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Tip of the week: Engage physicians in medical staff affairs

Medical Staff Leader Connection, January 28, 2010

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When medical staff leaders develop a strategy to engage physicians, they should keep the following tips in mind:

• Consider reinstituting mandatory medical staff meeting attendance.
• Pay physicians for their participation in medical staff activities.
• Ask physician executives and medical directors to research various solutions for medical staff issues and bring well-developed recommendations to the medical staff for decision-making.
• Take advantage of physicians’ growing knowledge of information technology by communicating through e-mails, blogs, and virtual meetings.
• Seek out formal and informal one-on-one time with opinion leaders to listen to their input and gain their support regarding important issues.
• Constantly remind physicians that they need to govern themselves or someone else will govern them. However, recognize that a growing cadre of younger physicians doesn’t mind being told how to practice medicine, as long as they can protect their personal time and earn a good living at the same time. 
• Invest in medical staff leadership development and succession planning. Well-educated medical staff leaders become engaged, skillful, and effective leaders and are the single best tool to engage physicians in medical staff matters.

This week’s tip is adapted from The Greeley Guide to New Medical Staff Models by Richard A. Sheff, MD, CMSL and William K. Cors, MD, MMM, FACPE, CMSL, published by HCPro.

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