September 2022 News

Dr. John McB. Hodgson

SEPTEMBER 2022 NEWS

THE DOCTOR'S CORNER

 
   
Thanks for connecting with Hodgson Leadership Solutions. It’s been a busy summer, but I hope you are doing well and also had some down time with family and friends.     
 
As we head into the fall, our September Newsletter focus is on practical ways we can improve our work environment.

     As I am sure you know, healthcare providers are at especially high risk, with some research suggesting our risks are almost doubled. Our chronic exposure to stress can cause physical and emotional exhaustion, dulling of caring responses to patients, and negatively impact our personal relationships.

     While we are at greater risk of burnout, it is not inevitable.  There are practical steps we can take to create a less hostile work environment and improve our quality of life as well as the quality of the healthcare we deliver.

Serving with you,

 

 

John McB. Hodgson, MD, MSCAI

WHAT’S NEW?

heathcare education, Healing the System: A Prescription for Rejuvenating the Hearts of Healthcare Providers, healthcare consultants, Dr. John McB. Hodgson

Just Released!
Healing the System - A Prescription for Rejuvenating the Heart in Healthcare
by John McB. Hodgson, MD 

If you are frustrated and fatigued with an impersonal, administrative-heavy system, long work hours, ad lack of respect and autonomy, this book will encourage you with practical solutions to challenges that plague our healthcare systems.

Amazon Rankings
#1 in Physician & Patient Caregiving
#1 in Health Risk Assessment
#1 in Health Care Delivery

One of our first reviews:

“Well worth the time to read and carefully consider the reality of the problems we face in healthcare. It contains some extremely practical and, indeed, pragmatic approaches to resolving or lessening the dysfunction.”

Lorick Fox, MPAS, PA-C, AACC 
 
My goal in writing this book was to attempt to address issues that we actually have control over and which we can impact with simple changes to the way we approach care.  Rather than expect government to “reform healthcare” I believe that we are far better equipped to make changes on the front lines that can impact our work environment, that of our administrator colleagues and, most importantly, the patients we care for.

Healing the System – A Prescription for Rejuvenating the Heart in Healthcare

by Dr. John McB. Hodgson

Chapter 1 – How We Got Here
“Rather than being practitioners of the mission to serve the poor and ill, we have become a mechanism to ensure sufficient income and economic viability.”

 

COMPLIMENTARY RESOURCES – cOACHING WHITEPAPER

 “Packing as much as possible into each day may be good for the bottom line, but it is short-sighted, and we are now all paying the price for overlooking community-building.  We do not have to practice in an environment that feels increasingly hostile, isolated, and uncomfortable. Those days can be behind us.”
     

Professional coaching is underutilized in medicine.  We experience very busy schedules, make life altering decisions, and fight fatigue every day. Having someone who can look at the big picture and help us navigate can result in many positive outcomes.

Just SIX healthcare coaching sessions for 88 practicing Mayo Clinic physicians improved quality of life, resilience, job satisfaction, engagement and meaning at work.  Read the results of the randomized clinical trial.

You don't Have to Burn Out, Stay Stuck in Conflict, or compromise your values. Revitalize Yourself and Your Team. We Have the Prescription.
Request a free consultation
Phone: (440) 903-6666
Email: info@hodgsonleadershipsolutions.com

Address: P.O. Box 23547
Chagrin Falls, OH  44022

(c) 2022, Dr. John Mc.B. Hodgson

Website Design by Elevate Marketing LLC

Silo Syndrome

physician leadership

Silo Syndrome - How Good Physician Leadership Can Help

Physician leadership sometimes means stopping the work to support the worker.  Here’s an example.  “I’m not sure why I chose this job!”  A very competent and normally confident advanced nurse practitioner came to me recently and was distressed about a patient she had seen who was nearing the end of life.  She felt ill-equipped to have end-of-life discussions or shoulder the difficult questions or decisions that would occur with the patient and his family.  The full weight of provider responsibility and the impact we have on patient outcomes was especially heavy that morning. I offered some reassurance and even some “advice” I had received 30 years ago from a mentor: “If you can’t take the heat, get out of the kitchen!”  Of course, I was not serious with my advice.  However, it reminded me of the dysfunctional culture that we sometimes practice in.   Certainly, as young physicians, despite being sleep-deprived, exhausted, and hungry, we were told to “suck it up” or to “man up.”  We were taught to be self-sufficient, and that support should not be expected.  Keep working, stay in your silo and tough it out!  How insane!

