Becker’s Healthcare Podcast – August 26, 2025

Guest: Erik G. Wexler, President and CEO, Providence St. Joseph Health
Host: Chris Sosa

Episode Overview

This episode pivots away from technical healthcare operations to spotlight Erik Wexler’s personal leadership philosophy, self-care routine, and evolution from entry-level roles to executive leadership. The discussion focuses on well-being, trust, leadership humility, organizational culture, and meaningful risk-taking in healthcare.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Leadership Lessons From Outside Healthcare

• Fitness and Endurance as a Metaphor
  • Erik draws parallels between his physical fitness regimen and professional endurance.
  • Quote:

    “I’m very committed to working out five days a week... endurance within the fitness space...is part of the type of endurance we have to be in the mission of the work that we have and helps me mentally. It’s some of my best thinking time.”
    — Erik Wexler [01:07]

Renewal & Recovery for Leaders

• Meditation and Guardrails
  • Erik credits Providence’s leadership formation program for introducing him to meditation.
  • Prioritizes vacation time—completely disengaging from email as a model for staff.
  • Quote:

    "By learning meditation, it really helped me during the most stressful times to renew and recover... when I take vacation time... I sign out to my chief operating officer... and I do not look at my email when I'm on vacation."
    — Erik Wexler [03:14]

  • Quote:

    “I think it’s uncommon. I hope it’s going to become more common.”
    — Erik Wexler on unplugging during vacation [05:31]

Cultivating a Culture of Trust

• Modeling Healthy Boundaries

  • Erik shares instances of holding leaders accountable for unplugging and supports a culture where stepping away is expected, not penalized.
  • Recognizes the discomfort when first delegating but stresses its long-term benefits.
  • Quote:

    “The first time you do it, it's not going to feel good. The second time, it's going to feel better. The third time, you're going to be so happy that you do this and you probably never look back again.”
    — Erik Wexler [09:47]

• AI Tools for Recovery

  • Notes the role of AI (e.g., Microsoft Copilot) in helping triage tasks after time off.
  • Quote:

    “With AI now, I can tell Copilot to prioritize my emails and put the things at the top that are the most urgent.”
    — Erik Wexler [11:16]

Building and Maintaining Leadership Support Systems

• Trusted Peer Relationships
  • Stresses the importance of personal relationships among executives and staff—not just relying on formal structures.
  • Rejects “lonely at the top":

    "I hate that term because…I never felt alone because I…had these relationships with people that we could have good, thoughtful, heartfelt conversations."
    — Recalling Dr. Charles Sorenson, w/ Erik’s endorsement [13:19]

  • Advocates for leadership humility, vulnerability, and accessibility:

    "A little bit of humility and vulnerability and willingness to just be a human…and not try to put myself in some ivory tower..."
    — Erik Wexler [13:57]

Leadership Origin Story: From Security Guard to CEO

• Personal Roots in Healthcare
  • Inspired by witnessing care as a child by his grandfather’s bedside, then worked as a security guard in a hospital.
  • Never forgot what it was to be unseen in a support role, which shaped an inclusive leadership philosophy.
  • Quote:

    “I remember that something really stuck with me...there were times [executives] would walk by me and...they wouldn’t notice me...So for me, as a leader from that point on in my career, I’ve always tried to see the people around me that are doing this very, very important work.”
    — Erik Wexler [18:02]

Organizational Modeling and Pluralism

• Modeling Recognition

  • Ensures inclusion and recognition by greeting frontline staff and prompting other leaders to do the same during rounds.
  • Quote:

    “When I’m out at one of our hospitals...if I see, for example, somebody cleaning the floors, that's the person I go up to and say hi and point out how beautiful the place looks because of them."
    — Erik Wexler [18:57]

• Embracing Diversity and Cultural Sensitivity

  • Explains that cultural differences in emotional expression shouldn’t be threatening; organizations must foster pluralism and compassion.
  • Quote:

    “What I’ve learned is to embrace those moments for those people that are suffering in different ways...and not allowing myself to react to how I think people should react, but to support in a way other people react.”
    — Erik Wexler [21:55]

  • Providence specifically supports pluralism, embracing all backgrounds as part of its core values.

