Coaching Tips for Medical Education Today Part 8: Loyalty to the Team...

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Coach Woodenism for the Week:"Loyalty is part of human beings higher nature. It is also part of the nature of great teams and those who lead them".

In this blog series, we are applying legendary Coach John Wooden's Pyramid of Success to medical education. As coaches and trainees, we began by adding the cornerstones of Attitude and Effort, followed by the Friendship block of the Pyramid's foundation.

A colleague of mine asked me last week, "How does creating a successful sports team translate into clinical medicine?". Check out the terrific article in BMJ "Teams, tribes and patient safety: overcoming barriers to effective teamwork in healthcare" by Jennifer Weller.  You'll learn that poor team work in medicine actually increases patient mortality, creates waste, and reduces professional satisfaction. And you'll review strategies to improve team communication in clinical medicine - similar concepts are described in the blocks of Coach's pyramid.

This week, we're adding the Loyalty block to the foundation row. For Coach Wooden, loyalty was always earned. A leader earned his player's loyalty by first being an example of steadfast dedication to the players, staff, program, and always to his own ideals.

This week, focus on building your team's Loyalty by always be an example of tireless commitment to your patient, staff, department, and most importantly, to your mission as a physician and person. On the drive into work visualize how you will demonstrate loyalty in the clinical arena. On the drive home, reflect on your day, giving thanks, reflecting on the effect this loyalty had on your patient, your team and yourself.

Make it a great week!

Where to Learn More:
BMJ "Teams, tribes and patient safety: overcoming barriers to effective teamwork in healthcare" by Jennifer Weller
Wooden on Leadership: How to Create a Winning Organization, by John Wooden and Steve Jamison
Coach Wooden: The 7 Principles That Shaped His Life and Will Change Yours, by Pat Williams and Jim Denney.




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