This mentality needs to change.  My colleague was suffering from what I call “silo syndrome.”  Good physician leadership can turn the silo syndrome into a highly motivated, well-functioning team of healthcare providers if we will recognize that it isn’t just the patient that needs care.

Her work situation had been designed such that she worked alone and was expected to run an independent panel of patients.  While a physician might do initial consults, she was expected to do all of the follow-ups and make the follow-up decisions based on testing results. She was technically part of a multi-provider “center,” but she certainly did not feel part of a team.  No time was set apart for consultation with a physician, no patient reviews were performed, and trying to get advice on the fly was nearly impossible. 

Because healthcare workers are subjected to continuous work environment stress, I cannot emphasize enough the importance of teaming. Every physician interested in good physician leadership needs to take into consideration the fact that all of us need personal interaction.  We need the brief encouragements, the brief moments of celebration for a nice patient outcome, and a brief intellectually stimulating review of an interesting case.  My colleague needed to have someone to process her feelings with and someone to walk with her through the process of making difficult decisions.  Make an effort to build teaming activity into your day today.   If not for you, one of your colleagues needs it!

Physician Leadership Coaching Has Proven Results

Professional coaching is underutilized in medicine.  We experience very busy schedules, make life altering decisions, and fight fatigue every day. Having someone who can look at the big picture and help us navigate can result in many positive outcomes.

Just SIX healthcare coaching sessions for 88 practicing Mayo Clinic physicians improved quality of life, resilience, job satisfaction, engagement and meaning at work.  If you want to deliver top-notch physician leadership for your time,  I invite you to consider physician leadership coaching.

Read the whitepaper that identifies results of the randomized clinical trial measuring outcomes from coaching.

physician leadership, leadership coaching, healthcare education, healthcare consulting company, continuing medical education
You don't Have to Burn Out, Stay Stuck in Conflict, or compromise your values. Revitalize Yourself and Your Team. We Have the Prescription.
Request a free consultation
Phone: (440) 903-6666
Email: info@hodgsonleadershipsolutions.com

Address: P.O. Box 23547
Chagrin Falls, OH  44022

(c) 2022, Dr. John Mc.B. Hodgson

Website Design by Elevate Marketing LLC

The Power of Encouragement

physician coach

From Your Physician Coach
The Power of Encouragement

As a physician coach and practicing physician, I can assure you that of us crave encouragement. Whether we are just starting to walk as a toddler, or accepting a new position as a company CEO, our success can be enhanced by a word of encouragement. In the healthcare provider world, young physicians work their way through college, medical school, residency, and fellowship before they ever have what most would call a “real job.” Along this 13-15 year journey encouragement can be life-giving in an otherwise grueling schedule.

A few years ago, I was the staff physician assigned to cover the cardiology consult service at a large academic medical center. A second-year internal medicine resident from a neighboring community hospital happened to be doing an elective with us that week. He was theoretically less well trained than some of the other residents and fellows on service, but as a physician coach, I admired his enthusiasm, thirst for learning, and independent study efforts that far exceeded any of the others. Because of his demonstrated competence, I offered for him to write a review paper on a new technique with me. He eagerly accepted and one week later presented me with a 30-page manuscript complete with 180 references! Later, I encouraged him to apply for a cardiology fellowship and ultimately an interventional cardiology fellowship. One week of rounding with him and several weeks of encouragement finishing the manuscript profoundly impacted his career trajectory. As expected, he excelled in these advanced positions.

