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 Today in Health IT, we are discussing women at work. Be seen, be heard, be valued. My name is Sarah Richardson. I'm a former CIO for Silverwell Healthcare Systems, most notably with NHC and Optum, and now president of the This Week Health 229 Executive Development Community.

Where we host a set of channels and events dedicated to transforming health care one connection at a time. Today's episode is brought to you by Chrome OS. Imagine a healthcare system where technology works seamlessly in the background, keeping your data secure, your teams connected, and your patients at the center of care.

Visit ThisWeekHealth. com slash Google Chrome OS to learn more. And I am joined by Kate Gamble, Managing Editor here at This Week Health. Kate, welcome to the show. Thank you, Sarah. Look forward to it. I look forward to it as well because I love this article for multiple reasons. First, women at work be seen, be heard, and be valued.

I also love that it's By our friend and partner in our communities, Khalid Turk, he emphasizes the critical role of women in the workplace, advocating for their recognition and inclusion. He also highlights the need for organizations to create environments where women's contributions are acknowledged and valued, leading to enhanced innovation and success.

Kate, tell me your thoughts on this one.

Right off the bat, I love that it's a male leader who brings this to the forefront. I think that shows a lot of awareness on his part. And we've all heard the statistics, but they bear repeating. Women are paid around 75 percent of what males earn for doing the same job.

And women are promoted to senior leadership roles at a lower rate than men, even though organizations with women leaders consistently , outperform their peers. Very frustrating. But in this piece, Turk believes that empowering women to be seen, be heard, and be valued is the key to breaking through some of these barriers.

So in terms of why this should matter to CIOs or any leaders, one thing the article states is that incorporating diverse perspectives, including those of women in IT leadership, can drive more comprehensive and effective decision making. see things through a different lens. We have different ways of approaching things, and this brings a lot of value.

In addition, recognizing and valuing female employees fosters an inclusive culture, aiding and retaining top talent within the organization. This is something that I think we've learned is more and more important. Reputation is so important, and if you are an organization that promotes women, that's going to speak very highly.

And finally, diverse teams are often more innovative, bringing varied viewpoints that can lead to creative solutions in healthcare technology. That's just some of it.

It is just some of it, but it's got huge implications for the healthcare industry and truly any industry. But the reason we're focusing on healthcare, not only is it the communities that we serve, but emphasizing women's roles can address workforce shortages by attracting a broader talent pool.

Yesterday we were talking about kids in high school and having the programs where they can be a part of working in a healthcare system prior to graduation and getting college credit. Women tend to be drawn to healthcare in nature. And so here we are already being able to address shortages, either by getting people involved in healthcare early and having a broader talent pool.

The improvement in patient care. Diverse teams better understand and meet needs of diverse patient populations, improving overall care and quality. Women are often the healthcare decision makers in their families. And the more women you have in the workforce from a healthcare perspective, it's going to lend itself to better patient care improvement.

If you're in IT, you're doing QA, you're doing coding, you're doing business analysis, and you're a female, you may be leaning into the initial perspective of what does it mean for the patient? What does it mean for the family? And then again, back to that organizational reputation. That commitment to diversity and inclusion enhances the reputation, making it more attractive to employees and partners.

And it's not just about the females in the workforce. When you've got a nice balance of men and women at the table, your team is thriving because of the ability to see things from multiple perspectives. And I'm always grateful. And that also means bringing in other cultures. I've had teams as diverse as over 18 countries represented at one time.

And those were the most robust and thoughtful conversations we've ever had.

Yeah. And what you said about organizational reputation, that really can't be understated because if you think about it, when I've been looking for jobs, when people I know have been looking for jobs, if you see Women, if you see people of color, if you see diverse representation in the leadership suite, that is a huge draw.

And it's so important. And in terms of being heard, that's really critical as well, because there is still a tendency among some women to hold back. And when you're part of a culture in which it's encouraged to be heard, You're going to come forward more. You're going to present your ideas and you're going to better represent the ideas of others.

And this article was fun just to see because. The illustration that was utilized for this was Rosie the Riveter. You've got this historical context of a figure like Rosie and how we can have a corollary between the ongoing challenges that women are facing in the healthcare IT sector, how we overcome them, and actionable steps to make sure that we're heard, seen, and valued.

Kate, Rosie the Riveter, What was so iconic about her as a representation for this conversation?

I should have, I should give the disclaimer that my son is a World War II aficionado, so I know a lot about Rosie the Riveter and a lot of aspects of that, but yeah, so the, Rosie the Riveter emerged during World War II as a representation of women who entered the workforce to support the war effort.

It later became a Norman Rockwell painting, which was featured on the cover of Saturday Evening Post, depicting her as a strong, capable worker, challenging traditional gender roles. And this legacy continues to inspire movements advocating for women's rights and gender equality in the workplace.

Her image serves as a reminder that of the vital contributions women's have made and continue to make across various industries, including healthcare IT. And honestly, she's someone we can all identify with or would love to identify with.

And if we incorporate her spirit into today's workplace, recognizing strengths and capabilities of women, showing we have equal opportunities and contributions and the ability to lead, that historical perspective enriches discussions on diversity and inclusion, highlighting progress that we've made, and more importantly, the work that's still needed today.

To achieve true workplace equality. And what I love about the topics we cover as we did our end of the year quiz for the holidays, part of me is okay, so what year was this? And what year was that? And who created the poster? Might be an element of our quiz show towards the end of the year when it comes to Rosie the Riveter, but more importantly, I love to your point that Khalid, a gentleman in our community is bringing forward these perspectives and how important it is.

Everyone at work to be seen, heard and valued, but knowing that women especially may have a tougher hill to climb when it comes to those things being true for us in the workforce.

Yeah, said. And I just, I did want to share one quote from the article that I really loved. Leadership isn't about fitting into a mold, it's about embracing your, it's about embracing your unique strengths and using them to influence, inspire, and innovate. And I think that really encapsulates what this article means and why we brought it to the forefront.

It absolutely does. Remember to share this podcast with our friend or colleague. Use it as a foundation for daily or weekly discussions on the topics that are relevant to you and the industry. They can subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts. Thanks for listening. That's all for now.