Young Specialty Grows Leaders
The Leadership Academy’s origins stem from HM’s youthful roots; the average age of a hospitalist is 40, and the average age of a hospitalist leader is 43, according to SHM’s 2007-2008 “Bi-Annual Survey on the State of the Hospital Medicine Movement.” Unlike more established medical fields, HM is in the unique position of cultivating the first generation of the specialty’s leadership. Through mentorship and motivation, the academy is arming hospitalists with the tools they’ll need to become leaders in a still-developing field.
Individuals within HM benefit from leadership training, too. “I see Leadership Academy as filling a real void in hospital medicine,” Dr. George says. “We’re still a young profession. We don’t have a lot of gray hair in the field, but we’re in the unusual position to work closely with hospital administrators.”
That paradigm means hospitalists have to learn to speak the language of administration, she says. And they need to learn it quick if they want to create real change and value. For Dr. George, who sees the academy’s impact from the hospitalist and executive perspectives, the academy prepares hospitalists to fill a necessary role in the hospital.
“As a relatively new profession, we still have to prove ourselves on a regular basis,” she says. TH
Brendon Shank is a freelance writer based in Philadelphia.
Chapter Updates
Southwest Wisconsin Chapter
Hospitalists from five HM groups met May 7 in Madison. Julia Wright, MD, FHM, clinical associate professor of medicine and director of hospital medicine at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in Madison, spoke about “The State of Hospital Medicine.” Her presentation included an exploration of factors that influence and drive the specialty, as well as a look at HM demographics.