by Anthony Cirillo

I had an "a-ha" moment after reading a recent New York Times article about Apple CEO Steve Jobs: He should lead healthcare reform!

Consider:
Jobs creates "edited products that cut through complexity, by consciously leaving things out." Who better to simplify patient and family experiences? Instead of an accountable care organization, Jobs could create "Your Accountable Care Organization," with just what you need when you need it.

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Jobs doesn't design products by committee or based on market research data, but through a heavy reliance on "tenacity, patience, belief and instinct."

Healthcare professionals get so log-jammed pouring over metrics that we end up suffering from paralysis by analysis. Jobs steps away and puts himself in the user's (read: patient's) head.

He reaches for what people only dream about or, even better, haven't even considered dreaming about. After all, who even thought of loading thousands of songs and album cover art onto something smaller than the size of a TV remote? Who ever imagined that patients could go to their doctor's office and simply walk to the next room to visit a specialist?

Jobs surrounds himself with exceptional people who create "a-ha" products. His engineers and designers aren't just 30 percent better than their peers, but "ten times better," he says.

If you think I'm being too simplistic and short on details, you're right. But perhaps we need leaders who have a right to be somewhat dictatorial because their vision is so strong as to not be denied. That might actually move healthcare organizations forward faster.

And perhaps all of us need to realize that accountability starts with each and every one of us taking control of our health so we don't need the system at all!

And so that brings us back to Steve: Last I heard, the top job at CMS was still available. What do you say, Steve?

Anthony Cirillo, FACHE, ABC, is president of Fast Forward Consulting, which specializes in patient- and person-centered care and strategic marketing for healthcare facilities.