Barbara Joers, President and CEO of Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare

Summary

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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)

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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.

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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.

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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)

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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

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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.

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Transcript

[A]

This is Laura Deardle with the Beckers Healthcare Podcast. I'm thrilled today to be joined by Barbara Jors, president and Chief Executive Officer at Gillette Children's Specialty Healthcare. Barbara, it's a pleasure to have you on the podcast today.

[B]

Thanks for having me, Laura.

[A]

Absolutely. Well, I'm looking forward to our discussion because I know it's such an interesting time in children's healthcare and certainly you've got a great perspective on, you know, the cool things you're doing at Gillette Children's, as well as what's in store for the future. But before we dive in, I'm wondering, can you tell us a little bit more about yourself and your career journey as well as Gillette Children's?

[B]

Oh, yes, sure. I've had the privilege of serving as the President and CEO here at Gillette Children's for a little over 12 years now. And, you know, we're an independent, nonprofit pediatric subspecialty organization. So that's a mouthful. But what it means is we're small but mighty as we focus in on complex, rare and traumatic brain, bone and movement conditions. And I like to introduce Gillette to people as well, with clarity that we're named after Minnesota's first orthopedic surgeon and our founder, Dr. Arthur Gillette. So we've been serving our community since 1897. Everybody who is alive in Minnesota only knows Minnesota with Gillette's care at the forefront. And our reputation is for partnering with families and caregivers for individuals who have congenital and childhood onset conditions that impact their musculoskeletal and their neurological system. So we don't have an emergency department. We don't birth babies. We really are those specialists that patients are referred to. And we serve kids from every county here in Minnesota, almost every U.S. state and multiple countries, year after year. So, you know, Gillette is a very special place. And for me, it's really I've been in health care management and policy for over 30 years now. 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. And it's a place where I can, I like to work, I enjoy my career. And Gillette really is a place that I can put together that passion in a way that it just comes naturally to me and this team. It's just a great place to be.

[A]

That's amazing to hear. And I love understanding the background for Agile Children's and how it's Inspired clinical care and specialty care for children for more than 100 years. So that's extremely impressive to have that type of backbone for the organization and then for yourself as well. Just looking at your passion for child care and then being able to parlay that into the leadership role that you have that's impacting care for children and their families across the state is really such a cool and unique story.

[B]

Yeah, no, it's good. And you get a lot of Gillette stories from those who work here, so you can feel it when you come visit us.

[A]

Oh, amazing. That sounds like a really great environment and culture you've got there. And you know, speaking of the successes that you've had, what is your big win or one story you can share with us from the last year that, you know, really encapsulates that type of feeling that Gillette has for those who are part of the organization.

[B]

You know, when I think about this, it's a team based sport, so I'll keep it a little bit higher. Right. But there's so many local wins. But for the broader audience, I just want to applaud the entire team. Actually, the community that Gillette Children's has and the ability we've all had to consistently navigate this evolving healthcare industry. Right now, with the ranging and shifting policies to the increased polarization of clinical research and care delivery, notably, we withstood significant financial disruptions, persistent cost escalation, labor shortages, there's this widening gap of cost to reimbursement rates. And these pressures just didn't impact the hospital. The affected our patients, our staff, our payers, the system as a whole. But the Gillette community is resilient and adaptable. And so during this past year, while maintaining our commitment to quality care, improving our outcomes, 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. So I just want to applaud the entire community around us because as you indicated when you opened, it's a unique time right now in health care.

[A]

Absolutely. I definitely appreciate that. And certainly it is so important to have that sense of community and that ability to look ahead. Now, what are the top two to three issues that you're focused on right now, especially given some of the unique challenges that the entire healthcare industry is facing.

[B]

One is how to drive innovation in pediatric specialty care. So much of the US Healthcare system is focused on adult care and adult programs. So at Gillette, we have a clinical research Enterprise. We have a healthcare press, we have a data solution and in other components and that's our effort to bridge the gap, the innovation gap in treatments and interventions for children impacted by these complex conditions and trying to prioritize for the industry new knowledge using real world data to speed up the development and delivery of evidence based solutions specifically for this population. So, you know, I think I shared with you and your colleagues years ago and sadly we still have a paucity of data for pediatric care. So you know, I've asked our team how do we contribute to this? Because it's not just about, it is about all children, but it's especially for us, for the population we serve, who is even more marginalized in research and in efforts to improve care. So we thought the way to influence that pediatric innovation is to procure the insights we have in a new way to offer up to research, education and other clinical teams. I love that.

[A]

I think that's so important to remember that innovative and innovation spark and really what it can do in order to drive success and continued ability to care for that patient population. When you think about those evidence based solutions, the real world data and everything that is going into making, you know, innovation, technology driven healthcare delivery right now, what kind of investments does that take in not only technology but also the people and the teams that are using it in order to make sure it's all done effectively?

