Letter From the Editor:
WHAT I’LL TAKE AWAY FROM RISE WEST 2019
Ilene MacDonald Editorial Director, RISE
Since joining RISE last year I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing experts in risk adjustment, quality improvement, and value-based care, as well as attending RISE conferences where I’ve heard dynamic keynote speakers and met our members who shared their challenges and success stories. I’ve learned from all these experiences. But I’ve never been more moved or inspired than hearing the first-hand account of Richard Picciotto, the retired NYC fire department chief who was the highest-ranking firefighter to survive the collapse of the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers on 9/11. He recounted his amazing story of leadership and survival at RISE West 2019 on Sept. 10, a day before the 18th anniversary of our nation’s darkest day when terrorists launched coordinated attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people. He is credited with saving thousands, making the difficult call to abandon the rescue mission and evacuate the North Tower after he heard and felt the impact of the South Tower collapse. But Picciotto said he was one of many heroes that day. As he made his way up 35 floors to rescue those trapped on the upper floors, he recalled watching people helping one another, such as the group of able-bodied coworkers carrying a person in a wheelchair down the narrow stairwell to safety. People who never met one another before but were trapped on the same floor vowed to stay together until they all could escape. You can read the details of his keynote presentation in my article on the RISE site here. But what struck me most: Picciotto’s recollection of the kindness that people showed to one another after 9/11, the care they offered to survivors and the widows and widowers of those who perished in the attacks. The country was united then. Reflecting on today’s partisan divide, Picciotto said he thinks people have more in common than they realize. Our differences, he said, are minor. And in the face of tragedy, history shows Americans are there for one another.
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