DISQUS

ChangeForge: Don’t Break It Trying To Fix It.

  • kallan · 7 months ago
    Tēnā koe e Ken!

    Too much store is put by 'if it's new it's gotta be good'. The same can be said for, 'change and move forward'. Sometimes the 'new' is created out of a drive to change, without enough or any thought given to the 'how'. New is not necessarily better.

    I have often found that the basis for change that's put forward is simply, 'there's a need for change'. But like you've said, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

    Catchya later
    from Middle-earth
  • ChangeForge | Ken Stewart · 7 months ago
    So true, Ken. When taking on new responsibilities - specifically new areas I am tasked to manage without much prior knowledge my first and foremost mission is simply not to screw up what IS working... then evaluate what I need to fix to take it to the next level of performance. As in this case, better is often a meandering path I have found ;-)
  • Michael_Josefowicz · 7 months ago
    Medical people have the advantage of not being able to hide their mistakes so they get immediate feedback when they screw up.

    It shouldn't be a surprise that rule 1 for Doctors is Do No Harm.
  • ChangeForge | Ken Stewart · 7 months ago
    Michael, I don't know that I completely agree with this. Often times, my families experience (mother and wife - now) have been victim to the shoulder shrug. I have ran into quite a few that seem to hide behind the symptoms rather than truly trying to be prescriptive. The metrics have become about how many patients a doctor can get in and out of their door in an hour...

    This is a broad generalization - and is very dangerous. I do not think medical personnel in general necessarily fall into this category (nurses specifically), but do think many fall victim to a necessary evil of the job - disassociation and sometimes even apathy.
  • Michael_Josefowicz · 7 months ago
    Point well taken. Maybe it should be: take the problem seriously. Then do the minimum intervention that should be good enough. Then focus carefully on what happens. Then do the next intervention that should be good enough.

    And make sure you make all your decisions within the constraints of do no harm.

    Or it could be Do no harm to the patient. And stop worrying about making your own life inconvenient. You get paid for inconvenient.
  • ChangeForge | Ken Stewart · 7 months ago
    LOL - "You get paid for inconvenient."

    That was a lesson I had to learn as a tier 1 hardware tech in the military 12 years ago, now. I love the entire comment and agree wholeheartedly.