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Leadership course promotes diversity, leadership among female physicians

  • Published
  • By Military Health System Communications Office
  • Defense Health Agency
The Military Health System  recognizes the importance of building and maintaining a diverse collection of skilled medical professionals valued for their knowledge, leadership and dedication in the medical field. An upcoming leadership course, scheduled at the Defense Health Agency headquarters in Falls Church, Virginia, April 11-13, will offer female physicians from all service branches a chance to sharpen their leadership skills and understand how these skills can create opportunities for women in their respective fields. 

“The leadership course engages the women within their units, helps them to get recognized, and helps them build their skills in leadership,” said Air Force Col. Linda Lawrence, special assistant to the Air Force Surgeon General for Trusted Care Transformation. “They can then connect in a way that fosters their development as a leader and engages them in the organization, making it more likely that they will remain in service.” 

The Council for Female Physician Recruitment and Retention (CFPR&R), sponsor of the event, works to keep female physicians and medical professionals interested in the military by improving their leadership skills and encouraging mentorship. The group fosters networking opportunities and offers other incentives, such as the Female Physician Leadership Award, which recognizes outstanding women in the health care field, and hosts the MHS Female Physician Leadership Course. That course has become a popular event for encouraging diversity and continued careers in the MHS. 

“The council wanted to conduct some retention initiatives for the female active duty physicians in all of the services,” said Rebecca Russell, chief human capital officer for MHS. “And from that, the idea for the leadership course was born.” 

Senior-level speakers and panels will address attendees about the benefits of working for the MHS, achieving a positive work-life balance, and creating a more diverse workplace. There will also be group activities and brainstorming sessions to encourage networking and idea-sharing among the physicians. The council hopes the interactive sessions will inspire attendees to work together and find ways to put the ideals of diversity and leadership into action on a larger level. 

“What we are trying to do is make a difference,” said Lawrence, who was the first chairperson of CFPR&R. “We’ve made an impact, and expect that impact to grow as more women remain in the services.” 

Senior level military officials from the council, which formed in 2009, met to look for ways to encourage diversity and to retain female physicians who might be considering transitioning back to the civilian sector before, or when, they reach a senior level. Ideas, such as the leadership course, came from these meetings. The council launched the leadership course at the 2011 MHS Conference and it became a stand-alone course in 2015. Past attendees have been enthusiastic about the course, and many said it reinforced their careers in the MHS, and that they gained valuable skills and knowledge from attending. 

This year’s course is set to be the largest yet, with every service branch represented and more than 100 participants. 

“We identified the lack of female physicians in senior leadership roles as a significant contributor,” said Lawrence, “and began looking for opportunities to remedy the situation. One of the more important remedies we found was the leadership course.”