that for other people all across the nation. So
I think it's the people that I've been able to
(04:28):
work with and the different opportunities and worked in neuro neurosurgery, spine,
pain management, now the rehab world. They're all different, and
I love it. I love the variety of the different
healthcare industries you can be in.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
Well, it's also it's got to be gratifying to be
in the industry you're in because you're you're helping people
back on their feet after some traumatic injuries or illnesses.
Speaker 2 (04:50):
Correct, sure. Yeah. In my line of work and in
patient rehab, patients are coming in from an acute event,
typically right like a stroke or they have a brain
injury or a major multiple trauma incident that happened to them.
They go to the hospital and they get some type
of intervention that occurs, but they're still too sick to
(05:10):
go home and they come to my hospital and that's
where we treat them. They're usually with us for about
ten twelve days and they get intense rehab. I tell
people on the outside, for people who don't know impatient
rehabit it's like having a personal trainer with you for
three hours a day for about fifteen hours a week,
and they're working you hard. That's our physical therapist, occupational respiratory,
(05:33):
speech therapists, the doctors that are all working with you,
and other care team members of course, nursing and other groups.
But they are working you hard. And when you leave
after that ten twelve days, you're a completely different person.
And that's extremely important. I mean all the research says
if you've had one of those episodes inpatient, rehab will
will very much prolong your life just by you coming
(05:57):
and having that short ten to twelve days of care ability.
Yeah too.
Speaker 1 (06:01):
Yeah, So being the CEO, you know of the rehability
rehabilitation segment of MUSC, anything stand out as a difference
that MUSC has in regards to your previous experience.
Speaker 2 (06:12):
Yeah, I would say MEOC to me. First of all,
my hospital is a fifty to fifty joint venture between
MUSC Health and Encompass Health, so I get the best
of both worlds of taking the advantage of all the
resources that MUSC Health has to offer, seven hundred and
fifty locations, all the different services, the network that comes
with being a part of a bigger group as well.
(06:34):
On the Encompass health side. You know, they have over
one hundred and sixty hospitals across the nation. We're in
most of the states throughout the country thirty five plus.
As well as we're an international presence, so we we
have all of the resources that come along with that.
So being able to tap into that network of everything
from all the different vendors, all the staff, the resources,
(06:56):
those are two really well oiled companies that might staff
can tap into I can to be able to make
sure we're taking great care patients.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
So in reading a value, I've read a lot about
work culture hospital culture. Is that a large part of
your philosophy?
Speaker 2 (07:11):
It is? Yeah. You know, we always talk about servant leadership,
and it's not just that we're going out there and
that we're serving the staff just at a high level.
I truly mean that. When we go through orientation, I
tell our new employees, I am here as your CEO,
and my leadership team is here to serve you. Meaning
when we walk down the hallway and we say, hey,
(07:33):
how are you Is there anything that you need? We
genuinely are asking is there something that you need? Whether
it's a resource or even as simple as a notebook
that maybe you feel you don't have the daily tools
to do your job right. That's something that I immediately
will go back to the office. I'll talk to whoever
it is that we need to work with to get
that resource for you. Or maybe it's a barrier or
(07:55):
an issue you're running into every day to be able
to really at possible way to be able to take
care of patients. Let's break that down. Let's get you
the tools, Let's get you the equipment to be able
to do your job. So that to me is serving leadership.
When somebody calls out in a different department, that the
leadership team can step up or step in to that
(08:15):
job to be able to make sure that the ship
keeps moving forward.
Speaker 1 (08:18):
Right. Well, is there anybody from your background that has
a that had a big impact on your leadership currently?
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Yeah, you know, honestly, I've had a lot of really
great people that I've worked with leaders. I've had a
lot of great supervisors or bosses as you will. I've
also had some people that I've learned from from an
opportunity standpoint of different directions of where not to go.
Current leadership team that I have now with my current role,
(08:45):
and a lot of the board members are phenomenal. They
are influential, they're servant leaders themselves. They're really great people.
I always know I can lean on them for resources
or just be able to pick up the phone if
I'm running into an issue, and I love that, just
the communication and their availability. I'd also say my parents.
