Leading Healthcare Through Relationships | Nirav R. Shah, MD, MPH

Jan 24, 2023

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What does it take to lead a health department with a budget of more than $50 billion, overseeing the health of nearly 20 million Americans? Here to tell us about that is Nirav R. Shah, MD, MPH, who was the 15th New York State Commissioner of Health from 2011 to 2014. Today, Dr. Shah is a nationally recognized advocate of patient safety, health care innovation, and high-quality, low-cost care. He has variously served as Chief Operating Officer of Kaiser Permanente in Southern California, Advisor to the CDC Director, Senior Fellow of the Institute of Health Improvement, and Senior Scholar at Stanford University's Clinical Excellence Research Center. In this episode, Dr. Shah joins us to share his philosophy of healthcare leadership and how meaningful relationships anchor his work.

In this episode, you will hear about:

How Dr. Shah’s upbringing and the influence of Jainism steered him away from a lucrative career in finance and into medicine - 1:53
Two patient stories in which seemingly simple mistakes led to moments of awakening for Dr. Shah in recognizing his purpose in medicine - 6:21
A brief overview of Dr. Shah’s career path - 13:47
Lessons on empathetic leadership that Dr. Shah picked up along the way - 19:21
How forging strong relationships helped Dr. Shah find solutions on big issues during his time as New York State’s Health Commissioner - 21:57
Dr. Shah’s current pursuits, including those focused on making a business case for supporting the unpaid caregivers of patients - 31:23
Why transparency and bureaucratic structure are critical components of healthcare reform in the United States - 37:46
Advice to clinicians on what makes effective leaders and collaborators, and how to find passion for meaningful projects - 41:43

Dr. Shah is a trustee of the John A. Hartford Foundation, a board member of STERIS, and an advisor to GSR Ventures.

You can follow Dr. Nirav R. Shah on Twitter @NiravRShah or on LinkedIn.

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