Verity Healthcare

Todd Gower recollects the day he returned to his residence within the Republic of Panama, the place he was dwelling as an expat finance director for Marriott Worldwide Accommodations. The choice had been brewing for a while, however that night, it crystallized. Selecting up the telephone, he known as his spouse and delivered the information: “I’m performed with motels.”

It was a daring declaration, particularly since he didn’t have a brand new job lined up or a transparent concept of what would come subsequent. What he did know was that his profession in hospitality had reached its conclusion and that he had made the selection to maneuver on.

“I spotted I wished one thing totally different,” Gower displays. “I didn’t know what that was but, however I knew staying the place I used to be wasn’t it.”

The choice wasn’t one which Gower made flippantly. It was the fruits of years of expertise, numerous challenges, and a rising sense that it was time to take a leap into the unknown. He thought if the change didn’t work, he might all the time come again. Over twenty-four years later, he has not.

“I like taking good care of individuals,” Gower says. “However guaranteeing an excellent visitor expertise had run its course for me. Arguing about midcentury versus midcentury fashionable design wasn’t going to alter my life. I wished to make an even bigger distinction. I wished to assist individuals on a basic stage, and healthcare provided me the chance to try this every single day.”

At this time, Gower is the chief compliance officer for L.A. Care Well being Plan, the nation’s largest publicly operated well being plan. On daily basis, Gower helps make selections that can assist tens of millions of individuals. It’s a task he relishes even after working for a number of the most recognizable names in healthcare, like Kaiser Permanente, Blue Defend, and Ernst & Younger’s healthcare apply.

For Gower, becoming a member of L.A. Care was not only a profession transfer—it was a chance to make a distinction. What drew him to the group was its mission and distinctive position in serving probably the most numerous affected person populations in the US.

“It’s uncommon to search out a company with such a profound connection to the neighborhood and a various management group that’s all rowing in the identical path,” Gower explains. “L.A. Care stands on the intersection of range, fairness, and care, which is extremely inspiring.”

However there was one more reason L.A. Care felt proper. It allowed him to channel the complete breadth of experience he had developed over his profession in consulting and trade. “For the primary time, I might focus all my instruments and methods towards serving a singular stakeholder: the member,” he says. Gower believes the members of L.A. Care are the heartbeat of L.A. County.

For Gower, the chance to unify his expertise for a typical goal was greater than interesting—it was a calling.

“Having been an advisor to C-suite purchasers, typically in an interim, fractional or trusted advisor position, I assumed it was time for me to use all these experiences for a single establishment,” the CCO explains.

The group’s management group and mission-driven nature additionally attracted him.  “Each particular person I spoke with throughout my interviews talked concerning the mission right here,” he recollects. “It’s embedded into the DNA of this place.”

Since becoming a member of L.A. Care as an advisor to the chief compliance officer within the spring of 2021 and later entering into the CCO position within the fall of 2023, Gower has been instrumental in shaping the group’s compliance efforts amid the shifting realities of a post-pandemic world. Amongst his compliance initiatives is championing enhancing compliance oversight for residence healthcare and hospice companies—a sector that has drawn growing consideration from regulators and the Division of Justice.

Gower emphasizes the important want for sturdy compliance monitoring and auditing in these areas to make sure L.A. Care members obtain high-quality care. “Residence healthcare and hospice providers are important to the well-being of our members. Residence healthcare helps restoration and helps stop hospitalizations, whereas hospice providers present compassionate care to people throughout essentially the most susceptible stage of their end-of-life journey,” he explains. “Robust oversight is important to making sure these companies meet the very best requirements of care.”

His ardour for bettering at-home care is each skilled and private. Gower witnessed firsthand how evolving at-home protocols, spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic, remodeled therapy potentialities. “New infusion strategies, superior communication platforms, and diagnostic applied sciences have made at-home care viable for much less extreme, extra treatable situations,” he says.

By championing these improvements and embedding compliance at each step, Gower helps L.A. Care Well being Plan navigate a healthcare panorama the place at-home care is turning into an more and more important part of affected person restoration and total system effectivity.

These evolving potentialities had been high of thoughts for the CCO as he had stepped away from the California Assisted Dwelling Affiliation (CALA) convention to talk with AHL. He mentioned how, even past his position at L.A. Care, he champions healthcare innovation.

Gower at the moment serves on the board of administrators for Doctor2Me, a gig-tech market that connects sufferers with medical doctors both nearly or in particular person at sufferers’ properties. It’s a company Gower is supporting as a result of its healthcare mannequin represents a change he and sufferers need to see.

“I do know different corporations have tried a concierge healthcare mannequin, however it’s one thing I need to see work in our world,” Gower says. “I serve on the boards of some totally different organizations which might be using expertise in ways in which I consider can serve sufferers and make individuals’s lives higher.”

Curiosity is the thread that weaves by each chapter of Gower’s skilled journey. Whether or not you’re exploring his résumé or having a dialog with him, it’s clear that his relentless drive to be taught and discover has been the cornerstone of his success.

Gower can be a vocal advocate for govt teaching, significantly for these leaders within the compliance house. He views teaching not as a luxurious however as a necessity for leaders tasked with navigating the more and more complicated calls for of the sphere.

“As compliance officers progress of their careers, the stakes get increased, and the room for studying by failure narrows,” Gower says. “Having a trusted associate to bounce concepts off of—somebody with the expertise and perception to information you—turns into invaluable.”

To Gower, govt teaching goes past mentorship. It’s a strong software for refining judgment, constructing confidence, and making important selections in roles the place precision is paramount. This angle underscores his deep perception within the transformative energy of steady studying and collaboration.

Gower’s curiosity has additionally pushed him to attach with compliance professionals throughout industries—a transfer he describes as eye-opening. Regardless of variations in sectors or places, the challenges these leaders face typically share frequent threads, comparable to staffing points or cybersecurity threats. Broadening his worldview by these conversations has sharpened his capability to convey the significance of constructing sustainable compliance packages throughout his group.

Nonetheless, for Gower, studying from others will not be restricted to technique or initiatives. Generally, it’s private. “All of us have strain factors we could not acknowledge, and all of us have insecurities that may floor in methods we didn’t foresee,” Gower says. “Generally, you want assist to determine the issues you may’t see in your self.”

Gower’s management philosophy is deeply rooted in reflection, progress, and steady studying. For these in healthcare management—or anybody trying to broaden their perspective—he recommends Michael A. Mason’s Gladiator All the time. After listening to Mason as a keynote speaker, Gower was impressed to dive into the guide, which he describes as a must-read for leaders navigating healthcare’s complexities.

Gower’s story is one among braveness and conviction—a reminder that embracing change can result in each private progress and the chance to make an enduring distinction within the lives of others.