Physician as a Conscious Leader

Surgical practice requires the mastery of modern leadership principles and skills in addition to the acquisition of medical knowledge and technical skills. Previously, there was no formal leadership training in graduate medical education at the David Geffen School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, and resident physicians identified a lack of leadership skills training as an area of weakness. Leadership education for surgeons can improve the perioperative atmosphere and positively affect interpersonal collaboration with perioperative nurse colleagues. Physicians are leaders in daily patient care, and they need leadership training with an emphasis on consciousness to be successful leaders. This article reviews a leadership program that I instituted at the David Geffen School of Medicine, which teaches leadership skills and techniques that emphasize consciousness as a physician leader. This patient-based leadership program demonstrates the tools, methods, and techniques that physicians need to be successful as conscious leaders.