Physicians are facing a range of challenges in the hospitals, health systems and independent practices alike, from increased threats of violence to financial strain and burnout—increasing and complicating the demands placed on physician leaders.
However, physicians are rarely trained in leadership or organizational management during their time in medical school, Michael Anderson, MD, co-executive director of the Physician Leadership Institute, told Becker’s. Dr. Anderson previously served as the inaugural president of the UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital in San Francisco and chief medical officer for University Hospitals Health System in Cleveland.
The Physician Leadership Institute, a project developed through WittKieffer, a consulting firm, works with physicians to provide them with leadership training they might not otherwise have access to or time to incorporate into their professional development.
“We never had one course on emotional intelligence, on strategic planning, on operational excellence,” in all of his years of medical school, he said. “We were trained to be really good doctors, to make sure that every patient you cared for got the most scientifically rigorous, best practice care, and then you’re handed a leadership role.”
While physicians might be tapped for leadership roles that include clinical, operational or administrative duties, these roles are ultimately relational, and often require a different approach than what many physicians may be accustomed to.
“And [there is] this notion of the skills or the attributes that got you to that role are not necessarily going to make you successful in that role,” Dr. Anderson said.
Emotional intelligence and communication are two areas that Dr. Anderson and his team hone in when working with physician leaders.
“Physicians are trained to make decisions,” he said, reflecting on his experience as a pediatric ICU physician, often having to make very difficult decisions with limited data. Because physicians are trained to be decisive, they don’t always listen actively, he said.
“It doesn’t mean everybody has to have a vote, but are you really taking into account all of the input from your team members? Are you patient enough?” he said. “I think sometimes physicians will want to make a decision now, because that’s what we’ve been trained to do. But when you get to leadership, you have to make sure, if you’re going to be an inspirational leader, if you’re going to help drive change. You can’t be the only one whose voice is heard in that room.”
He added that while nonclinicians can make excellent leaders in healthcare, the growing pressures placed on physicians today means that they hold extra respect and value in someone who can relate to their struggle and translate that into leadership.
“I think when the physician leads well, the other physicians can be inspired,” Dr. Anderson said. “The notion that you’ve got street cred, that you don’t just hand down an edict from the C-suite, but you’re in the trenches living it, and you’ve kind of earned your stripes, I think, is really, really terrific.”
