Full Transcript Introduction to Professional Development 0:00 Today, we're diving into the why and the how of professional development in 2026. How to get started, what it can look like, 0:08 and how to avoid the all too common trap of under-investing in your own growth and that of the people around you. 0:16 Welcome to Medical Money Matters, the podcast where you can find experts, answers, and resources so that you achieve mastery over the financial and business 0:29 aspects of your practice. 0:32 Hello everyone, I'm your host, Jill Arena. 0:35 I began my career in accounting and finance, and I have more than 30 years of experience running medical groups. 0:50 In 2020, I co-founded the Physician Leadership Project, and in 2025 I released Physicians Edge, the first of its kind CME accredited online business education 1:02 for physicians. 1:03 My passion is to increase financial and business literacy for Physicians. 1:09 Episode 164. Is your New Year's resolution to get more professional development for yourself and your team? 1:17 If not, it should be. 1:20 New year, new goals, but how many of us actually prioritize professional development as a resolution?
Why Growth Matters in Healthcare Leadership 1:27 Most people jump into January thinking about eating better, working out more, maybe saving some money or getting more sleep. 1:35 And those things are all important. 1:37 But here's something that often gets left off the list, and it might be the most important investment you can make. 1:44 Developing yourself as the leader and investing in the growth of your team. 1:49 If that hasn't made it onto your list of resolutions, I'm going to make the case for why it should be. 1:55 In fact, i'd argue it might be the single most strategic move you could make this year for yourself, your organization, and your team. 2:03 Whether you're a physician leader, an operations executive, or a practice administrator, staying stagnant is not an option. 2:11 The world of healthcare is simply changing too fast. 2:15 the workforce is demanding more than just a paycheck. 2:18 And organizations that don't evolve, well, they start to fall behind pretty quickly. 2:24 Today, we're diving into the why and the how of professional development in 2026. How to get started, what it can look like, 2:32 and how to avoid the all too common trap of under-investing in your own growth and that of the people around you. 2:40 Let's start with a big picture. 2:42 Why is professional developments so essential in today's healthcare environment? 2:46 First, let's be real about what leadership looks like right now. 2:50 It's hard. 2:52 Leading in healthcare has never been simple, but right know it's the perfect storm of complexity. 2:58 Changing regulations, staffing shortages, payer pressure, new technologies, and patients who expect more than ever. 3:07 That means we, as leaders, need to be sharper than ever. 3:11 Strong leaders set the tone for culture, for strategy, and for innovation. 3:16 If you're not growing, you are sending a message to your team, whether you mean to or not. 3:21 And it's not a great one. 3:22 Leadership isn't a set it and forget it title. 3:25 It's a journey. 3:28 one that requires ongoing sharpening of skills, perspectives, and approaches. 3:33 But it's not just about you.
What Professional Development Can Look Like 3:35 Your team is watching. 3:36 They're watching how you invest in your own growth, but they're also quietly asking themselves, is this a place where I can grow too? 3:44 Because here's the truth, smart, capable people don't stick around where they feel stuck. 3:50 And that brings us to one of the biggest pitfalls of underinvesting in professional development. 3:55 You lose talent. 3:57 High performers won't stay where they don't see a future, or where their skills are stagnating. 4:03 And even those who stay may slowly disengage if they feel like their growth isn't valued. 4:09 There's also the risk of skill gaps. 4:11 Healthcare is too complex and too regulated to run on outdated knowledge. 4:16 Whether it's regulatory changes, billing updates, or evolving patient expectations, your team needs to be continuously learning just to keep up, 4:25 let alone stay ahead. 4:27 So what does professional development actually look like? 4:31 Well, it doesn't have to mean signing up for a $10,000 conference or going back to school. 4:36 It can, but that's not the only way. 4:38 Development can be formal, informal, experiential, or structured. 4:43 The key is intentionality. 4:46 For leaders, development might include executive coaching, joining a mastermind group, or attending healthcare leadership events like the Practice Management Institute, 4:54 MGMA, ACHE, more specialty-specific summits. 4:59 It could be diving into new models like value-based care or refining soft skills like conflict resolution, communication, 5:07 and change management. 5:09 You might also explore certifications in Lean, Six Sigma, or Healthcare Finance, whatever makes sense for your role and your growth trajectory. 5:18 On the team side, development should be just as thoughtful. 5:21 Think role-specific training. 5:24 Maybe it's deeper revenue cycle training for you billing staff or front desk communication workshops. 5:30 May be it is helping new supervisors build foundational leadership skills or offering burnout prevention programming. 5:37 And don't forget about cross-training. 5:39 That not only increases flexibility but gives team members a better understanding of how the whole organization functions. 5:46 It fosters empathy, efficiency, and deeper collaboration. 5:51 One thing we love doing at Healthy Practices is embedding development into the everyday. 5:56 Not everything has to be a formal training. 5:58 Consider ideas like learning lunches, internal TED-style talks, or peer shadowing. 6:04 These low-cost, high-impact options build a culture of learning that doesn't require massive budgets, just a commitment to growth. 6:13 Speaking of culture, let me tell you a little bit about how we handle professional development at healthy practices. 6:21 You're listening to Medical Money Matters, a weekly podcast brought to you by Healthy Practices, the healthcare consulting and revenue cycle company dedicated 6:30 to keeping our clients independent.
