Bryan Rivera, FACHE is involved with the Mentorship and Senior Executive Engagement Committees for CAHL. He is the Director of Oncology, Neuroscience, and Clinical Research at Sutter Eden Medical Center and serves as President-Elect at Habitat for Humanity Merced/Stanislaus Counties. Connect with him on LinkedIn here.
Please tell us a bit about what you’ve been doing as a volunteer, and why you chose to take that particular role.
I originally started with the Member & Volunteer Growth committee and worked on outreach focusing on membership growth and retention. I’ve also been a part of CAHL’s formal mentoring program for the last two cohorts. This involves supporting a mentee’s career development or career transition goals. I chose this as a way to pay it forward since mentorship has been the key to my own professional advancement.
For 2024, I am the project coordinator for the Senior Executive Engagement Committee. The committee serves as a resource to other committees who seek engagement from senior executives for mentoring, speaking, and panels. This month, we are hosting a Dinner with Healthcare Leaders for college students. It’s been a privilege to give back to our future colleagues.
Could you share a “CAHL Moment” with us?
I recently had the opportunity to speak at a couple “Navigating Your Career” events. Even though I was having an exhausting week, I felt rejuvenated and recentered after completing them. These CAHL offerings are an amazing opportunity to pay it forward to future healthcare leaders.
These events also gave me a chance to network with my co-panelists. One of them became an outstanding resource for an issue I needed to quickly solve. I reached out to Joleen Lonigan to gain insight with how other hospitals notify a specific type of change in patient condition. Her help wouldn’t have been possible without the networking opportunities through CAHL.
Could you fill in this blank? “I’m open to being a resource to CAHL members if they need ________.”
I’m open to being a resource to CAHL members if they need practice initiating and engaging in tough conversations. This is crucial for change management, team building, and self-advocacy.
I’m extremely passionate about the benefits of OARS, the core skills involved with motivational interviewing. This acronym stands for open-ended questions, affirmations, (complex) reflections, and summarizing. It’s a way to empower the person you’re speaking with by evoking their desires, abilities, reasons, and needs for positive behavior change. Though it may take time to pick up, mastering these skills will help you navigate ambivalence and elicit change talk with your team.
What motto or quote resonates with you as a leader?
“The secret to a good meeting is the meeting before the meeting.” – John Maxwell