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Nervous about a lunch interview (to slurp the soup or not?), scared about balancing your time wisely? Fear not, the Professionalism community offers invaluable articles and suggestions such as Medical Ethics, The Impact of Personality, Platform skills and more!

Professionalism Contributors

Marsheila DeVan
Communications Specialist
Independent Communications Consultant

Danielle Holtzman
Certified Etiquette Consultant

Most Recent Articles

Lights! Camera! Action!

Prepare: Before you go on camera: Attire Wear dark blue or brown and try to avoid black. Know Your Story Focus your broad knowledge of your subject into three key messages that tell a complete story. Think about what you would like the headline to be, and what you want your audience to remember. Consider the Audience Whom are you trying to reach? Make sure your messages and your supporting information are tailored to your audience. Avoid jargon ...

by admin on 03-07-2011
Practice Operations Overview

"So. What are you going to do when you complete your medical training?" It's a question you're probably hearing a lot from your family, your friends and your colleagues. Answering that question will involve a lot of research and hard work on your part. However, developing the knowledge and skills to answer it successfully for you was likely not part of your medical training.You are in the Medical Physician in Transition phase. ...

by admin on 03-02-2011
International Protocol

Going Global – A Guide on International Protocols We live and work in a global economy. Thanks to the conveniences of modern technology, geographic distance is not a barrier for conducting business worldwide. It is likely that you have already encountered various forms of cultural diversity in your career as a physician. Whether it is through teachers, peers, colleagues, advisors, or patients, you will continuously find yourself ...

by admin on 03-02-2011

Most Recent Terms

Trait Procrastinators

A personality trait which includes an irrational tendency to delay beginning and/or completing tasks that should be completed http://content.health.msn.com/content/pages/9/1674_51220 http://www.idr-journal.com/IDR_freeview.pdf

by admin on 05-07-2009
Time Log

A system of writing, recording and analyzing time and activity. http://www.time-management-guide.com/time-log.html http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/business/9034761.htm

by admin on 05-07-2009
Time Management Tool

An electronic device or paper-based system that aids in planning your time, scheduling events, tracking accomplishments and keeping notes. Common and popuar systems include Day-at-a-Glance books and Palm pilot PDAs. http://ollie.dcccd.edu/mgmt1374/book_contents...

by admin on 05-07-2009
Scribes

A person or software engaged to capture and record significant findings and observations. http://www.ophmanagement.com/archive_results.asp?article=85900⊂=1152 http://www.laidlawcompliance.com/emc/2004%20Policies/313%20Use%20of%20Scribes.pdf

by admin on 05-07-2009
Planning Grid

A time management tool or device designed for organizing your workload and to ensure routine tasks are performed. http://www.ascp.com/public/pubs/tcp/1997/sep/helpfulideas.html

by admin on 05-07-2009
Retrograde Planning

A drawing or diagram showing parts or details to plan backward for the future. http://www.saem.org/download/chisholm.pdf

by admin on 05-07-2009
Delegation

Giving authority to perform a certain task or tasks to someone lower down in the organizational hierarchy. The act of assigning responsibility. http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oi=defmore&q=define:delegation

by admin on 05-07-2009
Master List

An ongoing list of everything you need or want to do and includes short, near and long-term objectives and projects. http://www.emedicine.com/emerg/topic673.htm#section~planning_tools

by admin on 05-07-2009
PDAs

Personal Digital Assisant; one of any number of electronic, hand-held devices used to organize your life. Popular brands include Palmt, Sony, Pyxis, Apple and Scion.

by admin on 05-07-2009
Day-Timer

Paper or electronic instrument designed to organize daily activities, actions, and time management. http://ollie.dcccd.edu/mgmt1374/book_contents/3organizing/timemgmt/tool.htm

by admin on 05-07-2009
Action Plan

A document used to guide the implementation of business process improvements. It contains task assignments, schedules, resource allocations, assignments, and evaluation criteria http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oi=defmore&q...

by admin on 05-07-2009
Power Sharing

A strategy for resolving disputes over who should have the most powerful position in the social hierarchy. Instead of fighting over who should have power over whom, power sharing relies upon the joint exercise of power. If conflicts can be reframed to...

by admin on 05-07-2009
Mirror Imaging

A strategy, which parties, can use to assess the reasonableness of their behavior. It asks the parties to look at themselves the way others see them and make appropriate changes if they do not like what they see. Once this is understood, parties can change...

by admin on 05-07-2009
Mutuality

A reciprocal relation between interdependent entities (objects or individuals or groups. A method for clarifying elements in awareness, which involves bouncing two or more weak and unclear impressions, perceptions, ideas, feelings, sensations, or other...

by admin on 05-07-2009
Informal Mediation

Informal mediation is the use of someone internal to the organization who uses mediation techniques to help resolve issues among staff. The informal mediator does not have the advantages of outside neutrality or impartiality: He or she is a known entity...

by admin on 05-07-2009

Most Recent Questions

I'm always uncomfortable using notes during a presentation. Any tips on how to successfully pull this off?

