As health systems strive to become high-reliability organizations, they need strong physician leaders at all levels to deal with the challenges that continually emerge as a result of growing populations, new standards of care, changing government regulations and shifts in access to care. Medical students should appreciate that they too can become leaders by embracing change to promote shared goals.
An education module offered via the AMA Ed Hub™ helps medical students understand why leadership training should be a priority, identify the traits that make successful leaders, grasp the connection between professional identity and leadership and find pathways to formal leadership roles.
The AMA Ed Hub is an online learning platform that brings together high-quality CME, maintenance of certification, and educational content from trusted sources, all in one place—with activities relevant to you, automated credit tracking, and reporting for some states and specialty boards.
The free online CME module “Establishing Essential Leadership Behaviors” is enduring material and designated by the AMA for a maximum of 0.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™. It is one of thirteen modules released as part of the Health Systems Science Learning Series.
Learn more about AMA CME accreditation.
Four things to know
Physician leaders can emerge at every level and in every role in an organization, as well as at any point in their careers, but there is a framework for understanding how they come to be.
Physician leaders do a lot more than manage. In fact, some leaders aren't managers at all, but they make their marks by improving patient outcomes, decreasing clinical operational and capital expenditures, boosting efficiency and increasing staff satisfaction. Moreover, they shape organizational culture. Without leaders, there is no improvement.
There are six core competencies. Each is observable and measurable. They are professionalism, self-management, team management, influence and communication, systems-based practice and executing toward a vision. To be a catalyst for change in clinical care, you will need all of them.
Leadership is an identity, not a title. As a future physician, people automatically view you as a leader, but your knowledge, skills and behaviors are central to your professional identity and will determine both how you practice and how you lead. Taking on a quality improvement project, a mentee or a volunteer role are all behaviors you can adopt to further your identity as a leader.
Opportunities abound. You will be seen as a leader if you can advance patient safety, drive quality initiatives and improve clinical outcomes. Fortunately, general management, clinical care, advocacy, public health, research and education all provide opportunities in those areas. Look for leadership seminars, committee or council memberships and nonclinical internships and fellowships.
Refreshed in 2024, the AMA Health Systems Science Learning Series—brought to you by the AMA ChangeMedEd Initiative—prepares medical students to successfully navigate complex health systems, enhance patient care, improve outcomes, and work toward fulfilling the promise of the Quintuple Aim. For medical students looking to hone their leadership skills, the AMA offers the chance to distinguish yourself through more than 1,000 leadership opportunities and skill building through online training modules, project-based learning and more.
