By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    photo of hands with blue veins
    8 Proven Tips on Finding Difficult Veins
    November 12, 2021
    tips for getting over the pandemic blues
    4 Proven Ways to Get Over the Pandemic Blues
    February 22, 2022
    medical industry innovations
    How is CNC Machining Transforming the Medical Industry?
    June 2, 2022
    Latest News
    Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
    May 16, 2025
    Learn how to Renew your Medical Card in West Virginia
    May 16, 2025
    Choosing the Right Supplement Manufacturer for Your Brand
    May 1, 2025
    Engineering Temporary Hospitals for Extreme Weather
    April 24, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Doctors on Google: Manhattan Research Survey 2012
    July 23, 2012
    HealthCare’s Need for Transparency Goes Far Beyond Pricing
    December 10, 2012
    Medicare Payments to Providers Are Carved, Sliced and Chopped by Sequestration
    March 25, 2013
    Latest News
    Building Smarter Care Teams: Aligning Roles, Structure, and Clinical Expertise
    May 18, 2025
    The Critical Role of Healthcare in Personal Injury Recovery: A Comprehensive Guide for Victims
    May 14, 2025
    The Backbone of Successful Trials: Clinical Data Management
    April 28, 2025
    Advancing Your Healthcare Career through Education and Specialization
    April 16, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: The Importance of Physician Leaders in Medicine Today: Blazing a Trail to Better Healthcare
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Business > The Importance of Physician Leaders in Medicine Today: Blazing a Trail to Better Healthcare
Business

The Importance of Physician Leaders in Medicine Today: Blazing a Trail to Better Healthcare

Kevin Campbell
Last updated: July 11, 2012 8:46 am
Kevin Campbell
Share
6 Min Read
SHARE

In today’s healthcare environment, nearly half of all new physicians are salaried employees of a hospital or healthcare system. Now, more than ever, physician leadership is of paramount importance. With increasing pressure to increase care quality and simultaneously lower healthcare delivery cost, it is essential that physicians and administrators to work together. Physicians must continue to grow into executive roles and lead both healthcare systems as well as manage other doctors and clinical staff.

In today’s healthcare environment, nearly half of all new physicians are salaried employees of a hospital or healthcare system. Now, more than ever, physician leadership is of paramount importance. With increasing pressure to increase care quality and simultaneously lower healthcare delivery cost, it is essential that physicians and administrators to work together. Physicians must continue to grow into executive roles and lead both healthcare systems as well as manage other doctors and clinical staff.

By the very nature of the practice of medicine, all physicians are leaders. Doctors direct clinical care on the wards, in the ER, in the operating room and in the office. However, physicians must begin to embrace roles where they are directing activities in a boardroom as well. Current medical education certainly falls short in formal leadership training and needs critical improvements immediately. In 2010, Harvard Business Review addressed this very issue. Surgeon Atul Gawande is quoted as saying “most medicine is delivered by teams of people…yet we don’t train physicians how to lead teams or be team members. This [training] should begin in medical school”. Medical schools must begin to formalize leadership training and help to create more graduates who are not only skilled as physicians but are also skilled as physician executives.

In order to train emerging physician leaders, we must identify those characteristics that are most important to develop. Much has been written about leadership in business. I believe effective physician leaders have many skills and traits in common with executives that manage Fortune 500 companies. I believe we should focus on identifying and cultivating these characteristics in medical school and residency in order to produce the physician leaders of the future. Although my list is not all inclusive, I have chosen to highlight 4 points I feel are most important to leadership in medicine.

1. Integrity, Trust and Respect: In order to be effective at motivating and inspiring others, a physician leader must be respected by his or her peers.

2. Skillful Communication and Effective Conflict Management:Team members composed of physicians are traditionally used to being in charge and their voices heard. An effective physician leader is able to listen to others and assimilate ideas quickly. In order to maintain trust and respect of team members, the physician leader must be able to quickly resolve conflict among physicians, among administrators and among staff. The challenge is to resolve the conflict in a way that is equitable to all, in the best interest of the team at large and does not alienate team members with dissenting opinions.

3. Clear and Compelling Vision: The effective leader must understand the goals of the team and work to develop a path to success. The physician leader must see the “Big Picture” and be able to clearly communicate the goals and strategies to the team. In order to guide the team to the ultimate goal the leader must see a world without boundaries. Sometimes problems are best solved by thinking outside the norm and utilizing novel strategies to solve big problems.

4. Judgement and Accountability: A leader must be able to make decisions and live with the consequences of the choices that are made. Effective leaders accept personal responsibility for their actions and the actions of the team that works at their direction. This behavior helps to build a leader’s reputation of having integrity, trust and respect. Team members rally around leaders who do not “throw them under the bus”.

Medicine is in transition. Physicians must lead the way in order for the highest quality healthcare to be effectively delivered going forward. Physicians in training must learn to lead. We must prioritize the training of physician executives. Medical schools must develop formalized training in team building and students must learn to be both effective team members as well as team leaders. The great physician leader will make GOOD healthcare systems GREAT. As physicians, the fate of the US healthcare system is squarely in our hands. WE can choose to sit back and watch things develop around us or we can begin to LEAD the way today.

TAGGED:physician leaders
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

Clinical Expertise
Building Smarter Care Teams: Aligning Roles, Structure, and Clinical Expertise
Health care
May 18, 2025
Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
Health
May 15, 2025
Learn how to Renew your Medical Card in West Virginia
Learn how to Renew your Medical Card in West Virginia
Health
May 15, 2025
Dr. Klaus Rentrop Shares Acute Myocardial Infarction heart treatment
Dr. Klaus Rentrop Shares Acute Myocardial Infarction
Cardiology
May 13, 2025

You Might also Like

DOCTOR Project Launches Consumer-Friendly Reports on Physicians [TRANSCRIPT]

May 22, 2014
4 helpful tips to reduce claim denials
BusinessFinanceHospital Administration

How Much Are Your Denied Claims Costing You? 4 Tips for Reducing Claim Denials

August 9, 2014

Improving Patient Experience With Personalized Service

February 10, 2013
Medicaid Financial Strain
BusinessFinanceHealth ReformHospital AdministrationPolicy & LawPublic Health

Medicaid for All?

November 19, 2014
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?