Well, I really didn't plan this, but basically this week has been patient perspective week.

On Monday, we got to look through a window into Nick's past, as he watched his father and his neighbor battle cancer the last 18 months of their lives. Ironically, the one without insurance was the envy of the one with it.

Then on Tuesday, I interviewed Michael Weiss, the professional patient, who talks about his best hospital experience and his new blog Hospital Patient. Not surprisingly, the best times in hospitals are when people feel like people, not patients or cases or walking diseases.

On Wednesday, Andrew filled us in on the Thomas Bickle Story. This rough-and-tough 6-month old baby just got a big tumor cut out of his brain and his family shares a bit about their hospital experience. I'd encourage you to read more about their story on the Thomas Bickle Blog.

Thursday brought the darker-uglier side of Michael Weiss's story, as he shared his worst hospital experience. Read the letter he wrote to the MD who caused it. Imagine how you would feel if you wrote that letter and then the physician practice sent you a bill for a $20 co-pay. Ouch.

This week, I also got acquainted with the Paris Site Blog, which seems to be a Texas community rallying against its hospital because of poor quality of care.

Why is it so hard for hospital staff to keep the patient perspective?

I was at a nursing conference last week. Some nurses I spoke to were worried that when seeing a patient, physicians only saw the disease to be treated & administrative leaders only saw the risk/financial/PR/legal aspects. So who sees the person behind the patient? Well, they contended: nurses do.

All this talk about leadership and strategy and industry trends, maybe that's what being a world-class hospital is really all about: people-centric care.