For Mark, no two days at work are ever the same. Mark is the Chief Information Officer and Chief Privacy Officer at Oak Valley Health. Every day is different, from meetings with staff and vendors, strategizing with senior leadership and his teams, prioritizing privacy matters, and working to stay ahead of cybersecurity issues, these are just some of the things that Mark does for the organization. There is no typical day at work, and that is part of what Mark enjoys most about the job.
Mark has had almost 40 years in health care information technology (IT). He “fell into health care”, starting at Credit Valley Hospital when it was being built, then spent almost 20 years at Hamilton Health Sciences before joining to Oak Valley Health in December 2021. For Mark, the sense of community and closeness at Oak Valley Health makes it feel like being at home with family.
In the first 18 months in his role, Mark oversaw two MEDITECH updates, moved the organization to the web presentation layer, supported the implementation of web acute, and got web ED live. All of this foundation work enabled the organization to then push computerized provider order entry (CPOE) forward, which is now well underway. Mark also supported procurement of a new human resources information system (HRIS) vendor and a staff scheduling vendor. But, Mark sees all of this as a whole team effort, and praises his staff for a job well done to advance the digital strategy and help keep the organization safe.
Mark believes that respect, trust, and commitment — three of Oak Valley Health’s values — are essential in order to be a cohesive and productive team. Respect must be earned and given, one must be trustworthy and place trust in peers, and all the work done – the reason and purpose behind every action – is guided by commitment to the organization and colleagues. This is how Mark approaches everything he does and what he expects of his team.
Mark’s focus for Oak Valley Health’s future is to refresh and continue to expand the organization’s digital strategy, incorporate more technology that will empower nurses in their roles to provide safer, timelier, and more advanced patient care, and move towards becoming more of a mobile workforce.
While Mark has been in IT for almost four decades, his interests and passions outside of work involve disconnecting from technology and working with his hands. Building scale models and complex Lego sets with his son, and restoring and showing antique cars with his father are just some of the hobbies Mark enjoys in his spare time. Ask Mark about his 1926 Model T that he restored as a teen. She’s also the star of his father’s upcoming children’s book that Mark is collaborating on!
With a wealth of experience and knowledge, Mark shares this when it comes to advancing your career: never be afraid to put your hand up to try something new; always be watching, listening, and learning; and don’t hesitate to ask the people above you what you can be doing to get to where you want to be next.
Join a team dedicated to delivering an extraordinary patient experience!