New Orleans Stories

I was in New Orleans to help with an assessment: A little side project to help diagram how information is moving through a small hospital system. They got a new CIO a month ago and he's bringing in his old friends (us) to find out how they can improve things. I have a small part to play, but I'm happy to be helping.

Getting there was a trial: It was my intent to sneak away from Cleveland and participate by phone in the key meetings, but travel delays occurred (as noted in my previous updates). Wednesday the flight out left a little late, and I wound up barely making it to the site on time at 1pm. And instead of having my 6 meetings spread through two days as planned, they were compressed, so I was busy right through, and basically missed every Cleveland meeting. Not so great.

But then it hits me - HEY - maybe I want them to be a little annoyed with me? Wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.

ANYWAY. The meetings went well, and then I was invited to a dinner out with the CIO and a key Vendor. This vendor has been handling most of their operations (the whole shop is "outsourced", though they all live and work there). So I'm invited just to sit in and listen...

We're in New Orleans, by the way. Home of wonderful food. So we had to go to the CIO's favorite restaurant: Chevy's Fresh Mex. Fajitas and Margaritas. Something was off with the tortilla maker too, because the tortillas were about 1 lb each and shaped like wedges.

We all sit down and the CIO lays into the Vendor with a shopping list of screw-ups. This is not a friendly dinner. The assault goes for 30 minutes, while I mutely nosh on chips and salsa and sip my "top shelf" margarita. The vendor is backed up the wall, but then starts laying out how much the hospital actually needs THEM - heck, 60 people in their IT department actually work for THEM - they could pull out any time, right? Thus countered, the CIO backs off and it becomes a slightly friendlier dance, but a dance nonetheless.

The vendor is a small, birdlike man, with horn rimmed glasses and a needless goatee, with a texas accent and you can see the hair on his neck raise up with defensiveness. So it was all the more exciting when the CIO sent a signal to the server, and shortly thereafter a crew from the kitchen comes in clapping, places a sombrero on the Vendor's head, and sings Happy Birthday. I thought this guy was going to literally explode.

With absolutely nothing to contribute to this freak show, I amused myself by coming up with stories for the people at the tables around us... there's the guy stood up for his date! There's the girl bringing her hipster boyfriend to meet the parents... but wait, there was a natural high five with the dad there? This isn't a first meeting... maybe a planning of the wedding? My reverie interrupted by the CIO abruptly asking me "So what's you take on all this, Jim?" I fumbled a muttered "I'm really not in a position to say", which satisfied both the vendor and the CIO... Though we did briefly touch on my findings from meetings for the day, so it wasn't a total waste.

The lead consultant on this gig is a guy named "Guy", who has a lot of history in healthcare - he's been a CIO several times, but likes the life of the outsider, swooping in and fixing a broken organization. Guy has a colorful history and two vast wine cellars, and a thick, nasally New Yawk accent... he's got a story for everything, and a lot of fun to talk to.

Imagine my surprise when at lunch he revealed to me that he had "Invented the double cheeseburger". Turns out, it was 1971, and he was working in a cafeteria while also taking classes. He was burning the candle at both ends, and time was at a premium. So one day, he's starving but doesn't have time to eat two cheeseburgers. So has a flash of inspiration and puts TWO patties on that bun with cheese. It becomes his standard re-fuel, and soon enough, the kids are asking for them too - they have to put it on the menu, and he came up with it!

Honestly, when a guy tells you this sort of story, it kind of puts all of his OTHER stories into a bit of doubt. Was he really CIO? Did he really re-organize that department? Does he really have a secondary wine cellar in a climate controlled warehouse in Queens (actually someone else has confirmed this) It is mysterious, but it's part of why I love working with people. The stories.