Written for corporate leaders in every field, Dr. James (Jim) Decker calmly offers the basics of compassion and servant leadership as a better way. Immersed in healthcare for five decades, Jim is hearing more frequent complaints from friends and neighbors about how difficult it is to navigate the healthcare maze. Everything from understanding the health insurance quagmire and watching healthcare costs continue to rise, to the impersonal feeling of just being a “number” and being shuffled through the system in assembly-line fashion. Something is wrong.

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Jim suggests that well-meaning leaders may not realize the damage of an authoritarian style of leadership. Talk to nurses. Talk to long-term employees. They are not happy. They are unfulfilled. Company loyalty is waning.

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Exercising good judgment is a trait that all good leaders should possess. But Jim asks if that is always the case. He fears that some of the problems the US healthcare system is experiencing today result from poor judgment by key decision-makers. Drawing from his own experiences, he highlights the highs and lows, the successes and failures of healthcare leadership.

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It is time for those in leadership positions to change course before we reach the point of no return. A different focus might be the best remedy for what ails us. Could a healthy dose of compassion (i.e., “heart”), servant leadership, and better judgment be just what the doctor has ordered?