ecently, Henry Ford Health System president and CEO Nancy Schlichting had a visit from Dr. Mostafa Ibrahim.

    Ibrahim, a gastroenterologist who has been at Henry Ford Hospital for 25 years, explained that the 25 to 30 Muslim doctors, nurses, technicians, patients and family members who gather for Friday prayers at the hospital currently use the hospital’s chapel.

    They move some chairs to make room in the back of the chapel, and the hospital provides sheets that they spread on the carpeted floor to kneel on. It’s functional, Ibrahim said, but it would be better if the hospital had a designated space for Muslim prayer.

    "That’s my new task," Schlichting says. "And he said the food could be better, so we’ll work on that too."

    The example is one of the results of having executives, doctors and support staff from about 60 countries.

Workforce Management Online, May 2008 -- Register Now!