Ask the expert: What qualifications and qualities should we require of our medical staff leaders?

Consider requiring your medical staff leaders to possess the following qualifications and qualities.

The physician must:

• Be an active staff member in good standing for four years. A member of good standing has:
  • Never been the center of a fair hearing
  • Presented professional behavior at all times
  • Followed the medical staff bylaws and policies consistently
  • Positive quality and peer review results
• Be board certified or board admissible in one of the American Board of Medical Specialties primary boards
• Have two years of experience in a medical staff leadership position or equivalent
• Have demonstrated leadership ability in some way (i.e., physician has served as an influential member of a task force, committee chair, etc.)
• Have received training in medical staff and administrative duties and demonstrated willingness to attend future leadership training programs
• Demonstrate his or her support of the hospital’s mission
• Not to be a medical staff or board leader at any other hospital and fully disclose any interest in a competing healthcare entity as part of the nomination and selection process
• Disclose all conflicts of interest
• Recognize and agree to represent medical staff issues to the board in a timely and accurate manner
• Demonstrate the ability to work positively and communicate well with medical staff members, administration, and the board
• Recognize the responsibility and his or her role in communicating with medical staff, administration, and the board

This week’s question and answer are adapted from How to Recruit and Develop Physician Leaders: A strategy for medical staff leadership development by Richard A. Sheff, MD, CMSL; Todd Sagin, MD, JD; and Albert Fritz, MHA.