Atif Zafar

Why Doctors Need To Be Leaders. Atif Zafar

If you review twitter feeds, opinion pieces from docs on KevinMD.com or doximity blogs, current opinion & active issues of concern for physician community are physical and mental 'burn out', frustration with documentation requirements, increasing role of nurse practitioners, long duty hours, insurance 'intrusion' in clinical care, etc. In general, the physician issues revolve around lack of autonomy in hospitals & practices, doctors being dictated & micromanaged on how to manage patients. Satisfaction among patients & doctors is an all-time low.- ONE U. S. physician commits suicide every single day!- 23% of interns report suicidal thoughts.- Medical students are 3X likelier to die of suicide.- Physicians are spending 2 hours on EHR and clerical work for every hour they provide direct patient care. Currently, there is no structure or curriculum related to LEADERSHIP for medical students, trainees, or early-career physicians. The lack of LEADERSHIP TRAINING among physicians has left a gap, that then naturally gets filled by other players. This has resulted in external dictation and directions by insurance payers, billing companies, government departments and a sundry of others, who are all involved in the day to day affairs of most medical practices. The eventual result is what we see today: both patients and their providers are in misery. Healthcare is evolving, rapidly. Specializing in JUST Medicine is NOT ENOUGH. You MUST learn to "create value" by LEARNING BEYOND just the practice of medicine. Doctors-just-see-patients-approach isn't enough. This rapidly evolving landscape requires DOCTORS to build a knowledge-base & skill set in Business Management, Administration, Strategic Implementation, Patient Advocacy, Research & Development, Entrepreneurship, Sales & Marketing, Tech Innovation, Internet of Things (IoT), or Healthcare Economics & Hospital/Practice Finance. What This Book Offers: - Insights on how to transform a physician into an inspirational leader.- This book starts with the basic insight on why leadership for doctors is a necessity rather than an option in the 21st century.- And then delves into various chapters ranging from Physicians as Advocates, policymakers, researchers, administrators, entrepreneurs, managers, and quality improvement leaders and ends with transformation strategies and future prospects. Atif Zafar is a neurologist, a researcher, an entrepreneur, an advocate, mentor, coach, and a life-long student of science and leadership. In this book, he wishes to converse with medical students, trainees, early-career physicians, and other stakeholders to stimulate a transformative discussion and to instigate leadership. These discussions aim to introduce the core principles of leadership for the future generations of doctors and to foment a culture of leadership in this incisive, analytical, bright and smart faction of the society. Learning these attributes, and applying this knowledge & skill set will help you jump start your career. This high-value book will inspire you to change your mindset, unshackle your intrinsic abilities of leadership, and help you think outside the box.