Dr. Robert Cavagnol, St. Luke's Hospital: Listening, Advocating, and Admitting Mistakes

In this episode, Dr. Robert Cavagnol, President of St. Luke's Clinic, shares insights on communication and leadership. He emphasizes the importance of listening and empathetic listening as key communication skills.

Dr. Cavagnol also discusses the use of the DISC profile for understanding communication styles and adapting to different individuals. He shares personal experiences of taking risks, making mistakes, and learning from them.

Additionally, he highlights the importance of advocating for others, especially in challenging situations.

Overall, Dr. Cavagnol's insights provide valuable lessons for effective communication and leadership.

In this episode you will learn:

Listening is a crucial communication skill, and empathetic listening is particularly important for leaders.
The DISC profile can help understand communication styles and adapt to different individuals.
Taking risks and making mistakes are part of leadership, and it's important to learn from them.
Advocating for others, especially in challenging situations, is an essential aspect of leadership.

About Rob:

Dr. Robert Cavagnol, MD, MHA, FACS, currently serves as the president of St. Luke’s Clinic, based in Boise, Idaho. Rob joined St. Luke’s in 2020, just as the COVID pandemic took off. He continues to practice clinically, participating in acute care surgery shifts in the Treasure Valley. He leads a clinic of 1600 providers as the accountable executive for the physician enterprise at St. Luke's, which is the largest health system and largest private employer in the state of Idaho.

Dr. Cavagnol received his bachelor’s degree in health sciences from Kalamazoo College and his medical degree from Wayne State University, School of Medicine. He completed his surgical training at the University of Cincinnati. Following his general surgery residency, Dr. Cavagnol spent three years on active duty with the U.S. Navy, stationed at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. During his naval career, Dr. Cavagnol deployed twice, first on the hospital ship USNS Comfort in support of humanitarian relief after hurricane Katrina, and then as a trauma surgeon to Fallujah, Iraq, in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

After completing his commitment to our country, Dr. Cavagnol joined Mercy Health System in Springfield, Missouri, as a practicing general surgeon. He attended Missouri State University during his time with Mercy and earned a master’s in healthcare administration. While at Mercy, Rob was recognized with the Young Physician of the Year award in his third year with the health system. He also held numerous leadership positions with Mercy, including medical director of patient safety and quality, section chair for general surgery, vice-president of surgery, chief physician officer, and president of the Mercy Springfield clinic.

You can connect with Rob Cavagnol in the following ways: