You're listening to the P.T.
Pinecast,
where smart people in healthcare come to
make noise.
Here's your host, Jimmy McKay.
Thanks, voice guy.
Live from CSM twenty twenty six.
Devin Morris stopping by the booth here at
U.S.
Physical Therapy.
Devin, first of all,
what were we reading on the plane?
I saw because this is how the world
works.
We can see what other people are doing
at any time.
And you're reading a book.
And I, of course,
like what book is that?
So what book was it?
And what'd you learn on the flight?
Yeah,
so I was reading The Anxious Generation
and it was a little bit of prep
work for the discussion,
the panel discussion we had this morning
with my team.
So The Anxious Generation talks about how
Gen Z,
which I'm a proud part of as a
ninety sevener,
how we grew up in a phone based
world instead of a play based world.
You didn't know.
Yeah.
Like, I can't I can't understand that.
I can't because I graduated high school in
nineteen ninety seven.
So that made me feel great.
A couple of seconds ago.
So so what's a lesson or two you
learned from the book about what that was
like?
And nobody who didn't live it can't can't
understand it.
So would you learn there?
What was the talk about?
The biggest thing I learned from the book
when I started reading it was that
We, as a generation,
have a different lens than any other
generation before that's unique.
We essentially grew up on Mars,
and then that was further enhanced by the
COVID-Pandemic.
Yeah, that didn't help.
So what I took from that,
going into our conversation this morning,
so the title was OK Boomer,
Meet Gen Z, Bridging the Gap.
Here we are.
Bridging the Gap in Healthcare Workplaces.
So the talk was really powerful because we
had a multi-generationally diverse panel
from Gen X, Millennial,
and then a couple of Gen Zers.
And we were talking about things that
really make each generation's heart sing
because we're talking about
life stages.
So we're challenging the stereotypes that
come with just talking about generations
in themselves,
because every generation says the same
thing about the generation younger.
These kids today, yeah,
they don't want to work.
We don't want to work.
When in reality,
it's just what life stage is this person
at and what needs do they have?
It's like two different Rubik's cubes,
right?
So it's not just where are you in
life?
It's also what's the world look like
where you are in life and what did
you grow up thinking seeing and
understanding life when you grow up and
now how do you see this stage of
life and what the world is like right
now those things are never the same i
forget what philosopher said it but you
never you never walk through the same
stream twice it's because the stream is
changing but so are you but the world
like we're never going to go back to
how it was.
And that's all people wanted to talk about
during COVID.
But once we get back to normal,
and I remember just listening to smart
people being like, it's never, there's no,
it's just going to be a new normal.
This is our new normal.
Right.
So anything that,
that surprised you raised an eyebrow
during the talk and the panel like that
you walked away with that you were like,
yeah, that felt good.
Well,
there were a lot of fun conversations that
we had.
And I think one thing, too,
that ties into our new normal that I
thought was something that we don't really
think about is that now that we have
so much of our interactions on Zoom and
we've got the Gen Z stare.
Which is, I've seen it.
When I do calls or lessons,
if I talk to a group of students,
it is hard for me as a Gen
Xer who grew up like in your face,
live, whatever,
in person to get a blank stare.
And I've also got a woo personality.
So when I'm getting nothing, I'm like,
oh my God, they hate me.
Meanwhile, they're just absorbed.
They're doing what you're asking them to
do.
They're listening to you.
Yeah.
Have you ever caught yourself like on a
Zoom or whatever,
what your own face looks like?
And then you're like, oh gosh,
that's what I look like.
Right.
But that's a good point.
Literally kids in middle school are
practicing being on Zoom and taking
courses that way and taking classes that
way.
And we have a built-in pause because one,
we're waiting for, you know,
is their Wi-Fi buffering?
Are they going to say something?
Would they have to mute and unmute?
And that's like a whole like three seconds
that we've then built into human
interaction that we didn't even realize
was happening.
Like that's part of our new normal.
But if you're not paying attention to that
and trying to understand it,
then you would say these kids today,
they can't do this.
They only do that.
