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BizVoice/Indiana Chamber – November/December 2015
describes as a gift – come naturally. After all,
he worked in both health care housekeeping
and maintenance roles. He takes the position
of servant leadership to a whole new level.
“The definition I like the most is that you
are chief among equals. I love everything
about that definition,” Packnett exclaims as
his voice rises. “I learned so much (while
working in housekeeping and maintenance),
how critical every job is in a service industry
like we have. The idea of servant leadership
may not work in all segments of industry, but
it works so well in health care.”
The work, he reiterates, is all about
quality of life for those that Parkview serves.
“We
know
(emphasizing the word) that
the cost of health care is too high. We have to
get to people earlier in their disease stage.
Our focus on their well-being earlier is going
to save the entire system so much money but
more importantly yield a much better life for
those people. We’re redesigning our care
models to leverage physicians’ time, to get
more teams of people around the patient.”
Spreading his wings
The lists of Packnett’s organizational
involvement and awards received are lengthy.
Asked to talk about some of his passions, he
identifies The Rescue Mission (meeting the
needs of the homeless through ministries in
Allen and nine surrounding counties) and the
efforts of the Northeast Indiana Regional
Partnership and Greater Fort Wayne Inc. (he
led the committee that combined the local
chamber and economic development groups).
“We’ve been trying to come alongside
(The Rescue Mission) to help with health care
for the homeless,” he shares. “They have such
a great leader in Donovan Coley. I love being
part of that group and seeing the commitment
that so many people have.”
With the economic development
entities, the focus has been on talent. Packnett
notes that what started with getting 18-year-
olds ready to enter the workforce has
continually scaled down to younger ages.
“Now we’re working on the prenatal
side and studying so much about brain
development. If we don’t deliver a 4-year-old
ready to learn, they’re going to get on that
path that is not the right path.”
The personal path for Packnett – when
not in the role of busy executive/community
leader/family man – takes him to the waterways.
“I used to play golf, and I didn’t play it
well,” he jokes. “Being on the water,
especially fishing – there’s just something
magical about it. That’s really one of the few
times I can get unplugged.”
Maintaining the focus
While the accomplishments have been
many and the current work continues,
Packnett becomes even more animated and
enthusiastic when discussing what lies ahead
for both the health care system and the
Northeast Indiana region.
“For Parkview, the real effort is around
making sure we have great coordinated care
throughout the whole continuum. We’ve
spent money on facilities, electronic records,
convenient locations, but in five years I hope
we have a very high percentage of our people
we serve who know they would not want to
go anywhere else for care.
“We understand what they want out of
their health care,” he continues. “It’s the idea
of these personalized health journeys. We
talk a lot about population health
management in our field. What I don’t like
about that is it’s up here (raising his hand up
near his head) at this level. What I really like
about where we’re going is it’s much more
personalized.”
On the economic development side,
Packnett and other leaders have spent a
number of years honed in on reversing the
region’s slide in per capita income. It was a
necessary, although not always glamorous,
The Mirro Center for Research and Innovation is an
important addition to the Parkview campus. The
hospital system’s investment in Parkview Field has
triggered dramatic changes in downtown Fort Wayne.