You know, my dad worked in manufacturing, my mom worked
(09:07):
in healthcare. Learned a lot both from them of just
different paths of where to go, where not to go.
And you know, anytime there's an opportunity that comes up,
I always run the different idea by them. You know,
what do you think about this? Is this something that's
going to helped strengthen me as a person as a man,
Is something that's going to help my family? They give
me great feedback on it. So it was your data
(09:28):
baseball player. He was not he I mean, he played
all kinds of different sports growing up, but he just
always wanted me to be the best at everything I
could do and had me try a all kinds of
different sports growing up, and baseball just ended up naturally
being the one that I really enjoyed the most.
Speaker 1 (09:43):
What part of baseball and playing baseball in college and
just you know growing up. How does that impact your leadership?
Speaker 2 (09:49):
Yeah, you know, sports teaches you discipline, and it teaches
you structure and what's really needed and hard work to
get something done. It also so teaches you that it
requires a team, right, you can't just go into it
and be the leader every time. And you know, for
say quarterback, in every situation, you really need the team
(10:10):
in order to be able to let's say, win a
championship or be successful and you know launching a new
a new initiative. So for me, it really taught me
that the most. But discipline every day, you know, whether
it's high school sports or college sports. You know, you
need to show up on time or ahead of time.
You need to be prepared, you need to practice, you
(10:31):
need to lean on your your team ultimately to be
able to be successful in whatever you're doing.
Speaker 1 (10:36):
It kind of teaches it the talents and traits that
costs nothing. Of course, the little things they turn out
to be big things.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
Yeah. Sure, in kind of culture.
Speaker 1 (10:42):
As well, because when you look at a team, how
a coach deals with the team and addresses toxicity and
addresses you know that servant leadership that you talk about,
you can take that right from a field or a
court into any business.
Speaker 2 (10:54):
Really, yeah, it's super important that you weed out that
that the toxicity in any environment. But at least for me,
and maybe it's just a maturity thing over time. It's
maybe when I was younger, I would be a little
bit more forward to just hey, maybe we don't have
the right people on the bus. Let's go either hire
new talent to come in. Now, I really try to
(11:16):
focus on working with those individuals because maybe it's a
maybe the organization or myself as a leader did not
set that person up for success. So I try to
do everything possible to give them the tools, set the
expectations very clearly, and then from there, if it's still
not working, try to have a general agreement with the person, Hey,
(11:37):
maybe this is not working out. Let's try to find
the right role for you, whether it's in our current
organization or somewhere out in the community.
Speaker 1 (11:43):
Anything that you read or watch that influences leadership.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
I read a lot of different business journals and articles,
so I'm always taking in new pieces of information. You know,
Modern Healthcare is a perfect example of you know, different
magazine that comes out often that you know, I get
a lot of different pieces of best practice information from
other hospital leaders across the country. I listen to a
lot of different radio stations and podcasts, which you know,
(12:08):
I pull in all kinds of different information from those
different sources. But the companies I work for as well,
you know, they pull it together a lot of different
information of what's happening, even just across our own networks
that the recipes for success that I can tap into
to launch at my hospital.
Speaker 1 (12:24):
MUSC and encompassing like trendsetters in the space, they are
pioneering the healthcare space.
Speaker 2 (12:29):
MUSC is biggest healthcare provider in the state and one
of the best in some instances, the best in the
different markets. Encompasses the largest provider of impatient rehab in
the entire country. So I mean, you really have, just
as you said, two big trendsetters that are leading in
their own individual fields.
