Events this week have gotten me thinking about leadership. The most prominent event is the news that Dr. Isabella Grumbach has accepted the role of Chair of Internal Medicine at the University of Oklahoma. I am thrilled for her and for OU, who will benefit from her steady hand, her commitment to evidence-based decision-making, and her comfort in hearing and incorporating diverse opinions. Of course, Oklahoma’s gain is Iowa’s loss, and I look forward to us giving her a proper thank-you and celebrating her years of contributions before she says good-bye this summer. Whether one takes the macro view, leading the largest department on campus, or a narrower view, an investigator guiding multiple trainees toward successful careers of their own, it is easy to see Dr. Grumbach has been an effective leader at Iowa. One we will all miss here.
Successful leaders do not fit one mold, nor do they share common sets of responsibilities. What makes a good leader is not the number of direct reports you have or the size of the budget you are accountable for. Instead, I think leadership rests less inside your title and more in your practice, how you work. And perhaps a good measure of an effective leader is how people respond to you. Do you often have to repeat your requests? When someone brings you a problem, do they suggest solutions? Or do they wait to hear your idea because they are conditioned to know theirs won’t be properly heard? I think if you gauge your effectiveness by those and similar metrics, you might find the teams you lead becoming more productive and happier. When others know their contributions are valued, when they see your decisions are informed, that is how trust is built.
The other thing about leadership I have been considering is about what counts as leadership. As members of the only academic medical center in the state, we are the hospital of last resort for Iowans. Other clinicians in the state rely on our training and expertise to help them answer challenging questions or to shape how they structure their own clinics. What is especially important to recognize then is that each of us is a leader, simply by merit of our employment within UI Health Care. We can take pride in our achievements and that responsibility. We should remember how visible our work is and how important it is that our decisions are informed by science and reason.
We may have specific expectations about how leaders behave or act. This recent article resonated with me about how we can use vulnerability to connect, to lead, to build trust and connection. My favorite sentence from this article is: “Vulnerability is not transactional, it’s connective.” My ask of you as colleagues and leaders: share your goals and vulnerabilities, connect with your colleagues, and lead the way to a better environment for all of us.
Photo for reflection
Another recent event was a conference I was fortunate to attend. At that meeting, I was surrounded by other chairs of internal medicine and even a couple of former chairs of our department. In this photo you can see from left to right, Dr. Mark Anderson, currently the dean of the medical college at the University of Chicago, Dr. Dale Abel, now chair of medicine at UCLA, and on my other side is Dr. Gary Rosenthal, who is chair of medicine at Wake Forest University. Two things struck me at the moment that this photo was taken. First, there really is no other place that lasts in people’s memories like Iowa. Everyone, including these three, when they hear I am from Iowa is quick to tell me their connection and how much they valued their time here and the people they have worked alongside. These three leaders have been a lot of other places, but Iowa continues to hold a special place in their memories and hearts. The other thing that struck me is that each of us four is unique. We each have our own sets of talents that makes us effective and, honestly, some blind spots that we have to make sure we correct for. What I find encouraging is that Iowa has made room for us all and will continue to make room for a diverse array of histories and experiences, calling on us to rise to the challenge of making this place better than we found it.
Upi’s “OH, WOW” moment
This week marks 100 years since the first small internal research program started within what was then called the Veterans’ Bureau, which would eventually become what we now call the US Department of Veterans Affairs. Dr. Eli Perencevich, our Associate Chair for Clinical and Health Services Research, is also the director of a VA-funded Center for Innovation called CADRE, which has kept Iowa on the map as a global hub for health services research and continues to change the way we deliver care, both to our veterans and to the rest of the population. Earlier this week, Dr. Perencevich outlined some of the incredible discoveries that have emerged from VA-funded research. Everything from tuberculosis treatments to implantable pacemakers owe their origin to researchers and veterans. Today our department alone has 30 faculty members with VA appointments conducting research fueled by nearly 50 different grants. Happy anniversary and keep up the great work!
Finally, I just want to thank everyone who has taken the time to attend the smaller events at my home. We have hosted researchers, administrative staff, junior faculty, members of the residency program, and fellows. These kinds of gatherings are incredibly invigorating and fun, and I hope to do more of these in the future. Thanks to one of our student videographers for also attending and preparing this little recap.
