Dr. Anneliese Schleyer (Medicine, CMO of UW Medicine) brings insight on what it means to center patients and families in the work we do. From the first interaction at the bedside, remember that first and foremost this is a person, who happens to be on a healthcare journey. Get to know their name, interests, and goals. At a systems level, ensure that the patient or family voice is at the table for new projects or initiatives. Finally, strive to always learn from patients and families to continuously improve how we care for them.

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Music by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com/)

Dr. Rudy Rodriguez (Medicine) walks through how to approach requests for letters of evaluation or support from faculty colleagues seeking promotion at outside institutions. He explains the difference between internal and external letters of support, as well as when to say yes or no to a request. You will also learn about the key elements to include in your letter and tips for being thoughtful in the language you use to convey your colleague's capabilities.

Read the episode transcript here

Music by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com/)

Drs. Rachel Wong (Biological Structure) and David Sherman (Microbiology) join us to discuss the key components of grants and the most common pitfalls grant writers encounter. They provide their thoughts on when to write your specific aims, how early to get feedback from colleagues, and tips to make the review process as easy as possible for reviewers. Treat each grant like it's the only one you will write, and make sure it is for work you truly feel passionate about.

Read the episode transcript here

Music by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com/)

Dr. Ben Humphreys (Professor and Chief of the Division of Nephrology, Washington University) shares his experience and success in supporting his URMS (underrepresented in medicine and science) colleagues in their careers. Be thoughtful and check your own implicit biases as you consider the best opportunities to offer and how they will benefit your colleagues. Strategize how to advocate for your URMS colleagues based on the unique challenges they vocalize. Finally, recognize when to step out of a leadership role and use sponsorship to promote URMS colleagues who would be a good fit for that role.

Read the episode transcript here

Music by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com/)

Dr. Michelle Terry (Assistant Dean for Underrepresented in Medicine and Science Career Development) delineates how she learned to build community with others, and provides tips to get started. Make the commitment to show up at events that interest you, reach out to people you want to get to know, and approach all interactions, whether with a stranger or colleague, with curious intention.

Music by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com/)

Dr. Anne Browning, Associate Dean for Well-Being, emphasizes using reflection to set intentions rather than resolutions as you start a new year. Learn how radical acceptance can help you let go of narratives or patterns that no longer serve you. Recognize and observe your emotional reactions without judgment, and embrace the practice of anticipatory joy to bring you out of past ruminations and into what lies ahead.

Music by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com/)

Dr. Suzanne Allen (Family Medicine; Vice Dean for Academic, Rural, and Regional Affairs) provides tips and tricks for managing your calendar, including how to partner with someone in doing so. Communicate regularly with your assistant about your calendar, clearly relay the urgency level of each meeting request, and have them place holds for each time offered to prevent double bookings. You may also consider blocking time for non-meeting work and shortening hour-long meetings to 50-minutes.

Music by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com/)

Toni McMurphy, founder of Infinite Impact, explains what restorative justice is and how it can be added to your workplace to build community. Restorative justice is the application of restorative practices applied when harm has occurred. Ms. McMurphy describes how to adopt these practices using circles, centering the situation instead of any individual person, and keeping both intent and potential impact in mind throughout the process.

Music by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com/)

Lisa Pierce, the Project Manager for the Office of Faculty Affairs, provides another perspective on how faculty can collaborate with colleagues on projects. Start with establishing trust within your teams and clarifying roles and responsibilities. Then experiment with tools and find the best ways to communicate and track work based on the preferences of everyone in your team. 

Music by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com/)

Dr. Giana Davidson (Surgery; Assistant Dean for Professional Development) provides a faculty member's perspective on how to collaborate with project managers. Whether it's a research project or clinical initiative, a key foundation is creating a shared vision of what success looks like for the whole team. Then you can organize the work visually to track task progress, check in frequently with your partners, and know when to step in and help each other move the work forward.

Music by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com/)