We recently connected with Alana Arnold and have shared our conversation below.
Alana, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.
I was blessed to have very involved and dedicated parents. From a young age, my parents instilled a sense of confidence, and perseverance in all of us that allowed us to go forward into the world. We were taught the value of a strong work ethic. I was raised to believe in myself, and set goals. As I studied, and prepared, I knew that I could achieve whatever goals I set for myself. This repetitive process of preparing for success, and achieving it, build milestones for me that reinforced my confidence, and solidified my self-esteem.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
Dr. Alana J Arnold is a board-certified pediatric emergency medicine doctor, medical director and founder and CEO of Premier Pediatric Solutions. Her work focuses on improving children’s health in our community ERs and urgent cares as well as giving families tools to gain health literacy. Born and raised in Philly, Dr. Arnold conducted her medical training around the country. Kids’ healthcare is in crisis in our country. 80 % of kids seeking emergency services are seen by clinicians who have minimal, if any pediatric training. This lack of pediatric emergency medicine knowledge leads to poor clinical care [resulting in death at times] and wasted healthcare costs. Hospitals lose $5.4 billion in annual revenue due to this lack of pediatric-readiness. Additionally, over $250 million is spent in litigation annually, while over $480 is spent in unnecessary EMS transfers, due to lack of PEM knowledge each year. More alarming, health disparities demonstrate that black kids are 7 times more likely to die of asthma than white counterparts, and a child is 4 times more likely to die when seen at a non-children’s hospital.
Premier Pediatric Solutions LLC is building PEMpal a patent-pending, novel clinical support tool to improve pediatric care for the nearly 30 million children seen annually in ERs. PEMpal solves the health disparities and poor outcomes for our kids, while supporting her adult-trained ER colleagues.
PEMpal bridges this gap by seamlessly delivering direct vetted standardized PEM protocols to non-pediatric clinicians in ER and urgent care settings. PEMpal reduces healthcare waste [decreased EMS usage, and litigation], while improving clinical outcomes for kids, creating family & staff confidence in care, and boosting clinical productivity.
Additionally, she is building a community platform, called In a Minute with Dr. Alana, that is tailored to parents – giving them tools and growing their health literacy around their kids’ health. This content will empower families and change gaps in health education.
She is a huge advocate for kids’ health and is leveraging tech and social media to allow clinicians to deliver better pediatric care in real-time, when a pediatric specialist is not on site, which occurs very often. Her work is critical in helping care for the nearly 30 million children that pass through our ER systems each year. Additionally her IMDA health content is available online. This empowers parents to know how to care for their kids and gain medical knowledge.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Confidence; adaptability, passion.
These qualities have driven me to gain focus on my mission to serve children, across the country. I have opened myself to meeting all types of people, and trying to learn from each of them. Never turn down an opportunity to meet someone new, and to always pay it forward. Many people aren’t aware of the power of their networks. I have met someone, that I didn’t directly work with, but they have opened the door for an introduction. Having clarity of what you want and are looking for is key, but being open is critical, because it allows you to be adaptable and to seize opportunities. Carrying this silver lining mindset, may turn certain seemingly dead-ends into a chance to pivot or hone another skill.
Additionally, when others reach out for help — try to do it! Giving a person a chance typically never goes unnoticed and you’ll be surprised how many people will remember you assisting them, and help you in the future, if they’re able. I end every meeting, even if it was for my benefit, with, “Is there anything I can do to help your work or passions?’ Often they are surprised, and immediately very grateful. I think building your network on good karma goes a long way. Having the confidence to pursue your passions is critical and will help you in all fields of growing your business.
How can folks who want to work with you connect?
I am looking for a co-founder who has experience of bringing a medical product to market successfully. Someone with integrity, business/marketing or tech experience will be a great addition to our team. I’m very excited about the next steps for growing our work and would love to connect with any interested parties. Additionally – any community centers or groups working with families, or parents — I’d love to partner with for IMDA, or healthcare executives looking to outsource their pediatric care to competent, resourceful leaders, like our team. Please connect via our www.linktr.ee/premierpediatricsolutions or email [email protected]
Contact Info:
- Website: www.linktr.ee/premierpediatricsolutions.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/premierpediatricsolutions/
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/premierpediatricsolutions
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/alanajarnold/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/PremierPediER
Image Credits
Karim Harrigan, Porcia Lewis
