Podcast Summary: Becker’s Healthcare Podcast

Episode: Barbara Joers, President and CEO of Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare
Date: August 25, 2025
Host: Laura Deardle (Becker’s Healthcare)
Guest: Barbara Joers (President & CEO, Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare)

Episode Overview

This episode features a conversation with Barbara Joers, President and CEO of Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare. Barbara discusses her career journey, the unique mission and model of Gillette Children’s, recent organizational achievements, top priorities for pediatric specialty care, strategies for mission-driven growth, and her philosophy on health leadership in today’s challenging environment. The conversation centers around innovation, community, resilience, and the unique needs of pediatric patients with complex conditions.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Barbara’s Background and Gillette Children’s Overview

• Barbara’s Journey (00:32):
  • Over 12 years as CEO at Gillette; 30+ years in healthcare management.
  • Motivated by her own childhood clinical care experiences to pursue healthcare administration.
  • “I didn’t want to be a CEO, but I wanted to work in healthcare management since I was a kid.” — Barbara Joers (01:27)
• About Gillette Children’s (00:32):
  • Independent, nonprofit, pediatric subspecialty organization specializing in complex, rare, and traumatic brain, bone, and movement conditions.
  • Named after Minnesota’s first orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Arthur Gillette.
  • Serving since 1897; care primarily for congenital and childhood-onset conditions affecting musculoskeletal and neurological systems.
  • No emergency department or maternity services—patients are referred for specialized care.
  • Wide reach: every county in Minnesota, almost every U.S. state, and multiple countries.

2. Organizational Culture & Impact

• Workplace Environment (02:57):
  • Strong sense of community and passion among staff.
  • “You get a lot of Gillette stories from those who work here, so you can feel it when you come visit us.” — Barbara Joers (02:57)

3. Recent “Big Win” and Community Resilience

• Broad Achievements Amidst Industry Pressures (03:26):
  • Navigated shifting healthcare policies, polarization in research, financial disruptions, labor shortages, and reimbursement gaps.
  • Despite challenges, Gillette improved quality, service scores, reach, influence, and outcomes over the past year.
  • “The Gillette community is resilient and adaptable… we’re still getting it done and advancing our care model while facing all these challenges.” — Barbara Joers (04:32)

4. Top Issues & Priorities for Pediatric Specialty Care

a. Driving Innovation in Pediatric Care (05:14)

• US healthcare largely adult-focused; pediatric data and innovation lag behind.
• Gillette's approach: develop clinical research enterprise, healthcare press, data solutions.
• Emphasizing use of real-world data to speed up discovery and evidence-based solutions for children with complex conditions.
• “There’s a paucity of data for pediatric care… especially for us, for the population we serve, who is even more marginalized in research and in efforts to improve care.” — Barbara Joers (05:49)

b. Investments in Technology and People (07:13)

• Not just “plug and play”—true innovation requires investment in technology, teams, and continuous learning.
• Moving to “learning health system” model: continuous improvement via research, implementation science, evidence, and data analytics.
• Redesigning roles, workflows, and breaking down entrenched silos.
• “It’s an all-in. It’s a change in our operating model, our role to our workflow, and fundamentally a generational shift…” — Barbara Joers (07:57)
• “Hopefully you can hear my smile… it’s been an incredible journey to see it starting to come alive.” — Barbara Joers (08:38)

5. Opportunities for Mission-Driven Growth

• Mission-Centric Expansion (09:16):
  • Gillette prioritizes “mission-driven growth” over growth for its own sake.
  • Focused on expanding the influence of its specialized care model, not necessarily just increasing patient numbers.
  • Aim to impact care standards, evidence-based policies, and translational knowledge sharing—helping more children even indirectly.
  • “We don’t look to grow for growth sake… It’s really more about expanding the reach of our unique care system and our model.” — Barbara Joers (09:21)

6. Leadership Philosophies for the Future

• Essentials for Thriving Amidst Transformation (11:29):
  • Continue leveraging focused expertise, proactive care planning, and strong partnerships (internally and externally).
  • Leadership is about supporting the “full value of every child who can benefit from the work of clinical care, research, and advocacy.”
  • Three focus areas for future organizational strength:
    1. Build a capable, compassionate, resilient, and inspired workforce
    2. Embrace technological transformation—without losing critical thinking or empathy.
    3. Navigate financial and regulatory pressures with creativity, agility, and continuous learning.
  • “We have to want to work hard, because it’s not simple. And we need to be able to balance this increasing health care business rigor… with that mission orientation.” — Barbara Joers (13:45-13:57)
  • Emphasizes joy and support for each other along the way.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “I didn’t want to be a CEO, but I wanted to work in healthcare management since I was a kid. I experienced childhood clinical care and that really was a motivator for me.” — Barbara Joers (01:26)
• “The Gillette community is resilient and adaptable. And so during this past year… we've improved our service scores with those we serve, we've improved our reach and our influence, and we're still getting it done and advancing our care model while facing all these challenges.” — Barbara Joers (04:32)
• “We have to think about how do we bring our highly specialized and integrated approach to more children regardless of their postal code. And it doesn’t mean that we may provide the direct care, but how do we influence care standards, evidence-based policies to better their lives?” — Barbara Joers (09:35)
• “To thrive in this complex landscape right now, leaders have to be really continuous learners, right? Adaptable, agile, mission focused.” — Barbara Joers (13:48)
• “We have to remember to take care of each other and, and enjoy the ride while we’re on it.” — Barbara Joers (14:07)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:32 — Barbara describes her background and introduces Gillette Children’s
• 03:26 — Reflection on team achievements and resilience during a challenging year
• 05:14 — Driving innovation and the need for pediatric-focused research and data
• 07:13 — Investments in technology, people, and learning health systems
• 09:16 — Mission-driven growth and expanding the influence of Gillette’s care model
• 11:29 — Leadership advice for building resilient, innovative, and compassionate organizations

Tone and Style

Barbara’s language is passionate, mission-oriented, and pragmatic. She frequently emphasizes teamwork, continual learning, empathy, and patient-centered thinking with an optimistic outlook for the future.