In the spring of 2006, chief and senior residents were surveyed to determine how they prepared for their senior administrative/leadership role, what topics should be included in a leadership workshop and how this workshop should be delivered. Overall, 32.3% had no prior contact with the previous chief resident. Among those prepared, 46% consulted previous chiefs/seniors and/or program directors. Eighty-five percent agreed that a leadership workshop would be beneficial for future chiefs.
Using the results from this environmental scan, a planning committee was formed to design the First Annual Chief Resident Leadership Workshop, held in August 2006, to identify and develop leadership skills while providing them with the resources to ease their transition into this senior administrative role. Seven sessions were offered: Your Role as Chief Resident, Mentorship, overview of the residents’ work/education contract, Personality Inventory (i.e. Myers-Briggs), Anti-Racism and Harassment, Resident Wellness and Public Speaking. A keynote address on leadership in academic medicine was given by a well-known Canadian clinician leader. To reinforce the experience, a resource binder and handbook was distributed to all participants.
Quality and content of each session was evaluated using on a 5-point Likert scale. Mean scores were calculated. Mentorship scored the highest in terms of quality (4.46) and content (4.47), followed by Leadership in Academic Medicine (4.43 and 4.62, respectively). Over 90 % agreed that a leadership program is necessary. Parallel to our earlier findings, many chief residents use multiple sources to prepare for their role, primarily the pairing of contact with the previous chief resident and the Program Director. The results indicate that a formal, centralized leadership workshop/seminar is valued and should highlight the necessary skills set and provide key resources.
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