March 16, 2020: In this episode, listeners will hear the CIO of Asante, Dr. Lee Milligan, talk about what they have done (and are still doing) to prepare for the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic in their IT division. For him, the swift manner in which their teams were able to set up a centralized testing location is a testament to what can be done in times of crisis and show the necessity of having clearly defined objectives. He talks about the point at which the leadership decided to prioritize the outbreak and reprioritize other tasks to determine the percentage of staffing that would be needed to continue providing their services. The problem with a pandemic like this is that, when institutions act too quickly, they run the risk of being perceived as alarmists. Conversely, when they delay acting they are criticized for not doing enough. Finding this balance, Dr. Milligan says, has been a significant challenge for them. Tuning in to this episode, listeners will hear what is currently happening in Asante's IT division each morning, how they go about communicating with the community and guide their IT leadership in keeping in touch with the realities people face, and advice for slow-acting health systems that need to make up for the lost time. 

Key Points From This Episode:

• What the Asante health system is doing to prepare for the coronavirus pandemic. 
• A testament to what IT teams can do when there is clarity on what matters. 
• The point at which the Asante leadership team decided to prioritize the outbreak. 
• Staffing percentages and the importance of maintaining the services of their core systems. 
• An overview of what happens each morning in the IT division at Asante. 
• How they go about communicating important information to the community. 
• Coaching the IT leadership team in keeping in tune with the reality of the pandemic. 
• Advice for health systems that are late to the game and in the early stages of preparation.