HJNO Sep/Oct 2025

DIALOGUE 12 SEP / OCT 2025 I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS some of those things actually helps you. Another is working out. I’m a little bit of an older guy, but I do work out and have worked out and plan to continue to, and that’s a way to recharge yourself, no ques- tion about it. So, those are some things that come to mind when it comes to the constant pressure that you feel. Editor What’s one lesson from your early years in healthcare that still guides you today? Stock There are plenty of people who are nice. They don’t buy the vision, but you, as a leader, have to learn to believe in yourself. Your mission and your vision is not just something etched on the wall in your office. You need to walk the talk and, gradually, for some people, as they see the vision become reality, they start being more committed, more willing to make sacrifices to support and even lead toward that vision that you want to establish and to be the core of everything you’re doing. So that lesson is to continue to believe in yourself, no matter what. Editor If you could give a piece of advice to a young hospital administrator just starting out, what would it be? Stock Administrators just starting out, there’s a lot of things you could suggest to them, but one is know what your own talents are. What is God giving you that you seem to be good at and you could take that, whatever those are, and work on them and continue to improve themwhere you’re very, very effective. Number two, and this is common sense, I guess, is find somebody, or several indi- viduals, who you think are the really great CEOs, great leaders, and emulate them. I never really had anybody who was close to me in that sense, but there were one or two guys I really liked and I listened carefully when they spoke. I studied what they did, and they definitely had an impact on me. Editor You’ve achieved something few hospitals can claim: growth without debt. What’s the boldest idea you’ve had that you haven’t acted on yet? Stock Great question; I can’t tell you what it is. It’s a secret. The, I call it facing the bogeyman, is you have to have courage. You have to have it down deep inside of you and you can’t be dismayed, you can’t be discouraged, although those things come. But being bold, and, especially, in the right moment, is a great skill, ability, talent, whatever you want to call it, that can be very essential to moving forward. Let’s say the hospital is a “turnaround” hospital. Turnaround means it’s in financial trouble. Usually that means there are other problems and you have to act boldly. It’s different sometimes than one that’s doing pretty well, but boldness might also occur where the hospital’s just sort of going along. You know, barely making it, mediocre, and the boldness supported by your courage, your vision, your inner strength, will cre- ate something there that is much bigger and better. Editor Public health has become deeply politicized, and public trust in agencies like HHS and LDH is fractured. In your view, what would it take to depoliticize healthcare and re-establish a sense of trust between patients, providers, and public institutions? Stock Public health has certainly been politicized. And, you know it’s a challenge. We all have the insurers, the regulators, the providers, doctors. How do you bring all that together? That is a great, tremendous challenge, but I think in each of our own areas where we work, area meaning geography and places where we work, institutions, we can work very hard to establish a sense of trust between the patients and the providers. If we work together, I think it’s much better. Editor Is there a conversation you think the healthcare industry isn’t having but should be? Stock That’s a great question. You know, the financial part of healthcare today, I think, has almost taken over the real purpose for which we’re here, and that concerns me. I think it’s almost gotten to a point where it exceeds the reason we came, which is the patient. That’s why we do these things, and it does take a lot of financial matters, as we discussed earlier, briefly, to deliver care. The technology, the buildings, the doctors, everything is way complicated and very expensive. Nevertheless, the purpose, our purpose, I think needs to be re-examined. To some degree, we could go back to why we’re here. Focus on the patient could lead our discus- sions and the way we deliver care and the way we work together. I think it would be much better for the patient. Editor You have the ear of the healthcare industry in the greater New Orleans area right now. Impart some wisdom on us. Stock I don’t know that I have any wisdom to impart. Like the guy said, the more I know, the less I know. I think that playing it safe all the time is not leadership. Standing out, standing for something that you believe in, putting into play things that are risky. TheWellness Cen- ter, $73 million, actually came back close to $100 million. You want to make a difference, as they say, so you have a group of people around where you can actually make the vision become reality and it changes the lives of people in the area which it serves. I feel great about that. I appreciate all the people I work with — our board, doctors, our staff — and that’s why I stay in healthcare and keep banging away and having a great time. n