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Episode Overview

In this inspiring episode of Excellence in Healthcare, host Jarvis T. Gray sits down with Namita Azad, Senior Director of Transformation at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. Together, they delve deep into digital transformation, human-centered systems, and the future of healthcare leadership.

Key Topics & Highlights

• Favorite Leadership Mindset
  • Namita shares her guiding leadership quote: “Success begins with enabling people to succeed” (Napoleon Hill), discussing the impact of designing systems that help people thrive and deliver their best.
• Journey into Healthcare
  • Namita details her unique background—born in India, raised in Botswana, and a professional career in both the Midwest and Northeast U.S.—and how it shaped her dedication to public health and transformation.
• Digital Transformation Explained
  • A practical, inclusive breakdown of what digital transformation means in healthcare: not just implementing technology, but equipping people across all levels with tools and shared vocabulary, with an emphasis on sustainability and empowerment.
• AI in Healthcare
  • Discussion about the buzz and potential of AI, and the importance of preparing staff with the right tools and understanding to harness AI effectively rather than fearing job displacement.
• Human-Centered Systems Transformation
  • Namita argues for putting people at the center of systems design, emphasizing the importance of ensuring technology fits workflows—rather than forcing people to adapt to ill-fitting tools.
• Advice for Leaders
  • Don't throw people at broken systems; instead, fix processes first and make data-driven decisions.
  • The value of KPIs and leading indicators when determining if additional resources are needed.
• Opportunities & Trends
  • The need for healthcare leaders to challenge the status quo—“This is how we’ve always done it”—and intentionally redesign processes with diverse, skilled teams.
• Celebrating Wins
  • Celebrating where true transformation happens: when staff across the organization tell their own stories of impact and innovation, especially around scaling AI initiatives at Columbia.

Connect with Namita Zag

• LinkedIn: Namita Azad

Action Steps for Healthcare Leaders

• Consider your own organization’s approach to digital transformation: is it truly empowering staff, or simply installing technology?
• Shift focus to human-centered system design—align people, process, and tech.
• Leverage data and KPIs before adding resources.
• Seek out leadership training in industries that exemplify operational and people excellence.
• Read Thinking in Systems and Outwitting the Devil for fresh perspectives.

Is your healthcare organization ready for excellence? Take the Healthcare Excellence Readiness Assessment and find out! Evaluate your leadership, strategy, and operations.

• Start now: Healthcare Excellence Readiness Assessment

Thank you for tuning in! Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review the podcast for more insights into achieving healthcare excellence.

New episodes of the "Excellence In Healthcare" podcast are released every Tuesday at 02:00 a.m. (est). Don't miss out on the latest insights and strategies for Mastering Healthcare Excellence.

Send us a text

Host: Jarvis T. Gray, The Quality Coaching Co.
Guest: Christine Wersing, Owner of Soul Smart Coaching

Episode Overview

In this episode, Jarvis T. Gray welcomes Christine Wersing, founder of Soul Smart Coaching, for an in-depth conversation on business coaching, healthcare entrepreneurship, and building resilience among healthcare professionals. Christine shares her deeply personal story, including how adopting her neurodivergent daughter led her to become a licensed mental health professional, her journey through a major health setback, and how her experiences ultimately inspired her to launch her own coaching business focused on combating healthcare burnout.

Key Topics & Takeaways

• Christine’s Personal and Professional Journey:
  • Adopted her daughter from Romania, who required therapeutic parenting due to severe neurodivergence.
  • Became a licensed professional counselor to fill gaps in the healthcare system for special needs families.
  • Overcame a severe stroke during the pandemic, which led her to pivot to online coaching.
• Soul Smart Coaching:
  • Christine specializes in coaching healthcare professionals, especially nurses, struggling with burnout.
  • She developed a new mastermind program designed to support and empower these frontline heroes.
  • Utilizes the "Aliveness Method," which integrates neuroscience and quantum science approaches for transformative results.
• Unique Coaching Approach:
  • Christine's methodology blends scientific principles and personal passion to create a "harmonizing" effect for clients.
  • Focus on self-mastery, empowerment, and fast, effective results—“working herself out of a job.”
• Business & Marketing Strategies:
  • Importance of personal storytelling in marketing; Christine’s journey is at the heart of her brand.
  • Identifying a clear target audience—bedside nurses, nurse assistants, and physician assistants.
  • The value of directly engaging with the target audience to inform service offerings.
  • Leveraging feedback to build services that truly meet clients’ needs, strengthening both impact and marketing.
• Aligning Values & Business:
  • Christine emphasizes integrity, alignment, and a mission-driven approach in her business, aiming for a worldwide impact on healthcare wellness culture.

