Episode 150: Compassionate Accountability with James Dismond

In this episode of the Healthcare Leadership Excellence Podcast, I’m joined by James Dismond, President and CEO of MiraSol Health. James shares what it is like to step into executive leadership at a young age and lead an organization that grew from serving 40 patients a day to more than 200.

He talks about the challenge of guiding a five-generation workforce and why leadership begins with active listening. James explains the difference between checking in and checking up and how leaders must step back from the trenches to see strategy and culture clearly.

A central theme of our conversation is what James calls compassionate accountability. He describes how holding people to high standards while caring for them personally creates a stronger culture and healthier results. He also outlines how professional development plans replaced annual evaluations and gave staff a way to grow in alignment with the organization.

Throughout the episode, James points to culture as the foundation for every performance metric. At Marisol Health, the “five Cs”—compassion, community, commitment, collaboration, and caring—shape the environment and guide daily decisions. He also reflects on managing high turnover in his first 90 days, battling imposter syndrome, and why real leadership means developing people so well that others want them and then creating a culture where they choose to stay.

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