Sorry Works! Celebrates 10 Years
It was 10 years ago, February, 2005, that Sorry Works! was officially launched with a press conference via conference call. Myself and a few friends spoke to a handful of reporters over the phone and we were off the ground...but I never could have imagined or expected the growth, impact, or staying power of Sorry Works! It's been an amazing journey.
I initially started Sorry Works! to be an advocacy organization -- to encourage healthcare organizations to consider disclosure. I also wanted Sorry Works! to be a resource center for healthcare, insurance, and legal professionals who wanted to learn more about disclosure and get some encouragement. Sorry Works! was started as a pro bono project within my PR consulting firm...and I never thought it would grow beyond that. At first, Sorry Works! took a few hours of my time...then 10 hours per week...which quickly grew (within the first year) to 20 and 30 hours per week. We had a hit a nerve with people.....many folks said disclosure was long overdue, while others wished we would go away and wanted to fight us. During that first year, we spent a lot of time debating folks about should disclosure be done...aren't we just inviting more lawsuits and why should doctors say "sorry?" were just some of the battles we fought during that first year. Soon, however, these battles turned into requests for help implementing disclosure: "Doug, we agree with disclosure principles, but how do we actually teach our doctors and nurses to say 'sorry,' and how do we coordinate this with our legal counsel and insurer?"A training and consulting business was born.
Sorry Works! has developed books, booklets, CME-accredited presentations, webinars, Train the Trainer seminars, and other content. The original Sorry Works! Book has sold over 25,000 copies, and the Little Book of Empathyhas sold thousands more copies, and several organizations have customized the Little Book of Empathy for their staff. The weekly Sorry Works e-newsletters have touched thousands of people by keeping a laser focus on all things disclosure, while the Sorry Works! website receives over 500 unique visitors per day. Sorry Works! has become the face, voice, and brand of the disclosure movement. We like to say Sorry Works! has trained over 30,000 healthcare, insurance, and legal professionals, but the number is probably much, much higher.
None of this would have been possible without YOU. Sorry Works! does not have a big marketing budget. In fact, we don't have any marketing budget besides our website and e-newsletter distribution service. Everything we've accomplished has been through word-of-mouth and grass roots efforts. People like YOU sharing our message with others, buying our content, and inviting us to speak at hospitals, nursing homes, and major conferences. So, "Thank you!" for 10 great years, please keep spreading our message with your colleagues and friends, and here's to the next 10 years and however long it takes to make a disclosure a reality in every healthcare organization.