When Dr. Tomislav Mihaljevic was appointed CEO and president of Cleveland Clinic on Jan. 4, 2018, one of his first thoughts was the opportunity to continue the legacy left by outgoing Clinic head Dr. Toby Cosgrove.
“I’ve been involved with Toby for a long time. He’s been a mentor and friend to me for 20 years,” says Mihaljevic of his predecessor. “He’s been an exemplary leader and has been very graceful in helping me in this transition when I spent four months with him side-by-side. One of the lasting legacies Toby is leaving behind is all the leaders he has trained in health care.”
The 54-year-old Mihaljevic first joined the Clinic in 2004 before leaving to oversee Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi for seven years. “I’ve learned and worked in many different communities, and I’ve yet to see a city with a health provider like we have here. We’re blessed…Most people in the world would choose Cleveland Clinic as a health provider.”
As the Clinic continues to grow locally, nationally and internationally (a London location across from Buckingham Palace is scheduled to open in 2021), Mihaljevic is open to both the challenges and opportunities expanding presents.
“We’re a very large, complex organization that continues to grow in every way,” he says. “We’ve seen and helped more patients in the last year than ever before, and we’ve broadened our footprint around the world. The biggest challenge has always been the same — opening our doors wide to accommodate the needs of as many patients as possible.”
When asked how he feels about reaching the level of one of the most powerful people in health care, Mihaljevic downplays his new role. “I like to speak more about influence,” he says. “We like to be considered as an organization that not only creates a positive influence but is very cognizant of our responsibilities for patients and caregivers.”
Mihaljevic is quick to cite the Clinic’s four main aspects of health care — caring for patients, caring for his caregivers, caring for the organization as a whole and caring for the community at large.
“We speak about this all the time — in health care, you do not do the job, you live the job,” he says. “You can’t have a single focus. We are the first health system to have an office of caregiver experience because we know people who work in health care are often under stress in doing their jobs.”
Last year, Mihaljevic instituted a new Clinic Family Day at Progressive Field, an event attended by nearly 35,000 employees and family members. The Clinic has one of the highest retention rates in the industry, and the CEO is well aware of the organization’s role as a job creator in the region, saying, “We firmly believe that by attracting new talent to Northeast Ohio we can transform our community.”
As a leader, Mihaljevic feels a great sense of responsibility toward the Clinic, its patients and the community in general. “What I strive to do is lead by example,” he says, “to do my work in a way I’d like to see others do their work.”
Mihaljevic is a big fan of another one of the city’s world-class organizations — the Cleveland Orchestra. He also works out daily, runs and reads frequently.
With the Clinic’s main campus routinely filled to capacity, continued expansion will be a main focus for Mihaljevic. A new health education campus in conjunction with Case Western Reserve University is set to open this year, and a five-year blueprint is in the final planning stages.
“We have to continue to evolve all the time and continue to be a relevant and dominant force in the world of health care,” says Mihaljevic. “We wake up every morning thinking what we can do better today to give people from all over the world the best care.”