The funny part was I won't say where
I was yesterday because that's not the
point.
But I remember, you know,
ten years ago and laptops and phones were
everything.
These kids today,
they bury their face in a phone.
I was in a room where I was
the youngest person by fifteen years.
We were in a meeting.
We were flown to Anaheim,
California from around the country,
whatever that costs for meeting.
And we were looking at slides on our
own computers around a table.
And I'm like, this is hysterical.
All these people are fifty years plus and
we're all doing the thing we say these
kids today don't do.
Why do they do it?
You're doing it.
Yeah, yeah.
So I would say, you know,
circling back to the, you know,
big picture discussions that we have this
morning,
it's make sure you're getting to know the
individual that you're working with.
Because even if they're a part of a
certain generation with the stereotypes
that you know,
That doesn't mean that that's where their
priorities lie.
And I gave a personal example of why
I decided to make a recent job shift.
And it was because at my prior place,
I was working with a lot of senior
therapists.
a lot of seasoned therapists.
And so I wasn't able to relate to
a level with my colleagues like I wanted
to.
It was really workplace culture oriented,
even though I made a lot of good
money there.
But I made the shift because now I
might not make as much money,
but I get to laugh every day with
my colleagues.
And I feel I have a lot of
fun.
I get to go hang out with my
friends all day and help people feel
better.
And that's the dream.
That's all I wanted to do.
I feel like if a clinic owner or
a clinician
understands this better,
they'll be happier.
You're an example of that.
Um, I feel like an owner would be,
would have a better culture in their
clinic.
And that usually relates to something
better, keeping people longer,
which hits your bottom line or patients
just like the vibe,
which leads to more people having good
interactions there.
So I feel like understanding this,
someone might look at it and just say
it's nuance or like, it's nice to have,
but it sounds like it's need to understand
and not, not, not just nice to understand.
Yeah.
I think a lot of employers,
and this was feedback,
a lot of employers think that money is
everything that every generation wants.
Just throw more money at it.
Solve it.
And mind you,
there's a whole issue in that in itself
with the DPT being incredibly expensive
and new grad clinicians coming out making
significantly less than what their degree
is worth.
And so there's that imbalance where you do
have the new generation entering the
workforce expecting higher pay and then
reaching burnout to a point where they're
overworked, underpaid and leaving.
And the biggest issue we have is that
we have therapists leaving the profession.
We have really good clinicians who are
going to make more money in leadership
roles,
doing managerial stuff and non-clinical
roles.
And now we're losing great therapists and
our profession and our patients are
suffering because of it.
Yeah.
And so how do we then create workplaces
that really incentivize and just feel like
home for clinicians to want to stay so
that we can continue to grow as a
profession?
I'm going to guess those aren't built by
accident.
Yeah, it's intentional, right?
It's intentional and paying attention to
the people and what they value.
Sounds really simple because it is.
It's just not necessarily easy.
Right.
So there's a lot of systemic stuff that
we have to that we have to sort
through.
You know,
we can't necessarily make the changes that
we want overnight.
Uh, well,
we definitely can't make the change we
want overnight, but, um,
as long as we're talking about it and
the next generation, so my generation, uh,
starts to create the change that we need
instead of just talking about the issues,
then I think we'll be moving in the
right direction.
Yeah.
All right.
Uh, every episode we do,
we have a tradition called the parting.
This is the parting shot.
One last mic drop moment.
No pressure.
Just your legacy on the line.
Pressure,
just your entire legacy on the line here
from CSM.
We're hanging out with US Physical
Therapy.
You can see them,
their logo right here on the screen.
And we're at their booth.
Find them online at USPH.com if you are
a clinician looking for a great
environment.
USPH has clinics all across the country.
All right, what's your parting shot,
Devin?
What are you gonna leave us with today?
My parting shot.
Get to know the person that's in front
of you for who they are.
Check your own biases.
and try to make the world a little
bit better than it was yesterday.
Yeah,
leave it a little better than you found
it.
Devin Morris,
doing this thing the first time we're ever
live at CSM.
Thanks, Devin.
Thanks for having me.