This week’s photograph comes from one of the hottest spots in most cities these days, the frozen yogurt shop. They’re popping up everywhere. As I ordered my green-tea mini with white chocolate chips, strawberries, and pineapple, I asked if this particular store was associated with the other hotspot just a few blocks away in lovely Dupont Circle, and the answer impressed me so much I tweeted it on the spot.
What if the mental model in health care was “co-investment,” just like in yogurt competition? It would go something like this – “we discovered a new workflow/process/patient safety issue in our care delivery. We’d like our peers/competitors to co-invest in it with us to make it even better/make it not happen again.” In this situation, the winners are the ones who can innovate and adapt others’ ideas as quickly as possible, not the ones who have the best firewalls.
Think about it what this would do for health care. It definitely makes for a tastier cup of 25-calories-per-ounce over time.