Jason Spigner, Chief Human Resources Officer, Sinai Chicago

Summary

Becker’s Healthcare Podcast Summary

Episode: Jason Spigner, Chief Human Resources Officer, Sinai Chicago
Host: Becker's Healthcare
Release Date: July 9, 2025

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Introduction to Jason Spigner and Sinai Chicago

The Becker’s Healthcare Podcast, hosted by Becker's Healthcare and recorded live at their 15th annual meeting in Chicago, features an insightful conversation with Jason Spigner, the Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) at Sinai Chicago. With over two decades of experience in healthcare human resources, Jason brings a wealth of knowledge and passion to the role. He shares his journey from starting as an intern to leading HR in a prominent safety net organization.

Jason Spigner:
"...I believe [leadership] is through the leadership. And so I went back to school in leadership and have been in healthcare since."
([00:48])

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Workforce Stabilization Initiative: Retaining New Nurses

One of the standout initiatives Jason highlights is the stabilization of the workforce, particularly focusing on new graduate nurses. The COVID-19 pandemic saw a surge of new nurses entering the workforce, many of whom exited shortly after starting. Recognizing this trend, Jason spearheaded efforts to enhance retention among these individuals.

Key Actions:

• Identifying Root Causes: Realizing that "people issues are not always people issues," Jason discovered that the primary reasons for nurse turnover were unavailable leaders and inadequate supplies ([01:38]).
• Cross-Department Collaboration: HR partnered with leaders, supply chain, and IT to ensure essential supplies like blood pressure cuffs and wheelchairs were consistently available, mitigating daily frustrations for nurses ([02:00]).

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Current Challenges: Funding in Safety Net Organizations

Discussing the most significant challenges facing the healthcare industry, Jason emphasizes the critical issue of funding, especially within safety net organizations like Sinai Chicago, which ranks fourth nationally for the largest charity care.

Insights:

• Resource Limitations: Operating within tight budgets complicates the provision of necessary supplies and services ([03:19]).
• Impact on Patient Care: Limited funds force nurses to handle non-medical tasks, such as bathing patients, which detracts from direct patient care ([04:01]).

Jason Spigner:
"...we have people who already have issues outside of health care going on. So a nurse has to bathe a patient before we can see them because we have to get through clothes that might not be sanitary."
([03:35])

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The Unique Rewards and Mission of Safety Net Organizations

Despite the challenges, Jason highlights the unique rewards of working within a safety net organization. The mission-driven environment attracts passionate individuals dedicated to advancing health equity and making tangible differences in underserved communities.

Key Points:

• Attracting Top Talent: Sinai Chicago draws professionals from prestigious institutions who are committed to the mission of health equity ([04:28]).
• Mission Alignment: Employees find value in contributing to meaningful outcomes within the south and west sides of Chicago ([04:36]).

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Addressing Workforce Challenges: Leadership Development and Change Management

Workforce challenges remain a top concern in healthcare. Jason outlines Sinai Chicago’s strategy to address these issues through robust leadership development and effective change management.

Strategies Implemented:

• Leadership Awareness: Enhancing leaders' ability to engage directly with frontline staff, ensuring availability and support ([05:13]).
• Change Management Training: Equipping leaders with skills to navigate and implement change, fostering trust and buy-in from their teams ([05:13]).
• Employee Retention and Engagement: Focusing on leadership quality to improve workforce retention and overall engagement ([05:13]).

Jason Spigner:
"The more we develop our leaders, the better we'll be at the front line."
([05:13])

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Extensive Experience in Safety Net Organizations

Jason shares his extensive experience within safety net organizations, underscoring his deep understanding of their unique dynamics and challenges.

Career Highlights:

• Tenure in Safety Nets: Over the past eight years, Jason has exclusively worked in safety net organizations, dedicating approximately 12-13 years of his 20-year career to this sector ([06:50]).

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Advice for Emerging Leaders in Safety Nets

For young or aspiring leaders interested in pursuing careers within safety net organizations, Jason offers heartfelt and practical advice.