Unfortunately, it is easy for notes to become a crutch for the speaker and a distraction for the audience. Following are some tips to creating effective notes and using them properly: -- Use multiple colors – this will make it easier to find the...

by admin on 10-24-2011
We have our share of conflict in the office and we also suffer from high staff turnover. What's the connection?

Unresolved conflict manifests itself in a myriad of ways that have an enormous, negative impact on job satisfaction, the level of patient care and the bottom line. It's not just the patients who get fed up when conflict goes unchecked. High employee...

by admin on 10-03-2011
There never seems to be enough time in the day to achieve everything I set out to do. Am I simply over-scheduling or doing something wrong?

Each physician's situation is unique and must be addressed individually. Since one cannot do everything at once, setting priorities is key and conscious choices must be made. For example, you may need to be more selective in your journal reading,...

by admin on 09-26-2011
When doctors communicate effectively and respectfully with their patients, the patients are less likely to do what?

Patients are not likely to sue physicians with whom they have developed a trusting and mutually respectful relationship.

by admin on 09-19-2011
How much importance should I place on preparing my presentation? Should I do some sort of pre-presentation rehearsal?

Rehearsal is preparation time devoted to the most crucial and difficult parts of the presentation while simulating the actual speaking conditions as closely as possible. Practice should not be going through the presentation time after time. Instead, rehearsal...

by admin on 08-15-2011
My biggest time management problem seems to be procrastination. Any tips for fixing this?

Procrastination happens to all of us from time to time. What makes a difference in your success is the ability to recognize procrastination in its different forms, and to promptly take it under control, before this bad habit steals your opportunities...

by admin on 03-30-2011
Many experts use the old S.M.A.R.T acronym to remember how a Goal Statement should be defined. What does SMART stand for?

The Goal Statement forms the basis for the entire process so careful attention should be placed on formulating a clear and accurate goal statement. A good way to remember how a goal statement should be defined is the old S.M.A.R.T. acronym used by many...

by admin on 03-14-2011
What does it mean to "build white space" in your calendar?

In order to minimize the number of interruptions that may interfere with staying on schedule, calendar space should be left deliberately unfilled to accommodate unforeseen delays and emergencies. An example of "white space" is when a calendar...

by admin on 02-08-2011
Why is good communication key to avoiding lawsuits?

Good communication skills correlate with a decreased probability of medical/legal consequences because the patient is more likely to comply with doctor recommendations and adherence to proposed plans of therapy and care.

by admin on 01-31-2011
What is temperament?

Temperament is determined by your unique neurological characteristics and unlike personality, it cannot be changed. It's like handedness; a set of inclinations each of us are born with, a predisposition to certain attitudes and actions. If you were...

by admin on 01-24-2011
If you take a pesonality test like the Myers Briggs Type Indicator testing tool, how do you know whether it's reliable?

Reliability is how consistently a test measures what it attempts to measure. Why is consistency important? Well, when you measure something with an instrument two times, you want it to come out with the same answer (or close to it) both times. With the...

by admin on 05-17-2009
List some reasons why personality assessment is vital to a doctors's career.

Many professionals have been so influenced by their environment that they adapt or alter their inborn personality tendencies almost beyond recognition. Personality assessment tools are used to address the innate nature of the personality to help individuals...

by admin on 05-17-2009
According to Jung, the intraverted person and the extraverted person both direct and focus their attention differently. How?

The essence of Jung's theory of types is that much of the seemingly random variation in behavior is due to basic differences in the way individuals orient themselves to the world and to themselves. Jung believed that a personality type was defined...

by admin on 05-17-2009
The results of perfectionism are great for your patients, but taken to even slight extremes, the behaviors that create the outward hallmarks of the "ophthalmic personality" can lead to what within your own family and staff?

In most cases, the personality pattern of surgeons allows them to function in an extremely demanding world. Patients probably want to have someone who is a commanding personality holding a blade to their eye. They want someone who's decisive, who...

by admin on 05-17-2009
Who are some of the people that providing "360-degree Feeback" to the doctor?

The best place to start any behavioral change effort is with a baseline assessment of where one’s strengths and most serious developmental needs lie. A multi-source assessment process, often referred to as “360-degree feedback,” is a...

by admin on 05-17-2009