One of the priorities for the Texas Medical Association Board of Trustees last year was to create a five-year strategic plan to provide direction and guidance for the association in carrying out its vision of empowering Texas physicians in the practice of medicine.
The first goal of that plan outlines strategies to “champion physician leadership” and deliver the expertise to elevate physicians’ roles as leaders.
“We [the board] believe physicians must have the ability to lead their health care team, medical group, hospital system, and community. TMA is committed to developing resources to equip our members with the tools and skills needed to be well-rounded leaders,” said Ray Callas, MD, TMA president-elect.
TMA’s strategies are:
- Within the care team: Preserve, promote, and protect the physician as the leader of the health care team;
- Within communities: Position physicians as trusted leaders and the authority on medical issues in their communities;
- Within organized medicine: Identify and develop physicians to represent organized medicine; and
- With visibility: Develop communication and marketing strategies to inform members and stakeholders of the issues and TMA’s efforts.
Some of the ways TMA already is achieving this goal are through its advocacy efforts to stop scope-of-practice infringements that diminish patients’ access to high-quality, physician-led care (tma.tips/TMAadvocacy).
When it comes to leadership development, TMA has two programs to help physicians tap into and hone their skills.
Leadership College is a program that helps young physicians develop a deeper understanding of their own leadership strengths and expand their abilities to serve in organized medicine and their communities. TMA also recently launched its new Lifelong Leadership Program for physicians in all stages of their career. Participants can learn or refine their skills via in-person sessions, webinars, and on-demand content to earn the Lifelong Leadership Program Certificate. It’s free to TMA members. For more information on these opportunities, visit www.texmed.org/LeadershipDevelopment.
TMA also provides free CME programs on a wide range of topics and keeps members up to date on the ever-changing health care landscape through its trusted news publications – daily newsletter Texas Medicine Today (www.texmed.org/TMT) and Texas Medicine magazine.
Texas Medicine will continue to feature the six goals outlined in TMA’s five-year strategic plan.
“Our profession has experienced a lot of change over the past two decades, and we wanted to make sure our focus was on priorities that physicians need to thrive and survive,” Dr. Callas said.
Last Updated On
March 05, 2024
Originally Published On
February 29, 2024