Core Recommendations:

• Cultivate Empathy: Develop a genuine love for people and strengthen your empathy to effectively serve and lead communities ([07:14]).
• Embrace Creativity and Innovation: Use innovative approaches to overcome resource limitations and drive solutions ([07:14]).
• Passion is Essential: Recognize that working in a safety net requires dedication and a true passion for the mission, as it involves challenging and demanding work ([07:14]).

Jason Spigner:
"...find the passion in people and realize the safety net is not for everyone."
([07:14])

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Final Thoughts and Encouragement

Concluding the conversation, Jason expresses his optimism and encourages continued innovation and creativity in patient care to enhance healthcare outcomes.

Jason Spigner:
"Use innovation, creativity out there. And the more that we put towards those solutions towards our patient care, the better healthcare will be."
([08:11])

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Conclusion

Jason Spigner’s insights offer a comprehensive look into the operational challenges and strategic initiatives within a leading safety net healthcare organization. His focus on leadership development, workforce stabilization, and addressing funding constraints underscores the multifaceted approach required to advance health equity and deliver quality patient care. Emerging leaders can draw inspiration from his emphasis on empathy, innovation, and unwavering dedication to the mission.

Transcript

[Insight Global Health Representative]

At Insight Global Health, we are dedicated to helping you and improving healthcare for everyone. That means building stronger teams and delivering sustainable solutions that truly make a difference. We offer a full spectrum of talent and technical services and deliver cross industry expertise to bring you innovative best practices to solve the problems that we face in healthcare. We're not just promising you results, we are delivering them. Visit [e-mail] hello and welcome to the.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

Becker's Healthcare Podcast, recorded live at Becker's 15th annual meeting here in Chicago. I'm joined today by Jason Spigner, Chief Human Resources Officer for Sinai Chicago. Jason, thank you so much for joining us today.

[Jason Spigner]

Oh, no problem. Glad to be here and share information with you.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

If you could take a moment and briefly introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about your career journey and the organization you work with.

[Jason Spigner]

My name is Jason, of course, I'm Chief Human Resource officer with Sinai Chicago. Have been in healthcare for the last 20 plus years in the human resource function. Actually started off as an intern and back then I thought of how we could change organizations and one of the best ways to change organizations I believe is through the leadership. And so I went back to school in leadership and have been in healthcare since. I've worked in several healthcare organizations throughout the Chicagoland and now I'm with Sinai Chicago which is a leading safety net organization and glad to be there and service the people of Chicago.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

Awesome. Awesome. Well, I'm curious, In the last 12 months, healthcare has changed a lot. And so what's an initiative that you took on that you're particularly proud of and what impact has it made in your organization so far?

[Jason Spigner]

Yeah, I think looking at how do we stabilize the workforce, specifically those people who are new in nursing and are trying to advance themselves in that career. So much happened in the COVID years where we saw a lot of nurses come in from school and they would exit out immediately. And slowing down that trend of exit for the new nurses was very important for me. So I took the time to really focus in on the retention of new graduate nurses and clinical within our organization. And one thing I realized is that people issues are not always people issues. And I say that because as we were looking at why are people leaving? The biggest reason within our organization was because one of course leaders are not available, they're constantly in meetings. But also people just having the supplies that they need on a day to day basis. When they're looking for a blood pressure cuff, they need a blood pressure cuff and the frustration becomes once they don't have those so human resources is now partnering with leaders, supply chain, it, all of those areas, to make sure that we have the supplies that we need for our caregivers. Realizing that something as simple as a cuff, a wheelchair being available becomes a frustration for a nurse when they're trying to deliver care to a patient.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

Right, right. And so healthcare has changed significantly in the last 12 months, six months. What would you see as the most significant challenge currently facing the healthcare industry, and how is your organization addressing it?

[Jason Spigner]

Yeah.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

And feel free to take this on from the safety net perspective as well, because that might be a bit of a unique perspective there.

[Jason Spigner]

That's a great angle. Funding.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

Right, Right.