Connect with Christine Wersing

LinkedIn: Christine Wirsing

Is your healthcare organization ready for excellence? Take the Healthcare Excellence Readiness Assessment and find out! Evaluate your leadership, strategy, and operations.

• Start now: Healthcare Excellence Readiness Assessment

Thank you for tuning in! Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review the podcast for more insights into achieving healthcare excellence.

New episodes of the "Excellence In Healthcare" podcast are released every Tuesday at 02:00 a.m. (est). Don't miss out on the latest insights and strategies for Mastering Healthcare Excellence.

Send us a text

Hosted by: Jarvis T. Gray, The Quality Coaching Co.
Guest: Tracy Long, Owner of Shades of Resilience Counseling

In this insightful episode of the Excellence in Healthcare podcast, host Jarvis T. Gray welcomes Tracy Long, a clinical therapist and the founder of Shades of Resilience Counseling. The conversation focuses on Tracy’s entrepreneurial journey, her passion for serving Black men through mental health services, and practical business coaching strategies to scale her impact.

Key Discussion Points

1. Tracy’s Personal Journey Into Private Practice

• Tracy shares how the pandemic and personal life changes inspired her shift from university clinical work to opening her own private practice.
• The loss of her father and the resulting grief played a pivotal role in her understanding of therapy’s importance, especially in the Black and Brown community.

2. Specializing in Mental Wellness for Black Men

• Tracy reveals that her practice evolved from a broad focus on BIPOC clients to a mission centered on empowering Black men specifically.
• She describes her own negative first experience with therapy (with someone who didn’t represent her community), which influenced her empathetic and culturally aware approach to counseling.

3. Addressing Real-Life Stressors

• Common issues Tracy helps address include:
  • Depression, anxiety, and symptoms like sleep disruption or appetite changes.
  • Anger management, communication challenges, workplace and financial stress.
  • Navigating issues unique to Black men, such as workplace trauma, stereotypes, and the pressure to excel.

4. Values That Guide Tracy’s Practice

• Tracy leads from a place of lived experience, never asking clients to do what she hasn’t done herself.
• She strives for a power-balanced, compassion-centered engagement based on authenticity and mutual respect.

5. Building and Marketing a Signature Program

• Tracy discusses developing the "Resilient Man Blueprint," a proposed six- to eight-week program aimed at transformative growth for Black men.
• Jarvis advises breaking the program into distinct modules/parts, adding onboarding (“Week 0”) for expectation setting, and leveraging group coaching for peer accountability.
• They discuss marketing as a lifestyle change, a transformation, and a movement to break through to the target audience.

6. Business Advice and Event Marketing

• Jarvis highlights the effectiveness of event marketing (workshops, webinars, networking events) to reach and engage the target demographic.
• He suggests using consistent, value-driven events to both serve clients and gather insights for refining offerings before scaling with paid ads.

7. Next Steps for Tracy

• Tracy is motivated to refine her Resilient Man Blueprint into group and modular formats, enhance her event marketing, and define her client avatar more clearly for targeted outreach.

Connect with Tracy Long

• Websi

Is your healthcare organization ready for excellence? Take the Healthcare Excellence Readiness Assessment and find out! Evaluate your leadership, strategy, and operations.

• Start now: Healthcare Excellence Readiness Assessment

Thank you for tuning in! Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review the podcast for more insights into achieving healthcare excellence.

New episodes of the "Excellence In Healthcare" podcast are released every Tuesday at 02:00 a.m. (est). Don't miss out on the latest insights and strategies for Mastering Healthcare Excellence.