Speaker 1 (12:48):
Well you're talking about also the biggest you were referencing,
the biggest philanthropic event in the state being your affiliation
with the American Heart Association in that.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
Walk, Yeah, that's all a little bit about that. Yeah, yeah,
So the American Heart Association low Country Heart Walk is
one of the biggest, if not the biggest philanthropic event
in the state of South Carolina that's held annually. We
usually held it hold the event, the actual walk. There
are several events that lead up to it, but the
annual walk is typically held in February. Ours is February
(13:18):
twenty second of twenty twenty five, and it is it's
a great event in itself. There's live music, there's food,
all kinds of great entertainment. We just recently moved into
the River Dog Stadium, so you know, we get the
luxuries of having a handicap accessible, great parking, it's easy
to get to. It's right downtown, so people oftentimes, you know,
right after the event like to go downtown and go
(13:40):
to a local restaurant or whatnot. But it brings together
so many people, so many people that have been impacted
by stroke or heart disease, which is you know, a
leading killer of people in the United States today and
across the world. But people get to share their stories
and get to you know, come and sometimes miser right
(14:00):
with each other of what they've gone through. And that
is such a great opportunity for it. And we get
to celebrate those people who are on their recovery journey
and working their way up. I invite so many of
the patients and families that come to my rehab hospital
to attend that event, as well as our staff that
have you know, had loved ones that have suffered from
heart disease or from stroke. It's just so prevalent in
(14:20):
our country today, and we have this great event that
really memorializes that every year and celebrates those people that
are on their recovery journeys.
Speaker 1 (14:29):
So, like you said that the heart, I'll say heart
problem and we're out there at the cell realize you're
talking about heart conditions being one of the main conditions
that people face. Someone in your family where yourself probably has.
You know, if I want to get involved with that,
you do it every February. Where can people get more information?
Speaker 2 (14:46):
Yeah, we put information out all over different different channels,
So you'll see stuff that will be coming out in
the news. There'll be radio segments that we'll do with
different various vendors throughout the Low Country. There's a website
you just type in twenty twenty five Low Country Heart
Walk and you can go up and you could sign up.
You can join a team, you can join as a walker,
(15:08):
you can join just to contribute from a donation standpoint,
and those funds. I tell people this all the time
because I used to donate to all kinds of different
funds in my past, whether it be Leukemian lephoma, American
Heart Association for heart disease and for stroke, and other
various charities and philanthropic events. But I would donate and
(15:30):
I never really knew where my money was going, but
I knew it was the right thing. It just felt
right to donate to those causes. My son is a
survivor of congenital heart defect and has had various procedures
and surgeries that monies that have gone to the American
Heart Association, in a roundabout way, have helped fund some
of those experimental procedures that were done and that happened
(15:51):
every day across the country. So I got to see
it firsthand and how it impacted me, not just from
my hospital standpoint and the people that we care for,
but on a personal level, and that just helped fuel
my involvement in the American Heart Association even more.
Speaker 1 (16:06):
Absolutely, absolutely would. I think everybody has kind of a
personal reference point on someone with a heart effect, someone
who needed help knowing those costs that up as well,
and talk a little bit about that. The American Heart Association,
the support that they give financially is tremendous. Correct.
Speaker 2 (16:25):
They do all kinds of stuff. It's not even just
for things like I talked about from my son. They just,
for instance, this past year, chowed construction to a partnership
with the American Heart Association. Through our combined collective efforts.
They're going out to all the three school districts in
Charleston and they're doing CPR training with mannequins. So they're
going out to the schools, they're teaching the school nurses,
(16:46):
they're teaching the kids what to do for hands only
CPR just in case that does come up, which it
comes up all the time across the country on a
daily basis, or somebody goes into cardiac arrest and and
they're teaching them. They're educating them to not be afraid
of being able to do hands only CPR, so that way,
(17:07):
if something does happen, if you're at an airport, at
a grocery store, you'll be equipped and you'll know how
to just jump right in and take action because it
could save a life.
Speaker 1 (17:14):
That's great training. I mean, everybody's likely to face at
its own point, same reason. They have the fibrillators, all right,
and most public facility.
Speaker 2 (17:21):
That's exactly right.
Speaker 1 (17:22):
So being from Ohio moving down here, what are the
some of the big differences between Ohio and the Low Country.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
Well, of course the obvious is, you know, moving to
the coast, right, So now I have the luxury of
being by the ocean and taking full advantage of that.