[B]

Oh yeah, no, it's a great question and thank you for acknowledging that. It's not just plug and play. Right? That's the old way of thinking. You buy a solution, you force it on your teams and you walk away. It's the investment in continuous learning. So we are on, like all organizations, we have a strategy of which one of our biggest lanes is data so that we are moving towards being a learning health system. So that's a model that emphasizes more continuous improvement through research, implementation science, evidence based clinical care. What's that fourth one? Data analytics. So my team's listening. I'll get that. But how do you bring it all together? And then you have to change the roles and the workflow, training personnel. The challenge in doing that is you have to break down the silos and care delivery that are so ingrained from everybody's education up into the fact we say things like service line in health care. Right, and bring it all together. So it's an all in. It's a change in our operating model, our role to our workflow, and fundamentally a generational shift in how we come together in different ways to generate knowledge and Then apply that knowledge. Hopefully you can hear my smile. I mean this. It's been an incredible journey and to see it starting to come alive more and more each day is just a great place to be for our organization.

[A]

Absolutely. And I appreciate you touching on all of that because, you know, I think there is certainly a tendency to sometimes get bogged down in the details. But to see that kind of progress and you know, really have a pathway to additional success in growth in the future is really cool to see. And you know, speaking of that, where do you see some of the other big opportunities for growth over the next few years? What comes top of mind for you? And you think about, you know, the spaces where you really want to lean more into.

[B]

Oh, no. Thank you for asking. Because you know, Gillette again, have to stand out as being a little different. We don't look to grow for growth sake. So one of our strategic pillars is mission driven growth. So that's anchored by patient centered value and care transformation. So what does that mean is we're not just going to try and say we just want to serve more people, whether it's in our lane or not, or we want to generate more visits. It's really more about expanding the reach of our unique care system and our model. We have that narrow and deep knowledge and again, partnering of saying how do we bring our highly specialized and integrated approach to more children regardless of their posted 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? And it's just uncommon in pediatrics. So we want to grow the influence our care model has by being that translational knowledge provider across the conditions and the diseases we specialize in. And we think that's our biggest contribution to kids near and far. And we'll do that by continually pressing on how we deliver care, how we conduct research and how we continue to train and develop our workforce.

[A]

That's great to hear and a really strong message there. As you mentioned, in terms of just looking at making sure that growth ties back to the mission, make sure it always is something that makes sense for the patient population is going to continue to support the workforce and then bolt back to better patient care. Before we wrap up, I wanted to ask you about leadership too. What do you think it will take in order to lead a thriving organization over the next five years or so, especially given some of the transformative factors we've talked about today? Whether it's looking at the workforce innovation or, you know, really truly Just figuring out how you can continue to provide care and navigate the evolving healthcare industry.

[B]

Oh yeah, so that's, that's a wide question there, Laura. So I'll take it from two perspectives. First, here at Gillette Children's we'll continue leveraging what's natural to us. So we'll stay with our focused expertise, doing our proactive care planning and building trusted relationships. That's our go to every time. We will continue to collaborate as leaders, whether here or mostly externally with home caregivers and providers, industry colleagues, elected officials, if they're listening. This is an all in effort to lead Gillette and I do rally leaders who serve our population across the nation to say we all have to have that one goal in mind and that's to support the full value of every child who can benefit from the work of clinical care research and advocacy. And so that's our leadership focus. How do we do that with the expertise we have, being proactive and remaining a trusted ally in that. But then if I go up a level and as we recruit leaders and we're working with your organizations and others to develop the leadership pipeline, you know, to thrive as a system, I still, I'm going to double down on three focus areas. So we need to build a very capable, yet compassionate, resilient and inspired workforce. And that looks different for every healthcare organization for a myriad of reasons. Second, you brought it up earlier. We need to embrace the technological transformation, but we can't sacrifice critical thinking by our team members and we cannot lose empathy for those we serve, for those who serve. And then I would say the third is navigating the mounting financial and regulatory pressures with continued creativity and agility. I mean, to thrive in this complex landscape right now, leaders have to be really continuous learners, right? Adaptable, agile, mission focused. But we have to want to work art, because it's not simple. And we need to be able to balance this increasing health care business rigor and political impressions with that mission orientation of why people chose to serve in the medical field. So you have to do this while enjoying it along the way. So I don't know, I just think we need to stay focused, but we have to remember to take care of each other and, and enjoy the ride while we're on it.

[A]

I love that. And what an inspiring way to think about the future and really galvanize the teams that you're working with. And those, as you mentioned, who are so mission driven to have dedicated their careers and their livelihoods to serving others, it's just really something special. So thank you so much for joining us on the podcast today. This has been a really, really fun conversation, and I look forward to connecting with you again in the future.

[B]

Thank you.