Menders: Love & Leadership in Health Systems Dr. Nicola De Paul

Pay attention to the personal and organizational factors that erode well-being, drive burnout, and make strategic changes to nourish yourself and your team.“I’ve finally found my passion!” Not every day, my patients walk into my office smiling, but it’s delightful when it happens. I’d been working with this guy for a while, focusing on mindful self-awareness and kicking his people-pleasing habit. I never intended to help him find his passion, but it happened when he began paying attention to ...

Earn employees' trust by giving them a life-giving workplace.I’d been waiting to catch the attention of my chief of staff all morning. I finally had her on my screen. With my headphones on, I didn’t notice the office door creak open until a glitter-encrusted wand was thrust in my face. I was mortified, but she responded graciously, “I have kids too.” COVID reminded us of our humanity and removed the work-life separation so many of us were used to. So, let’s use that lesson to reshape how...

If you’re a woman in leadership struggling to prioritize yourself, try Intuitive Eating as a first step to honoring yourself. You can't be the woman in leadership your people need you to be without prioritizing self-care.One of the things that women leaders mention is the difficulty they have prioritizing taking time for themselves, especially when that is not being encouraged in their work environment. Leaders (especially women) feel time pressured as they balance the many needs of ever...

Lead with self-awareness and mindfulness to keep your leadership presence in difficult times. As a psychologist, much of my time is spent teaching people how to regulate their emotions. You could call this skill learning how to manage stress, distress tolerance, or create breathing space under pressure. Leaders need three skills to stay calm and maintain leadership presence in difficult situations.Mindful emotional awarenessFlexible thinkingValues-aligned action I use these ski...

Leaders Are Trained Not Born. It is time to include leadership development as a core component of healthcare training. Our trainees may have innate leadership skills and qualities, but leadership can also be taught. And as we work to create institutions that reflect our communities, we must equip trainees from diverse backgrounds with the leadership skills our organizations need. Your trainees and up-and-coming leaders in your organization will benefit from learning to appreciate ho...

Address structural bias to elevate underrepresented employees as leaders within healthcare organizations.There is a representation gap in healthcare leadership. People with diverse identities and historically marginalized tend to be underrepresented in the pool of applicants presenting for executive positions in healthcare organizations. Many things must change, including the structural elements reinforcing bias and underrepresentation. Dr. Chamarlyn Fairley and I had the opportunit...