    “I've actually learned a lot about that within Providence St. Joseph Health as an organization, very committed to that pluralism and that embracing of others around us…”
    — Erik Wexler [23:43]

Taking Risks That Pay Off

• Removing Resource Constraints to Solve Patient Flow
  • Shared a pivotal leadership story: Instead of restricting a team to existing budgets, Erik challenged them to imagine fixing an ER bottleneck “as if a million dollars was sitting on the table.”
  • By removing financial blinders, the team cut ER wait times dramatically, improved patient care, freed up ambulances, and generated additional revenue.
  • Quote:

    “The risk I took was, I said, I want you to imagine in the middle of this table, there’s a million dollars in cash...now go back, tell me how you’re going to spend the million dollars to fix the problem.”
    — Erik Wexler [27:01]

  • Lesson: Empower people to identify solutions unconstrained by artificial limits—the right risk can deliver major results.
  • Quote:

    “Sometimes you got to figure out how to take a risk, take the blinders off for the people around you, and maybe the risk will actually pay off. Doesn't mean you can't retrench and go in a different direction if it doesn't.”
    — Erik Wexler [29:32]

Final Message: Leadership as Service and Teamwork

• Servant leadership, authentic relationships, and shared success—team "we" over individual "I"—are core to Erik’s and Providence's approach.

Notable Quotes by Time

• "Endurance within the fitness space...is part of the type of endurance we have to be in the mission..."
  • Erik Wexler [01:07]
• "By learning meditation, it really helped me during the most stressful times to renew and recover..."
  • Erik Wexler [03:14]
• "I think it is unusual, but it is increasing. I talk to a lot of CEOs..."
  • Erik Wexler [05:31]
• "The first time you do it, it's not going to feel good...the third time, you're going to be so happy that you do this and you probably never look back again."
  • Erik Wexler [09:47]
• "With AI now, I can tell Copilot to prioritize my emails..."
  • Erik Wexler [11:16]
• "I never felt alone...I always had these relationships with people that we could have good, thoughtful, heartfelt conversations."
  • Dr. Charles Sorenson to Erik Wexler [13:19]
• "As a leader from that point on...I've always tried to see the people around me that are doing this very, very important work."
  • Erik Wexler [18:02]
• "Embracing those moments...and not allowing myself to react to how I think people should react..."
  • Erik Wexler [21:55]
• "I want you to imagine...there's a million dollars...now go back, tell me how you're going to spend [it]..."
  • Erik Wexler [27:01]
• "Sometimes you got to figure out how to take a risk, take the blinders off..."
  • Erik Wexler [29:32]
• "When I try to figure things out alone, they never come out quite as good."
  • Erik Wexler [30:48]

Key Timestamps

• 01:07 – Physical fitness as a source of endurance
• 03:14 – Meditation and true unplugging as self-care
• 05:31 – The rarity (and necessity) of leaders unplugging
• 09:47 – Delegating for the first time: discomfort and ultimate benefit
• 11:16 – Leveraging AI to manage re-entry after vacation
• 13:19 – Loneliness at the top and leadership vulnerability
• 18:02 – Security guard roots: lessons in visibility and inclusion
• 21:55 – Culturally responsive caregiving
• 27:01 – Taking resource risk to solve ER bottleneck

Tone & Language

Erik Wexler speaks candidly, with humility and warmth, frequently sharing stories and using accessible metaphors. He displays a servant-leader mindset, continually referencing "we" over "I," and encourages authenticity, trust, and inclusivity within healthcare leadership.

This episode offers inspiration for healthcare leaders at all levels, highlighting the profound systemic impact of personal well-being, delegation, inclusion, and risk-taking in service to teams and patients.