Taking the HCA Healthcare mission personally

“My daughter was born in an HCA Healthcare hospital. I’m a native to Nashville and many of my family members have been patients at our facilities,” says Steven Yates, Information Technology & Services (IT&S) Program Manager of the Data & Analytics team who has worked at HCA Healthcare for the past six years.

“Our accomplishments at HCA Healthcare can impact our loved ones at a time when it’s most needed. Continually raising the level of care our patients receive means my daughter will benefit from that.”

For Steven, the HCA Healthcare mission is personal and began when he was diagnosed with thyroid cancer at the age of 15, a rare diagnosis for a teenage boy. “I had an amazing team of doctors around me providing care. I was fortunate to not have a long road of recovery, because after about six months I had completed all treatments and was cancer free. However, the impact of that time in my life was huge, and I love working in an industry where we can provide care for those who are like me.”

Steven began his career at HCA Healthcare as a project manager working on the first phase of the Clinical Data Management (CDM) project which laid the foundation for the Clinical Data Warehouse (CDW). The Clinical Data Warehouse provides data and information to clinicians and operators so they can quickly and accurately gather information on a patient and provide a higher level of care.

Each project he has managed has uncovered new and different complexities within the realm of healthcare IT and his appreciation of the intelligence and creativity of his colleagues grows with each milestone and implementation. Now serving as a program manager, Steven has provided oversight to a number of CDW projects. “Since I started at HCA Healthcare I’ve seen us become more of a data driven company,” says Steven. “Our size and scale give us a great advantage to use our data to see trends our competitors don’t have access to. It was an incredibly meaningful to have the opportunity to be in the room while we activated a strategic asset that would fuel many future projects through the Clinical Data Warehouse.”

Much of the growth Steven has experienced in his career he attributes to HCA Healthcare’s unique culture of encouraging and developing leaders. “This is an environment of giving back in many ways. I’ve had great mentors in my time at HCA Healthcare, and they have invested in me and shown me what success looks like. One in particular would give enough directions for me to tackle a specific situation on my own. In these situations, if things went well then I got the credit, but if they didn’t he would take the blame. I use that with my team now. For me, a great day at work for me is seeing those around me meet their goals and grow.”

He also feels a tremendous sense of camaraderie with his colleagues and enjoys the relationships that have developed working on projects, over lunch, and even at the gym. “One day I was talking to another HCA Healthcare employee I met at the gym and our conversation about work led back to the positive impact patients would receive from the outcomes our teams produce. To have that conversation take place away from the office but still root back to the patient was inspiring.”

In 2018, HCA Healthcare celebrates the company’s first 50 years of compassionate care and the people of HCA Healthcare who work together to help improve lives and make history. This blog is an installment in the People of HCA Healthcare series that highlights some of our company’s finest as a way to acknowledge all who make this company great.

HCA Healthcare 50th Anniversary
In 1968, HCA Healthcare was conceived by two physicians and an accomplished business leader — Dr. Thomas Frist Sr., Dr. Thomas Frist Jr., and Jack Massey. This year, HCA Healthcare celebrates its golden anniversary and the culture of caring established by our three founders 50 years ago. To help us celebrate our 50th year, we’ll share stories here that reflect HCA Healthcare’s mission – above all else, the care and improvement of human life – and our pledge to improve life and make history for the next 50 years and beyond.