HJNO Sep/Oct 2020

COME TOGETHER 20 SEP / OCT 2020 I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS   and region, it establishes a positive landscape. Our city’s population faces a lot of healthcare challenges, and with all themajor healthcare systems working together, it sets a great prec- edent for future collaborations. What have you personally taken away from the experience of leading during this time? Hart  I’ve learned how to bemore flexible and resilient. So much information continues to come out, and in the early days of COVID-19’s impact in NewOrleans, we had to be ready to take in new information, and be responsive to changes. This required us to work and think much faster, andmaintain our focus. We were solving a puzzle in real-time, and didn’t have a playbook to reference. As I rounded throughout our ICUs and EDs, it was amazing to witness the dedica- tion and pride that our employees had for our patients and organization. I saw the incredible commitment from our team, and all health- care workers. People stepped up. They vol- unteered to be redeployed, and worked under an immense amount of pressure to help our patients and our communities. I’m humbled and proud to work alongside this team. Heaton & Masterton  I amproud to have seen the sacrifice and dedication of the healthcare workers. The term hero is used frequently, and I hope that the frequency with which we use it doesn’t lead to a familiarity bias. What these healthcare workers sacrificed for our community during this time was truly heroic. Mauldin This crisis is a marathon, not a sprint. I think during the initial wave we were working non-stop for weeks on end. Now that it appears this pandemic will be with us for a while, it is important to look at what we can do to support ourselves so that we can con- tinue to lead at 100 percent. Flu season historically brings a wave of hospitalizations, and may bring on a second wave of COVID-19 hospitalizations this fall. Are we ready? Hart  Flu season leads to an increase in hos- pitalizations, so we can anticipate additional surges. We don’t yet know the impact that this flu seasonmay have, but are hopeful that our COVID-19mitigationmeasures may also reduce the spread of the flu. We’re preparing for increased emergency room visits and staffing challenges that tra- ditionally happen this time of year, and we