- April 26, 2024
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From robotic surgery to aggressive hiring, David Ottati’s vision could make Florida Hospital Flagler the business to watch in 2011.
Several years ago, David Ottati worked in the administration of a rural hospital in western Florida. Hurricanes struck, and the building was in disarray. And where was Ottati during all this?
“He was in there plunging the toilets, doing all the nitty-gritty work, helping the people in the hospital from every level,” Ottati’s wife, Wendy, said.
She said he’s that way at home, too. He’ll come home from work in his suit, and then set about fixing the dishwasher. “He’s Mr. Fix-It,” she said.
Ottati played Mr. Fix-It when he was hired as president of Florida Hospital Flagler, at age 35 (he’s 37 now). At that time, certain indicators troubled him. Physician satisfaction was rated in the 40th percentile. Key quality scores put the hospital in the 20th percentile nationwide. The emergency room wait time was 45 minutes.
He got to work. He walked the halls. He hired new people.
“My management style has been to promote folks who do a good job, regardless of age, gender or race,” he said. “In our organization, age is less relevant (than) outcomes.”
Based on the latest numbers, the outcomes have been remarkable.
Physician satisfaction increased from the 40th to the 86th percentile, compared to other physicians nationwide. Three out of four key quality indicators are now in the 90th percentile. And the emergency room, despite increasing from 26,000 patients in 2006 to 38,000 in 2009, saw the wait times vanish.
And he’s not done. In the last four years, Ottati has hired 300 people and plans to hire another 50 or so in 2011. Moreover, the hospital will continue to invest in the latest technology. This year, surgeons will perform the first procedures with robotic technology in Flagler.
As the new volunteer co-president of Enterprise Flagler, Ottati also hopes to take a direct approach to improving the county’s economy, by seeking to promote and attract businesses that fit the county’s assets.
“Presidents need to be visionaries,” he said. “I’ve got my weaknesses, but one of my strengths has been strategy.”
John Subers has worked closely with Ottati since June 2009, when Subers was named to lead the fundraising arm of the hospital, Florida Hospital Flagler Foundation.
“David Ottati is a great leader,” Subers said. “He sees the big picture, and you know what your job is, and he lets you do your job.”
Whatever he does at work, Wendy says Ottati helps out around the house, making pancakes on Saturday mornings, teaching his four children Spanish (his first language). She said he helps make everyone feel comfortable, from the neighborhood children to social guests who don’t know each other.
For Ottati, it’s all an extension of his Seventh-day Adventist faith.
“It’s a position of service,” he said. “I’m here to serve the folks who work for this community … Our mission is to extend the healing ministry of Christ.”
DAVID OTTATI
Age: 37
Occupation: President of Florida Hospital Flagler; co-president of Enterprise Flagler
Number: 4 — children
