The O'Brien Thruway

In honor of Kay's birthday I will tell the story of the O'Brien Thruway. Shortly after I began work in IT the hospital implemented electronic entry on all the doors to the facility. Facilities and Administration felt it would be unnecessary to place an electronic entry on the door leading to the basement that was next to IT. I was in an immediate uproar but the IT director didn't really care and didn't think that the additional 6 minutes of walk time (per ticket) was a big deal, "It's good exercise" was his quote. I was outraged at the productive loss. How could they do this to us?

What does someone outraged do when told no? They challenge the establishment and the good ole boy network (heh heh) and they go to somebody that can make things happen. In this case, I went to the President of the Hospital's Foundation, and my good friend, Kay O'Brien. I laid out the business case including the productivity loss and she looked at me and said that it was ridiculous we didn't have it and she assured me we would have an electronic entry by the end of the week stating if the facility wouldn't buy it the Foundation would fund it. Then she marched into the CEO's office and demanded we have an electronic entry. I don't know if the Foundation paid for it or the hospital but I do know that we had an electronic entry by weeks end. The following week we held a dedication and door ribbon cutting ceremony to commemorate the event. The whole hospital came and we had tons of food served. The entry is still there and will forever be known as "The O'Brien Thruway".


We love you, Kay!!!!! Have a great birthday!!!!