Paul DeChant, MD, MBA, is a leadership coach who works with organizations to reduce clinician burnout and create a culture of organizational wellbeing. Prior to becoming a coach and consultant, Dr. DeChant worked in multiple direct care roles, including as an ER physician and primary care physician. As a leader, he has orchestrated clinic and system growth, overseen mergers, supported EHR optimization, and chaired compensation committees at systems including Geisinger Health System and Palo Alto Medical Foundation. Dr. DeChant also served as the CEO of the Sutter Gould Medical Foundation. In that role, he oversaw transformation work focused on returning joy to practice.
In this episode, Dr. DeChant talks about what’s different about workplace transformation in the trailing edge of the COVID-19 pandemic. He looks at the need to rethink workload as an antidote to burnout, digging deeper than the concept of exhaustion into the causes of cynicism and inefficacy. This means delving into concepts such as respect, values, and community connection. Dr. DeChant talks about management concepts such as LEAN and what it takes to apply these in ways that solve for burnout rather than contributing to it. He also touches on leadership burnout and how leaders can care for their own resilience and wellbeing and then lead others on a path toward joy and wellbeing at work.
Links related to Dr. DeChant’s episode:
- Dr. DeChant’s website
