We all need to be actively engaged in our healthcare. We need to expect collaboration and transparency from every part of the healthcare system. We should be asking “Why?” and “How much?” and “What should I expect?” We have taken our collective hands off the steering wheel of our own health and we are then shocked at the extreme costs and poor performance. It is our health and our money at stake. Demand accountability from those providing you with help, just as you would from your mechanic, plumber, or any other professional.
As part of my series about “individuals and organizations making an important social impact”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Dorsey Morrow.
Dorsey Morrow serves as the Chief Executive Office for Liberty HealthShare, a non-profit organization that facilitates community-driven, accessible healthcare. With over two decades of background in law and non-profits, Morrow’s leadership is propelling Liberty into its new era, creating a movement toward a more compassionate, affordable and sustainable approach to financing health.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
My career path has been a rather eclectic amalgamation of events, opportunities and skills I have acquired over the past 3+ decades. I started out with a clear vision of practicing law, computer and internet law to be exact. However, building such a niche practice takes time, especially in a region not known for technology.
As I was working towards that goal, I took on a wide-variety of cases and eventually served as a part-time municipal judge. One of the clients I took on happened to be a non-profit information security certification organization that was beginning to take off internationally. I eventually joined them full-time as general counsel and worked with them for about 13 years, learning a wide range of business skills and lessons, including many lessons on what not to do as a leader.
After leaving, I joined another non-profit organization focused on geophysics. An interesting field, but also an industry primarily focused on and subject to the vagaries of the oil market. The oil market had been in its heady days the years preceding my arrival to the geophysics organization, but that market turned quite lugubrious just months after I joined the geophysics organization. This meant we had to quickly pivot, identify critical operations, and focus on efficiencies. A real trial by fire, but an effort that I learned much and was successful at navigating.
After departing, I returned to practicing law again, but realized I truly enjoyed working with large non-profit organizations and juggling the wide-ranging business decisions. That led me to the opportunity to lead Liberty HealthShare, where I could fully exhibit my Christian heritage and beliefs, and utilize my ability to turn around struggling non-profit organizations.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company or organization?
Faced with a seemingly insurmountable level of unshared medical bills from our members, we were told we were within 6 months of bankruptcy and/or receivership by several advisors. In fact, we were told the best path would be to rebrand and start fresh, which was not what we wanted to do with a Christian ministry.
It took us several months of study, trial, re-evaluating, debate, and even several failed attempts before we identified the course of action that we felt has the best chance to succeed. In the beginning there was a lot of uncertainty, trepidation, and bated breath. We made sure to clearly communicate our plan to the membership — how we got to such a difficult position and our plan to exit it. Surprisingly, we were met with a lot of encouragement and even some “what took you so long?” messages.
After a few months, we began to see the positive results and knew we had found our path forward. We continue to evaluate and make adjustments every other week, but the results speak for themselves and we expect to have fully resolved the backlog within the coming 12–18 months. This is a testament to faith in God and trusting our colleagues’ ideas and commitment.
Can you describe how you or your organization is making a significant social impact?
Liberty is making a significant social impact in two ways.
- First, we are challenging the status quo in the healthcare industry. We are giving the end-user the freedom to choose who they see and what they want done, as well as increasing the transparency of the entire process and cost. There is more accountability. As a non-profit organization, Liberty’s members are not creating profit for a middle man and have every reason to help keep medical costs low.
- Second, as a ministry, our members are helping each other, both physically and spiritually. They are able to engage in each others lives and well-being, something that has become almost an anathema in today’s social-media-based society. Our members want to help each other and exemplify the love exhibited in the Bible.
Can you tell us a story about a particular individual who was impacted or helped by your cause?
Ken, a member for 9 years, is a business owner in the finance industry. At 60, Ken has stayed active as an avid tennis player, but as a result, has had various injuries, including an investigative surgery for his arthritis that was going to cost upwards of $16,000. Because of this, prior to joining Liberty, he knew he needed a different, more cost-effective way to seek healthcare in order to get back to playing tennis.
Since joining Liberty HealthShare, Ken has been able to keep his active lifestyle, knowing he’ll have an easier time when he has a medical need. To quote him directly:
“It’s a complete change of game being in the network while still being able to choose my own doctor if I need to.”
Ken didn’t grow up with faith, but as a member of Liberty, he now realizes the important role his faith has in his life. He now aims to live how Jesus lives. Knowing that our community is based on Christian principles makes him feel more confident as a sharing member.
Are there three things the community/society/politicians can do to help you address the root of the problem you are trying to solve?
- To our politicians: Stop trying to regulate everything. Ronald Reagan had a saying for how government seems to operate: “If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And, if it stops moving, subsidize it.” The American consumer and the free market will self-regulate most things. Competition has proven to be a wonderful way to encourage innovation, reduce costs, and improve results. Let it happen.
- To the community at large: Social media promised engagement with each other to a level not experienced before; however, it has done the opposite. We are more isolated, anxious, angry and depressed than ever before because we are focused on social media and the fake realities it has created. We become emboldened and unfiltered in our comments and unable to appreciate differing views. Re-engage in a personal way with friends and family. Step away from the screen and be a real friend.
- Finally, we all need to be actively engaged in our healthcare. We need to expect collaboration and transparency from every part of the healthcare system. We should be asking “Why?” and “How much?” and “What should I expect?” We have taken our collective hands off the steering wheel of our own health and we are then shocked at the extreme costs and poor performance. It is our health and our money at stake. Demand accountability from those providing you with help, just as you would from your mechanic, plumber, or any other professional.
How do you define “Leadership”? Can you explain what you mean or give an example?
Leadership is an opportunity to serve, not be served. A true leader is there to help set a vision, and get out of the way of those who you serve. They trust you to set a clear vision and you should trust them to execute their respective duties to enable that vision.
My advice for future leaders is to avoid micromanaging. Your job is to assist and encourage. As a leader, you should exemplify trust, transparency, and accountability. If you don’t, you can’t lead.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why.
1 . Focus on trends, not numbers.
2 . Trust and integrity mean everything.
3 . Execute on what you can control. Monitor the rest.
4 . You cannot manage what you do not measure.
5 . Prioritize what is important, not the urgent.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
A return to the nuclear family. To have fathers present and active in the lives of their children and not regard children as an unfortunate accident to avoid or someone to tolerate — but to be actively and consistently engaged. I would submit that a large percentage of societal problems would actually resolve themselves if men did not run from being a real father to their children, but were available and showed love, cared for, disciplined, and demonstrated to their children how to live life. Don’t be afraid to be an imperfect example.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why?
Denzel Washington. A man who has not only stayed true to God, his convictions, and his family, but has also repeatedly demonstrated wisdom, humility, and excelled in his craft beyond what most can only dream. What makes this even more amazing is that he has done this while working in an industry that actively tries to disparage and mock, if not destroy, those same beliefs and convictions.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
You can learn more about our organization at libertyhealthshare.org. We offer health-conscious individuals and families an affordable way to share medical care expenses in a like-minded community, and would love to have you join our movement.
Thank you so much for these insights! This was so inspiring!
Social Impact Heroes: Why & How Dorsey Morrow of Liberty HealthShare Is Helping To Change Our World was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.