12 | MARCH 23 • 2023 

PURELY COMMENTARY

guest column
Dream Big 

Getting big, bold things done requires determination and resilience.
D

reaming big was on 
my mind as I boarded 
my flight home after 
spending a few days in Israel 
last month. I traveled to 
Israel with Corewell Health 
and Henry Ford 
colleagues, and 
others from 
Michigan, to 
gain insights 
from Israeli 
culture, inno-
vative start-ups 
and the country’s 
health care system. 
Beyond the technical 
insights we gleaned, 
larger, cultural themes — 
determination and resilience 
— especially stood out. Those 
attributes were central, not 
only to the health care field, 
but also to every story I heard 
about life in Israel. They were 
evident in every organization 
and in every person we met. 
After an exhausting, yet 
energizing, journey and on 
the long flight home, I was 
finally able to reflect on what 
we can learn from Israel’s 
approach to health care and 
innovation, and how we can 
apply those learnings at home, 
here in Michigan.
It is remarkable that a 
small country that has so few 
natural resources, is only 75 
years old and has been in 
a nearly continuous period 
of conflict has amazing 
outcomes for health, finding 
ways to become self-sufficient 
in growing its own food, and 
is known and sought after for 
driving innovation. 
I am inspired by this 
focus on improving society, 
of Israel’s beauty, the 

cultural traditions and the 
congeniality of its people. In 
fact, I admire the citizens for 
this determination, resilience, 
partnership and innovation. 
The consistent theme from 
every person was a focus on 
the betterment of society. 
Health care and insurance 
coverage clearly spoke this 
language. Health care in Israel 
is organized and funded by 
the government. There is 
the option to participate in 
other tiers of coverage, mainly 
for greater access, which a 
majority of citizens purchase. 
The most compelling part 
of their system is its holistic 
approach. For instance, 
99 per-cent of citizens 
maintain their health care 
coverage in the same HMO 
and the same health care 
system for life. It is a true 
community, with a neighbor-
to-neighbor emphasis and 
the understanding that 
healthy individuals beget a 
healthy society. This creates 
an incentive to invest in 
population health and care 
for individuals early on, thus 
avoiding potentially serious 
illnesses in the future. The 
focus on long-term health of 
a population is an enormous 

benefit and achieves the goal 
of bettering society.
So, how can health care in 
the U.S. apply these themes 
and deliver better outcomes 
for our communities? 
We must first start with 
addressing health equity 
and access to care. We have 
significant inequities in health 
outcomes today. Eliminating 
these inequities and widening 
access is no easy task, though 
it is the hill we must climb. 
Some health care organiz-
ations, including Corewell 
Health, have a priority to 
truly improve the health 
of our communities. This 
will require partnerships, 
determination and resilience 
— all elements of Israel’s 
culture. 
I believe we can impact 
equity and access in health 
care. To do so, we must 
embrace community partner-
ships, finding win-win solu-
tions to address social, cultur-
al, racial disparities and other 
challenges that affect health. 
We must listen and seek to 
understand our communities, 
ensuring we are helping each 
person achieve their best 
health and quality of life. And 
we must not be discouraged 

by the difficulty of this lofty 
goal. Here determination and 
resilience, so prominently 
modeled in Israel, must be 
essential themes for us in 
Michigan.
We have shown this deter-
mination and resilience 
before. We don’t have to 
look very hard to see it in 
our work. We displayed both 
during the pandemic. With 
all of our hospital partners, 
Michigan is recognized as a 
leading innovator in quality 
and safety collaboratives. We 
have strong health systems, 
many of which are partnered 
with health plans to coordi-
nate care and coverage. 
As Corewell Health, we are 
proud of our integrated model 
that offers insurance coverage 
and care together, allowing us 
to focus on prevention and 
primary care, thus reducing 
costs. Our integrated model 
also allows us to address 
long-term health needs and 
inequities, as well as improve 
access. All of this requires 
determination, resilience and 
innovation.
Innovation is a key part of 
the culture in Israel. We met 
with numerous health tech 
start-ups — some that we 

Tina Freese 
Decker

 
DREAM BIG SIGN AT THE PERES CENTER FOR PEACE & INNOVATION