ALUMNI PROFILE

Joe Taylor

A Lifetime of Care

BY JENNIFER BROCK

As an alumnus and former faculty member, Joseph K. Taylor (MBA '70, Ph.D. '78) remembers when Georgia State University consisted of two buildings. "There was Sparks and Kell, and the library was located on the top floor of Sparks," he recalls with a laugh. "I'm still amazed by how much this university has grown and very proud to be a part of it."

Although his undergraduate degree from University of Texas is in electrical engineering, Joe Taylor has spent his entire career immersed in the field of health care. He has sold hospital equipment, taught health administration courses and overseen the administrative aspects of hospitals. In fact, the only area that Taylor has not experienced is working as a physician, although he came close to entering that side of the industry.

"I applied to three medical schools and was rejected by all of them because I was too old. This was before any policies about age discrimination, and all of the schools had an age limit of 30 so that you wouldn't be too old by the time you were in practice. At 31, I was just past the limit. But I've never really regretted not going because I've greatly enjoyed my career and experiences."

Since his first job as a salesman for a hospital equipment manufacturer, Taylor has found great success in the health-care field. He was serving as CEO of West Georgia Medical Center in La Grange when he was approached by two doctors, John McCoy and Lee Richmond, to help found and develop Northside Hospital.

"They were very respected and liked, and once they pulled a group of doctors together, they involved business people. They needed a consultant and I helped with the planning and development," Taylor remembers. "And once it was finished, I managed it."

As the first CEO of Northside Hospital, he helped establish the hospital's prominence in Atlanta. Throughout his eight years with the hospital, he established the first outpatient surgery unit, as well as the first community mental health center in the Atlanta area. Under Taylor's leadership, and with the innovative thinking of anesthesiologist John Patton, the hospital also became the first in Atlanta to offer epidural relief to its obstetric patients.

Taylor also helped institute the first Conscious Cooperative Obstetrics (Lamaze) program, which greatly altered the childbirth experience. These two landmark procedures helped develop the obstetric unit of Northside Hospital. The importance of this early foundation is still apparent today. The hospital is ranked first in the nation for the number of babies delivered at a community hospital: more than 13,400 in 1998 alone.

"We were able to attract the best physicians in the city, and physicians make or break a hospital," explains Taylor, still surprised by the hospitalıs achievements. "I had no idea that it would be that successful and grow that much."

While managing Northside Hospital, he was asked to lecture in Georgia State's Institute of Health Administration. This led to an invitation to teach fulltime for the department, which Taylor enjoyed so much that he decided to apply to the College for a Ph.D. in Health Administration.

As a teacher, Taylor's greatest joy came from interacting with students. The students he taught motivated and challenged him to do the best job that he could, and he still keeps in touch with many of his former students.

"I truly enjoyed the constant contact with students. Class discussions. After class discussions. Lunch discussions. They inspired me to always do better," says Taylor.

After receiving his doctorate from Georgia State, he went to University of Houston where he became director of their Healthcare Administration Program. As director, he introduced one of the first joint Master of Healthcare Administration/Master of Business Administration programs in the United States. The joint degree program was copied from Georgia State's College of Business, which established the first MBA/MHA in the country under retired director Everett Johnsonıs leadership.

Looking back on his years in healthcare, Taylor is quick to point out the biggest change. "Government regulations and the reimbursement system have made the job of caring for people very difficult," he explains. "With record keeping, licensing, accreditation, and approvals for Medicare, I have a great deal of respect for the challenges hospital managers face today."

In the future, Taylor believes that traditional medicine will incorporate more alternative care methods such as herbs and holistic remedies, and that there will be an even greater emphasis on promoting wellness and prevention. He also feels that patient advocacy will be an important topic.

"The idea of patient advocacy is being discussed more and more. This concept is based on providing for the patient from the moment of service and making sure that the patient has everything he or she needs, is taken from point A to point B, and constantly knows what is happening."

As for the future of Georgia State University, the J. Mack Robinson College of Business and the Institute for Health Administration, Taylor believes strongly in their potential to succeed. He and his wife of 51 years, Lou, who is also an alumna, recently gave a donation to initiate the establishment of the Joe K. Taylor Chair in Health Administration.

"I feel that Georgia State will be the premier educational institution in the Southeast, and one of the leaders in the country," predicts Taylor, with conviction. "This university has provided me with a very satisfying career in healthcare and teaching, and I want to return the support in any way that I can."

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