Healthy Practices' Development Approach 6:33 Please reach out if we can do anything at all to support your practice. 6:37 You can find more information online at healtheps.com. 6:42 That's www.healtheps dot com. 6:47 Please follow or subscribe to get all future episodes downloaded as soon as they're released. 6:55 Every year, each member of our leadership team is given a professional development budget. 7:00 It's theirs to use. 7:02 But more importantly, we sit down and talk as a group about what we want to learn, what were curious about, where we wanna stretch or grow. 7:10 We don't dictate the learning, we partner with each other to design it. 7:14 And that matters. 7:16 It signals trust, it honors individual paths, and it keeps learning aligned with what the company needs and what each person is passionate about. 7:26 It's become one of the most meaningful rituals of our annual planning, because it's not just about checking a box. 7:32 It is about creating a shared understanding that we grow together. 7:36 That development isn't a nice-to-have, it is a strategic necessity. 7:41 Now, let's talk for a moment about what happens when this doesn't happen, when development gets pushed to the back burner. 7:48 Maybe you've seen this, maybe you lived it. 7:51 The leader who's still using the same management playbook they had 10 years ago. 7:55 the team that hasn't had any formal training in years. 8:04 That's not just unfortunate, it's dangerous. 8:07 Because stagnation doesn't stay still forever. 8:10 It becomes disengagement.It becomes turnover. 8:13 it becomes operational gaps that show up in patient experience, compliance failures, or billing errors. 8:20 And let's be clear, no one is immune to this. 8:23 Even great organizations can fall into the trap of, we don't have time, or we'll get to it next quarter. 8:30 But the longer you delay, the more costly the consequences. 8:35 The good news is it's never too late to change the narrative. 8:38 And that's where our team comes in. 8:40 At Healthy Practices, we offer a range of development options that meet practices where they are. 8:46 If you're looking for something tailored to physicians, our Physicians Edge program is designed specifically for clinical leaders wanting to learn business 8:55 skills to navigate the administrative and cultural complexities of today's healthcare environment. 9:00 And it's accredited for 32 and a half hours of CME to boot. 9:04 For administrative leaders, we offer MAPS, the Medical Administrative Performance Series, a cohort-based virtual program focused on practical,
Consequences of Stagnation and Available Programs 9:13 high-impact training that improves daily performance and confidence. 9:18 And for your frontline staff, we've developed FORCE, Front Office Revenue Cycle Education, a high-energy, hands-on program that helps your team understand 9:28 how their role connects to revenue, compliance, and patient satisfaction. 9:33 But we're not limited to just our programs. 9:35 We're also happy to help you find the right fit, even if that's a different industry training program or an external conference. 9:42 we believe in right-fit learning, not one-size-fits-all solutions. 9:47 We'll work with you to identify your team's development needs and match those with the best tools, resources, or experiences, 9:54 whether that's through us or through our broader network of trusted industry offerings. 9:59 At the end of the day, the message is simple. 10:01 Your team growth is a strategic asset. 10:04 You own development is part of a leadership legacy. 10:07 And the organizations that prioritize learning are the ones that thrive, especially in an industry as complex and dynamic as healthcare. 10:17 So as you look ahead to the new year, ask yourself, what do I want to learn this year? 10:22 What does my team need to grow? 10:25 what's one step I can take this month to start building a culture of development? 10:31 It doesn't have to be a massive overhaul. 10:33 It starts with intention, with making space for growth, With saying yes to the idea that better is always possible, and often just a decision away. 10:43 Need help getting started? 10:45 We're here. 10:46 Whether you want to explore physician's edge, maps, force, or simply want talk through ideas, our team at Healthy Practices is ready to help you design 10:54 a development roadmap that makes sense for you and your organization. 10:59 Let's make 2026 the year that development isn't an afterthought.
Closing Thoughts and Next Steps 11:04 It's a foundation. 11:05 Until next time. 11:08 You can find more information online at medicalmoneymatterspodcast.com, and you can sign up to be notified when enrollment opens for the Medical Money 11:19 Matters eLearning program for a mini-MBA physician style, which will carry CME credits and will be released in upcoming months. 11:28 In that, we'll do an even deeper dive so you can understand dynamic budgeting strategies, cash flow forecasting, and other more esoteric financial concepts. 11:39 We've included those links in the show notes. 11:41 As I like to close out these podcasts, congratulations on taking the next step in your professional development and for making the commitment to learn 11:50 about the financial and business aspects of your practice. 11:53 I look forward to being on this journey with you and send you my heartfelt gratitude for all that you do for your patients all day, 12:01 every day.
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