By Nikhil Singal
The forced isolation of the Covid-19 pandemic has encouraged us all to think about the role of community in our lives.
It’s a topic that may primarily be considered personally rather than professionally. We have our neighborhoods, families, friends and communities where we share a common language, culture or hobby.
These personal communities have an almost built-in sense of reciprocity – we feel a strong sense of belonging not just because we’re assigned to a group, but because we actively participate. We diligently show up at family holidays, creating traditions that hold us together through the years. We cheer one another on as our teammate rounds third base or makes a break for the goal. We reach out when we know something isn’t quite right, extending a hand either physically or virtually when we know someone is in need.
We gather, We rejoice. We support.
We participate.
It’s this proactivity that makes the most meaningful communities work. The value of community might be there, waiting, but realizing that value requires a reciprocity and a giving of oneself to get in return. We don’t immediately enjoy the full benefits we could just by existing within a label.
It’s a reality that’s obvious to me as the incoming president of CAHL, as I reflect on our August CAHL annual meeting and I look to the upcoming year and the opportunities CAHL is creating for healthcare leaders to come together.
More than half of our 1,400+ members have been with CAHL for more than 5 years; 21% have been with us for more than 15 years. That’s significant. We come from nearly all of the California counties, representing our state’s ethnic and racial diversity across providers and payers, hospitals and health systems, ASCs, clinics, public health agencies, pharmaceuticals, managed care, education, research and more. We are c-suite leaders, department heads, RNs, LPNs, physicians, therapists, support staff, veterans, students and retirees.
To paraphrase Walt Whitman: “We are large. We contain multitudes.”
There is value in this variety for those who activate within it. Such variety creates opportunity for numerous communities within one organization. We can find joy with people who understand why we’re celebrating, find support among people experiencing similar challenges, and recharge our batteries with people who care about us as peers and as partners in a caregiving industry that can be, frankly, highly stressful.
We’re working in 2024 to continue to create opportunities for people to engage with this diverse community in the ways that most matter to them as individuals. Large-group settings like our Annual Meeting, which convened over 150 members from across the state, create high-energy opportunities for meeting new people. More intimate gatherings, like the casual meetups of smaller peer sets who may find one another through an educational event, create opportunities to nurture relationships one-on-one.
We know how important these relationships are, and I’m honored to be part of a group that so intentionally nurtures them.
Community is not a guarantee, nor is its value a guarantee. What’s important, when we seek new communities or seek to raise the value to us of the communities we’re already in, is the opportunity to have value in that community. I invite you to find your community – maybe your communities – within CAHL.
Please check out the latest CAHL events for your next opportunity to nurture this resource with us, and to engage more with our membership, who have belonged for years and who find joy, support and energy being together. You can also become a volunteer with CAHL by signing up at our website.