Physician Coaching Includes Encouragement

Recently, I had the opportunity to work with a first-year cardiology fellow doing heart catheterizations. Despite it being only his third day on the rotation, it was clear he was naturally gifted and had an excellent fund of practical knowledge. I encouraged him to assist in ways that typical fellows can’t perform until their third year of training. He rose to each challenge. At the end of only three days with him, I told him how impressed I was with his performance and encouraged him to strongly consider pursuing a career in interventional cardiology. His full story has yet to be written, but I believe encouragement from a senior colleague will make a difference for him. Remember, you don’t have to be vastly more senior to make an impact. You only need to be a few steps further along the path to encourage those walking with you. Leadership is not a title; it is the ability to act in a way that inspires others to follow you or your example.

For whom can you make a difference today? A fundamental leadership principle is to encourage and support those in your sphere who desire to grow and advance. Don’t underestimate the influence you can have! Be on the lookout today for someone to encourage. You won’t regret it!

Professional Physician Coaching

Just like everyone craving encouragement, all of us can benefit from professional coaching to sharpen our skill sets and grow as leaders.  Learn more about the growth opportunities Hodgson Leadership Solutions offers for medical providers.  Visit the Healthcare Coaching page.  You can download the complimentary white paper on the benefits of healthcare coaching.

Stay Connected with Hodgson Leadership Solutions

We publish a monthly newsletter with informative and helpful research and insights for healthcare professionals.  I invite you to subscribe to our monthly newsletter HERE.

Additionally, our social media channels offer more frequent, easily digestible insights and strategies to equip yourself as a healthcare leader.  Connect on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

You don't Have to Burn Out, Stay Stuck in Conflict, or compromise your values. Revitalize Yourself and Your Team. We Have the Prescription.
Request a free consultation
Phone: (440) 903-6666
Email: info@hodgsonleadershipsolutions.com

Address: P.O. Box 23547
Chagrin Falls, OH  44022

(c) 2022, Dr. John Mc.B. Hodgson

Website Design by Elevate Marketing LLC

Healthcare Coaching to Success

health care coaching, quality improvement in healthcare

Health Care Coaching to Success

Many are confused about healthcare coaching. Confusion about what it really is limits those who seek it out. Let me help clarify. Coaching, counseling, mentoring, and apprenticeship, among others, all refer to ways a leader can seek assistance in their desire to grow personally and improve their performance.

An apprenticeship involves working directly with another more experienced in the skill you wish to improve. For example, if I want to become good at laying bricks, I could apprentice with an experienced mason and they could teach me the specific skills and knowledge necessary. A mentoring relationship typically involves a more senior leader who agrees to assist a less senior leader in improving a specific skill. If I am already a skilled interventional cardiologist but have not yet learned how to implant artificial valves, I could team with a mentor who could oversee my progress and offer support or resources. If we enter a counseling relationship there is typically a personal character or performance issue that needs work. In these relationships, the counselor is driving the sessions and probing to uncover and address underlying root causes. This could involve psychotherapy, group sessions, medication, or just personal introspection.

In contrast to all of these other relationships, a healthcare coaching relationship is driven by the person being coached. The “coachee” sets the agenda and defines the goal they would like to achieve. The coach is there to assist in understanding, clarifying, and brainstorming. Importantly, they encourage and set goals. The coachee does the actual work, not the coach. It is not counseling. It is a means of assisting you to uncover and realize the potential you already possess. It is also typically limited in time and scope. Here is an example from a coaching relationship I had a few years ago. A colleague desiring to advance their career and I coached them through the possibilities which included trying to stay where they were, seeking alternative employment locally, or moving to seek opportunities in another part of the country. I did not decide for them; I merely helped them process the information and clarify their true desires.

Explore Healthcare Coaching to Advance Leadership Goals

I encourage you to explore healthcare coaching as a means of advancing your leadership goals. There is no stigma attached. The cost is well worth it. You will feel empowered and refreshed!

Learn more about the growth opportunities Hodgson Leadership Solutions offers for medical providers.  Visit the Healthcare Coaching page.  You can download the complimentary white paper on the benefits of healthcare coaching.

Stay Connected with Hodgson Leadership Solutions

We publish a monthly newsletter with informative and helpful research and insights for healthcare professionals.  I invite you to subscribe to our monthly newsletter HERE.

Additionally, our social media channels offer more frequent, easily digestible insights and strategies to equip yourself as a healthcare leader.  Connect on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.