The Successful
Physician
Building and Sustaining
Satisfying Collegial Relationships
Some Behavioral Conclusions from
SOMC Nurse Focus Groups1
A Presentation for the
SOMC Physician Leadership Institute
Valerie DeCamp, RN, NE-BC, BSN, MHA
Kendall L. Stewart, MD, MBA, DFAPA
January 28, 2010 Draft
1
Valerie DeCamp conducted these nurse focus groups in January 2010.
Why is this important?
• Most physicians would say they
intend to be successful.
• Our relationships with our
colleagues are critical to our
success however we define it.1
• Using how people feel about
working with us as a measure,
some of us are a lot more
successful than others.
• This presentation will explain
how you should behave if you
want to be viewed as
– Respectful,
– A team player, and
– A physician who is passionate
about achieving and sustaining
exceptional organizational
results.
1
See Emotional Intelligence 2.0 by Bradberry et. al., 2009.
• After listening to this
presentation, you will be able to
answer the following questions:
– How do physicians who are
viewed as respectful behave?
– How do physicians who are
viewed as NOT respectful behave?
– How do physicians who are
viewed as being team players
behave?
– How do physicians who are
viewed as NOT being team
players behave?
– How do physicians who are
passionate about achieving and
sustaining exceptional
organizational results behave?
– How do physicians who are NOT
passionate about achieving and
sustaining exceptional
organizational results behave?
How was this SOMC employee survey
conducted?
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1
We invited all SOMC employees to rate every physician they
had worked directly with in the past 12 months on the
following statement:
“This physician is a respectful team player who is passionate
about achieving and sustaining exceptional organizational
results.”
Employees went online and clicked Strongly Agree, Agree,
Neutral, Disagree, or Strongly Disagree.
Physicians were then percentile-ranked according to the
percentage of their respondents who chose “Strongly Agree.”
16 SOMC physicians were in the top decile.
These are the relationships stars.1
We then asked nursing employees to specify those physician
behaviors that inclined them to rate physicians the way they
did.
Here are their answers.
These are the keys to improved collegial relationships at
SOMC.
The physicians whose photographs are in this presentation were ranked in the top decile.
How do physicians who are viewed as
respectful behave?
• They acknowledge my presence, value my knowledge
and respect my opinion.
• They treat me with the same respect they extend to
their physician colleagues.
• They make eye contact with me, know my name and
use it.
• They ask me whether I need anything else before
they leave the floor.
• They are positive, considerate and they say, “Thank
you.”
• They build a relationship with me.
• They seek me out before seeing patients to invite my
input, and they listen to their patients.
• They treat me with respect no matter what time of
day I call.
• They treat everyone the same no matter where they
work or what their position is.
How do physicians who are NOT
viewed as respectful behave?
• They don’t acknowledge my presence and
act as if they don’t want to be bothered.
• They are impatient; they interrupt me
when I am on the phone or talking to
someone else.
• They indulge in childish behaviors such as
screaming, raising their voices, stomping
their feet, rolling their eyes or sighing.
• They use a disrespectful tone when
clarifying an order.
• They hang up on me.
• They are condescending, unappreciative
and they do not work at building
relationships.
How do physicians who are viewed as
team players behave?
• They make themselves easily accessible by
cell phone.
• They do not put nurses in the middle; they
call their physician colleagues themselves.
• They seek out the nurse who has been
caring for the patient.
• They are approachable and willing to teach.
• They demonstrate that they care about me
and my department.
• They seek my advice and they respect my
input.
• They take ownership of problems, make
decisions and follow through.
• They are never arrogant or condescending.
How do physicians who are NOT
viewed as team players behave?
• They put me in the middle instead of
speaking to their colleagues themselves.
• They refuse to see their patients when I
ask them to do so.
• They do not value my expertise or my
opinion.
• They are always in a hurry and
discourage my questions or suggestions.
• They avoid or refuse to include their
patients and their families in decision
making.
How do physicians who are passionate about
achieving and sustaining exceptional
organizational performance behave?
• They enjoy being a physician and they are
passionate about their jobs.
• They suggest opportunities for
improvement and they are eager to be part
of the solution.
• They are open to change if it will improve
patient care.
• They keep themselves up-to-date with the
latest evidence-based practices.
• They buy into our organizational goals and
incentives and participate in our suggested
scripting for patients.
• They invite nurses’ input and are receptive
to our suggestions.
• They take time to talk and listen.
How do physicians who are NOT passionate about
achieving and sustaining exceptional
organizational performance behave?
• They ignore or criticize our
organizational values and policies,
referring to them as, “stupid.”
• They compare us unfavorably to other
hospitals.
• They are hurried and not thorough; they
do not invite or allow time for questions.
• They do not communicate with their
patients or with me.
• They rely on consultants and avoid
seeing their patients.
• They are resistant to change and
unwilling to learn new things.
Where can you learn more?
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Review 66 proven strategies for improving your emotional
intelligence and increasing your self-awareness, self-management,
social awareness and relationship management by reading Emotional
Intelligence 2.0 by Bradberry , Greaves and Lencioni. You can
purchase this book here.
Take an examination to discover your EQ strengths and
opportunities here.
Buy Dale Carnegie’s classic, “How to Win Friends and Influence
People,” here.
Buy Stephen Covey’s classic, “The 7 Habits of Highly Successful
People,” here.
Are there other questions?
www.somc.org
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