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Strategies to developing hospitalist leaders

Hospitalist Leadership Connection, October 21, 2008

As the ranks of hospital medicine continue to swell, the need for leadership development is becoming increasingly important. Leadership development is an especially big challenge for hospital medicine – a subspecialty with a large proportion of relatively young physicians thrust into positions traditionally reserved for more experienced individuals. However, hospitalists are in a unique position to establish themselves as forward-thinking practitioners laying the foundation for medical leadership. Follow some of the following tips when cultivating new leadership:

• Expect the unexpected. It is not unusual for some new leaders to doubt whether their decision to take a leadership role was the right one. They may feel a sense of confusion, panic, or self-doubt.
• Reframe the role. Leaders should refrain from being solo superstars, and rather, should empower those being led.
• Initiate personal leadership growth. New leaders should be sensitive to the roles that their character, competence, and influence play in those being led.
• Know the role of the senior medical leadership. The senior hospital or department management should assist in the transition and acceptance of the new leader. Human resources, as an outside source, can also assist in group buy-in by acting early on in the transition process.
• Understand that taking charge takes time. Each stage of immersion, consolidation, and refinement can take months to complete.
• Seek out mentors and coaches. Senior management members who are seemingly most fit for this role have the least amount of time. An assigned mentor should have a deep organizational connection and a vested interest in the success of the new leader.
• Seek feedback from stakeholders. Pursuing consistent, constructive feedback is critical for the mentor-mentee relationship for new leaders to assess their accomplishments and future challenges on both a personal and organizational level.
• Continually seek leadership education. Read business periodicals regularly. Visit healthcare blogs on leadership learning. Attend hospital medicine conferences.  
• Assess the value of advanced degrees. If the leader intends to remain a hospital medicine group leader, an advanced degree may not be necessary. Leadership coursework with continuous independent study should suffice.
• Take care of yourself. Chronic exposure to leadership challenges takes a physical, physiological, and, ultimately, professional toll. Consider pursuing stress training and seeking out other leaders in the organization who can provide confidential support.

The above excerpt is adapted from The Hospitalist Program Management Guide 2nd edition by Kenneth G. Simone, DO and Jeffrey R. Dichter, MD, FACP, published by HCPro, Inc.

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