We love to go out boating all the time. And
you know, my son could go to the beach today
and see a starfish just right there in the sand,
and that's just so cool and unique. And being able
to see dolphins, you know, every day. That's just it's
(17:49):
so cool, and it's so different than what I grew
up to. Ohio is beautiful. I have the change of
the seasons, which you have a little bit of that here.
It's not as hot in Ohio, you know, so I
I've really got adjusted to that here and almost grown
to love it. You know, when I get off the airplane,
if I'm ever traveling for worker for personal reasons, I
get off the airplane and before I even get my bags,
(18:10):
I just step outside just to take it all in
the heat. And I love that. And you really get
to use more of the year being now in a
warmer climate, just because you get to do more things
throughout the wintertime. Not that you couldn't with snow, but
you know, I'd had to get up pretty early in
the morning to snowplow the driveway or whatever it was
(18:30):
to be able to do that, and it just felt
like you could utilize less of the year. And I
love that here. The people in the Low Country are phenomenal.
They are the most kind people I've ever met. I
drive down the street and everybody's wave into each other,
and it just really feels like a small town feel.
And it is still a metro, you know, so it
(18:51):
still has its bigger city type vibes in certain areas.
But we just love Charleston.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
Charming that we're a lot.
Speaker 2 (18:59):
They're really is.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
And it is funny to hear, you know you Ohio
and New Jersey and New Yorkers when you when you wave,
you can tell because they'll say this guy's do I
know that guy?
Speaker 2 (19:09):
Yeah? No, we just wave it everybody. Yeah, that's right,
that's right. Something that I did have to really adjust
to up North. I was so used to and I
think it's just the business culture there. I was so
used to starting a meeting and immediate that I would
just jump right in, we talk about the metrics or
you know, what was working, what wasn't working, and you
just got into action plans immediately. Uh. In the Southern culture,
(19:31):
what I've I've learned you really got to take in
people want to talk a little bit more in the
beginning parts of whether it's a meeting or or just
in general one on one conversations. How's your family, you know,
how are you good morning? You know, let's just let's
just talk a little bit about that. Yeah, yeah, right,
And I love that. I appreciate that so much. When
(19:52):
I look back when I go to retire one day,
you know, it's those experiences and those memories and talking
about families that I'm going to remember the moment. And
it was a really good thing for me overall to
be able to come here to the Low Country to
be able to experience that.
Speaker 1 (20:07):
So I have one last question. It's probably the most
important sure as a former pitcher, you get to face
one batter of your choice who are you picking?
Speaker 2 (20:16):
That's that's a really good question. You know. I loved that.
I don't even know if this is a term, but
that the power dynamic of facing the really big hitters,
the three four hitters. That was something to me that
if I could strike a three four hitter out, I
could just turn around on the mound and really just
have that internal reflection moment of you know, yes, yeah,
(20:38):
I got it. Those were the batters that I just
I knew. You know, you do research on batters before.
You you'd go to the mound before games or before innings,
and you knew what their preferences were, you knew really
where they just they dominated the plate. So getting those
those three four batters were was clutched. But now you know,
(21:01):
but there's also some of those batters that you know,
just get your you have your number every time, you know,
the like the Wan Sotos, that's just when you get
up there, you just you gotta get them. So I
don't know if I have a person in mind per se,
but really those three four five hitters were the clutch
ones for me. I knew I walked out of the inning.
If I could strike those guys out.
Speaker 1 (21:20):
That's an interesting question. I can tell you're competitive because
you just picked any of the best hitters. Yeah right, yeah,
give me the best, right, that's right, three, four or five,
give me the best. I love it.
Speaker 2 (21:29):
I love it.
Speaker 1 (21:29):
I'm reading it into that a lot. Well, Rick, thank
you very much for joining us. It's awesome to have
you in the low Country. I think I speak for everybody.
You're with a big name facility in usc and Compass Health,
big names in the area, and we look forward to
seeing you do more great things here.
Speaker 2 (21:43):
Thank you guys so much for having me, Thanks for
joining
Speaker 1 (21:45):
You've been listening to iHeart Radios CEOs you should know,
heard every Tuesday and Saturday morning right here on this
iHeart Radio station.
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