Problem: REALITY CHECK: Kindness Is Not Always Returned The well-known saying "actions speak louder than words" is well demonstrated in this reality check. Joe was a health care consultant. He had collected thousands of documents of helpful information to share with health care organizations with which he had worked. His thinking was this: Why should hospitals have to reinvent the wheel? If organizations are willing to share with others, why not disseminate such information for the benefit of other hospitals? His hopes were that larger trade organizations would eventually collect the information and freely share with their constituents. After all, the goal was better care for all wherever they lived. Joe would provide copies of his CD to fellow consultants and encourage them to share the information with others. One day upon arriving at work he noticed that one of the consultants to whom he had given a copy of the CD had four or five newspaper clippings about hospitals spread out on a conference room table. Joe thought they looked interesting and asked, "Could I have a copy of your clippings?" The consultant said, "No, these are proprietary information." On another occasion, after sharing his CD with an organization, he asked, "Would you be willing to share your ‘12 Step Addiction Program' with other health care organizations?" A representative from the organization said, "We will share it with you but not others." Joe kindly said, "That's okay. I can only accept what you are willing to share with others."
1. Should Joe have asked for his CD back from the consultant and organization? Discuss your answer.
2. Discuss why an organization might not be willing to share program information.