5 Questions with…
Pete Yonkman
President
Cook Group / Cook Medical
In regard to the ongoing evolution of the heath care landscape, you have mentioned that data science is the next great improvement to our system. Could you please discuss your view on how data science and data sharing will change how Americans receive healthcare?
There are data streams coming from every area of business – manufacturing, suppliers, customers. All that data is now becoming real-time. The expectation from ourselves, our customers, and our regulatory bodies is that we are able to analyze that data in real-time and make it useful for our business and for patients. The sheer amount of data coming in makes that a challenge. This is not just an expectation for Cook, but for any drug or device manufacturer, so the entire industry is facing this challenge and trying to figure out how to also share insights with each other. This use of data will change healthcare because patients and physicians will have access to information that’s specific to them as individuals and as practitioners. As the industry gets more sophisticated at using this data, it will lead to innovations in the speed of delivery and personalization of treatment plans and outcomes.
Cook Group is the second largest employer in the Bloomington area. A healthy, skilled workforce is essential to your long-term success. What are the biggest health-related barriers Cook faces when recruiting/retaining its workforce?
Indiana ranks at the lower end of a lot of health-related indicators. For example, we’re ranked 40th in the US for Diabetes, 39th for obesity, 43rd for infant mortality, and 44th for smoking prevalence. When people decide where to live and raise their families, they want to know they’re going to have access to good healthcare and can feel peace of mind about where they’re living. Our state needs to work collectively on improving those outcomes so we can attract and retain employees and their families.
What are some of the innovative ways Cook is working to tackle these issues?
Cook owns and operates a primary care providers office for employees in Bloomington and their families. We focus a lot on preventative healthcare and supporting people to make good lifestyle decisions for their overall health. For example, we have an on-site nutritionist and counselor as well as free smoking cessation programs and free annual preventative screenings for common health issues to help make sure people are as informed about their health as they can be. Outside of the clinic, we also have programs that offer free counseling sessions and free expert medical review and opinion on specific treatment cases.
You and Steve Ferguson are helping to lead the Monroe County Substance Use Disorder Coalition. In your view, what are a few issues we need to address locally to accelerate and expand our community response to this crisis?
Our original goal for the coalition was to get everyone in the community who is working on this issue around the table to deal with the facts of substance use disorder. Monroe County is actually ahead of the game in this area compared to the rest of the state in terms of the amount of services we have available – but we need to improve our coordination and alignment of what we’re doing. For example, a lot of the conversation in the community is around opioid use, but what we’ve found through the conversations with the coalition is that really isn’t the reality anymore and other substances are taking the place of opioids at this point. We’re working to have a more informed discussion about the real issues and what we can do as a group to help.
Aside from attending to our own physical and mental health, what can we as individuals do to improve health in our community?
When I think of a productive, healthy community, I think of a place where people in leadership roles have an understanding of what vulnerable populations exist, what needs they have, and how to address them in a coordinated way. Ultimately that creates an environment where everyone has access to the services they need.
Unfortunately, the reality is that if we aren’t able to do this, then we’ll all suffer as result. If people don’t have adequate housing, they’ll live on the streets or move away. If they don’t have access to affordable treatment options, they’ll end up in the ER and use taxpayer money instead. If they don’t have opportunities to further their education, they’ll end up in jobs with limited career opportunity and we won’t have the pipeline of educated, skilled workers we need.
All of that means that everyone needs to be willing to have the honest conversation about what’s needed by our community’s most vulnerable populations. This is a time when we need more participation from everyone on these issues and not just from those who directly see the impact every day.
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Pete Yonkman is president of Cook Group and Cook Medical in Bloomington, Indiana. He has been with the company for 17 years, starting in 2001 as in-house counsel. Pete has served in a variety of roles for Cook, including leading one of the local manufacturing sites and as executive vice president for 10 business units. Pete was named president of Cook Medical in 2014 and in 2015 added the role of president of Cook Group.
Pete is a born and bred Hoosier originally from Crown Point, Indiana. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Indiana University and earned degrees in psychology and philosophy. He graduated with his law degree from the Maurer School of Law at Indiana University in 1998. Pete is actively involved in community issues, including adult education, workforce development, fostering start-ups, and creating a business culture that supports entrepreneurs.
He lives in Bloomington with his wife, Janell, and their two boys, Leo and Vic.