#THECHRONICANDACUTEPROBLEMS.

    According to Stephen R Covey in his book 8th Habit,there are two kinds of problems in both the physical body and in organizations: Chronic and Acute. Chronic means underlying, casual, continuing. Acute means painful, symptomatic, debilitating. Organizations, like people, can have chronic problems that are not yet acute. Treating these acute problems may mask the underlying chronic condition.
     Several years ago I had a fascinating experience that illustrates this point. A friend of mine was a head of surgery at a hospital in Detroit and specialized in cardiovascular medicine. I asked him if I could spend a day observing surgeons perform surgeries. The experience was absolutely mind-boggling. during one particular surgery that my friend performed, he replaced three vessels. When he finished, I asked, "Why did you have to replace the vessels? Why didn't you just clean them out?"
   He explained in layman's language, "In the earlier stages you can do that, but over time, the plaque builds up until it eventually becomes part of the content of the wall itself."
   "Now that you've corrected these three places," I asked, "is the man clear?" My friend replied, "Stephen, it's chronic. It's all the way through him." He guided my gloved hand to feel the vessels. You could feel the brittleness of the cholesterol material. "But notice," said my friend, "this man is an exerciser; he's developed some supplemental circulation that provides oxygen to muscles, but there's no supplementation to these three occluded vessels. He could still have a heart attack or stroke if a blood clot were to form. He has extensive chronic heart disease."
    Not all chronic conditions have acute symptoms. Before the first acute symptoms ever appear, diseases such as cancer can spread until it's too late.* Just because you can't see surface symptoms doesn't mean the underlying problems are not there. Sometimes people suffer heart attacks when they suddenly stress their bodies-like shoveling heavy snow after the first winter storm of the season. They don't realize they have a heart condition until the stress conditions reveal the acute symptoms.
   The same is true in organizations. You can have serious chronic problems in an organization that shows no acute signs because some organizations do not compete in a tough, global marketplace; they compete locally or in a protected market. They may be financially successful- sometimes very successful. But, as you know, success is relative. The competition's problems may be worse. So why change?