13-February-10:

Dear Fellow KFSH&RC-Jeddah Employees,

Teamwork at our Hospital is on display everyday and it is something without fail I see everyday.  Two important examples of how we perform as a team have been on display in the past few weeks, the CERNER ICIS Phase II and Oracle roll out projects.

It is easy to think that the Cerner Phase II and Oracle projects are just IT projects that have our and the General Organizations IT departments working very hard but in actual fact it is much more than that.  It is health professionals working closely with our IT department, our outside vendors (CERNER) and (Oracle) in conjunction with many different staff of the General Organization to come up with a solution that will allow us to meet our patient’s expectations as well as the expectations of staff.  In those terms they are really amazing projects, with I might add, amazing leadership at the top of each project and at all levels of the organization.  If you have participated in the development of these projects you have my thanks.

You will notice that although great planning went into the systems, there is still work that needs to occur.  We need your participation in the further development of each system by first communicating what is right about them.  That sends the message to those who worked so hard that their effort has benefited us all.  But your participation does not end there.   We want to know what still needs to happen to make each system even more valuable to you and the patient.  By becoming that advocate we can move the system to greater effectiveness.

To each of you that participated, thank you for your commitment and all the long hours that you have provided to make sure the new systems are a success.  This is team work that provides solutions and an end product I am sure we will be very proud of.   

When speaking of teams and your work, I leave you with a few questions and a simple message.  Who do you include when you come to a solution?  Is the team inclusive, multidisciplinary, and does it have enough of the right people?  Including staff, across all professions, who are part of the process being looked at is always a good start.    As we grow as an Organization, not one man or woman is likely to have the total answer.  Our solutions will come from teams, a willingness of us as leaders to foster those teams, and willingness by all staff to be part of the team.  This is what we need to value and what our patients should expect from us because it will mean we will be fast approaching our objectives of being a more prominent member of our community, the best health care solution for our patient’s lives, and the employer our staff will want to work for going into the future.

Best regards,

TARIQ LINJAWI, MD

Executive Director

KFSH&RC (Gen. Org.) - Jeddah