Chief Executive Officer & Administrator, Baptist Memorial Hospital-Tipton
Making a difference in people’s lives has been Sam Lynd’s goal since high school. When he discovered he could do that in healthcare his next step was to determine what his role should be in the healthcare arena. Today the Memphis native is realizing his goal as the CEO and administrator of Baptist Memorial Hospital-Tipton, a 100-bed facility in Covington, Tennessee.
“My first role in healthcare came about my senior year of high school as a pharmacy technician for Kroger when I replaced a friend who was moving away for college,” said Lynd. “Everyone truly cared about our patients and loved spending time helping them. That passion was contagious, and it made me fall in love with healthcare and the people who work in healthcare.”
After graduating high school, Lynd left Memphis to attend the University of Alabama where he majored in healthcare management, graduating in 2009. He then moved onto the University of Alabama at Birmingham to attend graduate school where he earned his Master of Business Administration degree in 2011 and Master of Science in Health Administration in 2012.
“While in school, I worked for the University of Alabama Medical Center, Baptist Hospital-Pensacola and volunteered in the emergency department at Baptist Memphis. I consulted for nursing homes, evaluated markets and operations for acquisition purposes and worked as an anesthesia billing clerk. Every one of those experiences lends itself to my current role,” said Lynd. “I have tried to do as many things as possible and learn as much as possible about healthcare while trying to remember to slow down enough to remember why I chose this path to begin with.”
In 2011, Lynd joined the Baptist Memorial Health Care family as a Frank S. Groner Administrative Fellow, an experience Lynd says has been invaluable and led to his next three roles in the Baptist System. “From June 2012 to February 2014, I served first as the assistant administrator of Baptist Union County in North Mississippi, and then as the assistant administrator of NEA Baptist Memorial Hospital in Jonesboro.”
When Lynd took the reins at Baptist-Tipton, he found that it presented challenges all its own. “My team will tell you I often refer to us as a rural hospital competing in a metro market. We are truly a community hospital that exists to serve the needs of the people of Tipton County, but we are in close enough proximity to larger urban facilities within Greater Memphis that we have to evaluate strategies and compete like a metro hospital,” said Lynd. “Baptist-Tipton is a great place to work with a small team of talented individuals who are passionate about transforming healthcare delivery while delivering great care and service to our community. There is something very special about small community hospitals and their role in our industry.”
Lynd credits his talent as an administrator to the strength of his team and his passion for learning. “The relationships I have built over the last few years continue to pay off in dividends. Baptist is full of people willing to help you through whatever challenges arise,” he said. “We have great talent at each of our hospitals and corporate resources to assist us every day in reaching our goals. My passion for learning more about the needs of our teams, our patients, and our physicians means that we will continue to seek opportunities to improve in every area of focus. What I hope to learn from this role is simply how to provide our teams what they need to be successful and support them in that journey.”
While it is early in his career, Lynd developed his management style from many people in different management roles. “I have taken pieces from each of them that fit my personality and beliefs about management. One of my greatest mentors once told me to watch and learn how people establish their credibility when taking on a new role. Being as young as I am, this was incredibly insightful advice,” said Lynd. “I focus on listening, learning and asking good questions. Whether managing an unfamiliar area or one with which you hold great expertise, asking lots of good questions will always help prepare you for making better decisions.”
The heart of Lynd’s management style revolves around loving people, be they customer or staff, setting expectations, using fair and consistent accountability, and coaching. “If you can be really good at those items then you have a good chance to be successful in whatever challenge you take on,” he said. “My strongest management quality is probably building relationships and trust. When you are open and honest about when you don’t know, people will pay attention when you tell them you do know.”
In regards to relationships, Lynd wants to continue to build relationships with key providers. “Only through growing these relationships can we put all of our talents together to deliver the service in this county that the patients deserve,” he said. “Communication is key. We are focused on connecting with community providers and keeping them informed about what we are doing as the community hospital to improve the care delivered to Tipton County patients. This includes growing the skills of our leaders, growing the skills of our nursing staff, keeping up with the growth of technology, and providing forums for providers to interact with each other so they can have successful practices and we can serve as resources for their success.”
Being entrusted with the responsibility of a hospital operation at this point in his career was something Lynd always dreamed of. “Keeping the focus on others has certainly paid off and will continue to for the remainder of my career,” said Lynd. “I have interacted with so many people with differing roles as part of the U.S. health system, but only just hit the tip of the iceberg in terms of what there is to learn. You have to focus on learning each and every day about the challenges people face no matter their role. It makes you a more balanced and well-rounded leader.”
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