[Jason Spigner]

Funding is. You know, when I talk about equipment, it sounds like it's so easy. The thing is, within a safety net, you're limited already in the dollars. And we are one of the organizations, we are fourth in the nation for the largest charity care.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

Oh, wow.

[Jason Spigner]

And when you don't have money, charity care is not what you want to give. But we service people who don't have money or don't have the money to pay for care. And so often we have people who already have issues outside of health care going on. So a nurse has to bathe a patient before we can see them because we have to get through clothes that might not be sanitary.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

Right.

[Jason Spigner]

So really struggling through the resources that are available for safety nets and having the resources that people who want to work in the mission that's found in safety nets are able to work with supplies and resources that they need in order to give the quality patient care that the patient deserves.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

Right. And, you know, with it being a safety net, you know, like you said, it presents its own unique challenges, but also it's got to be rewarding in a unique way, too.

[Jason Spigner]

Yeah. One of the reasons why so many people come to work for Sinai Chicago is because of our mission.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

Right.

[Jason Spigner]

You know, people come from Harvard, I mean, top schools to work in the mission and the work that we do because you know that you are changing lives, helping health equity move forward. Everything we do within our walls is health equity, and people find value in our mission, our values, and they understand that the work that they're doing is changing lives within the south and west sides of Chicago.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

Awesome. I love that. And, you know, earlier, you touched on workforce challenges, and that remains the number one issue for many leaders in the healthcare industry. How are you addressing workforce challenges within your organization?

[Jason Spigner]

Yeah. So one, it is bringing greater awareness to leaders. Right. The more we develop our leaders, the better we'll be at the front line. And I think that sometimes as leaders, we believe that our role is to lead an org, but not always touch, touch every person. And that is so important that a teacher, that a leader is available to coach to help develop and also mentor those people who work under them. And so what we do is we really invest in the leadership development aspects, but also change management. One of the things that we don't think about is as a leader, I knew about it three days ago, you're finding out about it right now. So you're at a different transition of the process than we are. So really making sure that leaders understand change management. How do you navigate, how do you pull people towards the future, Understanding the future and gain trust and buy in. So those are the two things that we really focus on with our leaders. And we believe the better we are with those things, the better the workforce will be. And also the more they'll be retained and engaged, which will help with the challenges that we face when we don't focus on these things.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

Right. And so out of curiosity, how much of your career has been in a safety net organization?

[Jason Spigner]

Yeah, so my last eight years has been officially in a safety net organization. Previously I worked in the same community, but it was through a corporate organization which did not qualify the organization as a safety net. So I've probably had out of my 20 years, about 12 or 13 of them in the safety net.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

And you know, you talked about people that buy into the mission and love that mission and really want to make that, like that health equity change. If a young leader or emerging leader or someone who really wanted to pursue a career in leadership in a safety net organization wanted a piece of advice from you, what would be the biggest piece of advice or inspiration you could kind of pass along to a younger leader who might want to be in your shoes in a few years?

[Jason Spigner]

Yeah. I think the biggest thing is to learn how to love people, strengthen yourself with an empathy. You don't have to be the savior of a community because that's not what communities want. They want people who are dedicated and who can understand and bring solutions. So one, be creative. Use innovation. Strengthen yourself within those two areas because you'll need them. You won't have the resources. Right. But also find the passion in people and realize the safety net is not for everyone. So even though you might want to work in one, you have to have a real passion because it's hard work. I have leaders come in my office every day and they talk about it and I say, this is really hard work. And people don't understand the dedication to the mission that you have to be in order to be successful in the health safety net areas.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

Right, right. Well, I really appreciate you coming on the show today. Do you have any final thoughts you'd like to leave with our listeners?

[Jason Spigner]

No, I just like to thank you for this opportunity. Encourage people, like I said, use innovation, creativity out there. And the more that we put towards those solutions towards our patient care, the better healthcare will be. And I'm excited to partner with you all to spread the word.

[Becker's Healthcare Podcast Host]

Well, thank you so much, Jason, for joining us again today. We really appreciate it.

[Jason Spigner]

Thank you so much.