That time we accidentally created national healthcare infrastructure, with Dave Kasten

Complex Systems with Patrick McKenzie (patio11)

In this episode, Patrick McKenzie (patio11) is joined by Dave Kasten, to discuss their experiences building VaccinateCA, a charitable effort that collected, collated, and distributed vaccine distribution information during the COVID-19 pandemic. (If you Googled for the vaccine, the search results likely came from VaccinateCA’s data.) They cover the challenges of rapidly scaling a volunteer-driven organization, the lessons learned about public health infrastructure, the intricacies of interfacing with government bureaucracy, and reasons to be cautiously optimistic about tech/government collaboration.

Expanding on a theme from recent episodes (see: Casey Handmer), Dave and Patrick cover the stark differences between government and tech sector’s approach to problem-solving. They offer insights into the often-misunderstood world of government operations, the individuals who make it function, and the "scar tissue" of regulations that can both protect and hinder progress.

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Full transcript available here: https://www.complexsystemspodcast.com/episodes/tech-government-dave-kasten/

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Sponsors: WorkOS | Check

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Links:

The Story of VaccinateCA, Works in Progress https://worksinprogress.co/issue/the-story-of-vaccinateca/

https://davekasten.substack.com/

https://www.bitsaboutmoney.com/

Complex Systems episode ft. Kelsey Piper (Spotify): https://open.spotify.com/episode/33rHTZVowaq76tCTaKJfRB

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Twitter:

@patio11

@David_Kasten

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Intro

(00:23) Dave Kasten’s unique career path

(01:37) The beginning of VaccinateCA

(03:09) Early challenges and volunteer efforts

(07:24) Volunteer coordination and call center operations

(10:55) Navigating policies and procedures

(14:33) Navigating policies and prioritization

(21:00) Adapting to volunteer feedback

(22:50) Sponsor: Check

(25:07) Public reception and media involvement

(35:40) Government and institutional responses

(45:59) Differences between tech and government approaches

(47:52) Challenges in pandemic information dissemination

(49:10) Accuracy and information systems

(53:43) Government and agile development

(56:51) Bureaucratic constraints and historical practices

(01:08:55) Government workforce and technological challenges

(01:22:34) The importance of policy engagement

(01:33:42) Wrap

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Complex Systems is part of the Turpentine podcast network.