Great Meeting with Great Topics!
Tina DiMarino from Custom Surgical presented at ASCRS 2019 in San Diego this year. Her topic was on Leadership and honing effective leadership skills. This is such an important topic for all leaders in ambulatory surgery. This lecture covered material for both new managers and experienced leaders.
She covered contemporary leadership theory to provide a foundation. Tina referenced Transformational Leadership and the Four Frames Theory by Bolman and Deal. Both of these theories provide a prescriptive method of approaching leadership and its challenges. Four Frames Theory is also an organizational theory to which many scenarios may be applied.
Transformational Leadership theory requires the leader be inspirational and proactive. Both attributes lend themselves well when working with an ambulatory surgery center team. Most employees working in ambulatory surgery tend to be type A personalities which requires a leader that can bring everyone together to work toward the same mission and vision.
The Four Frames Theory encourages the leader to look at the same scenario through many different frames or perspectives. Doing so, can bring about a robust perspective to any issue. The theory purports that by looking at any one situation through only one lens may be short-sighted or keep one from getting the whole picture. This practice of looking through the four lenses may be more difficult to do at first, but with practice would become second nature.
Both theories covered rely on building relationships. Building relationships as a leader is paramount. Relationships help move teams toward the achievement of goals. In ambulatory surgery centers, there are many goals that are set and objectives to be obtained on a monthly or quarterly basis. Another important attribute to hone is the ability to change and adapt an approach to suit the intended audience. There are many different employees with varying levels of education present in the ambulatory surgery setting. Changing your communication to suit the intended receiver is a huge asset. Even the most seasoned leaders realize that the road to becoming a leader is a journey. A leader should always be open to learning new concepts and approaches. Learning from their own experiences is also just as important. A leader must have the ability to reflect on their own feelings and judgements in order to obtain self-improvement.
Tina recommended that leaders continue to read new books on the topic and offered a reference list to start. She also outlined some current trends in leadership. Many easily found on LinkedIn. She discussed what to consider when communicating with the ambulatory surgery center team. Tina also offered tips for taking care of oneself as a leader and outlines some of the behaviors a leader should never do. It is always a great idea to continue to review and remind oneself of these measures. It is easy to fall back on old habits.
Tina ended her presentation with a question and answer session that brought to light some ideas for future presentations. Issues discussed by administrators located on the east coast were mirrored by administrators offering insight from the west coast. Leadership in ambulatory surgery centers are facing the same dilemmas and concerns nationwide.
San Diego’s meeting was well worth the visit!
