Promotion to Associate Professor in the Clinician-Educator Track

The formal language states:

"In the Clinician-Educator track, either (or both) of several possible accomplishments is required for promotion. The FIRST is that, through excellent performance as a clinician, educator, administrator, and/or researcher, you achieve substantial recognition among peers and leading figures at other institutions. This might, for example, lead external figures to consult with you or refer patients to you. The SECOND is that you have a significant impact on our internal educational or administrative practices. This impact should be evident to peers and leading figures at other institutions (e.g., through publications or presentations at meetings), documented and capable of being assessed by leading figures at other institutions, or both.

Reputations appropriate for promotion may arise from diverse activities, including research, published case reports, reviews, book chapters, CME presentations, presentations at other institutions, development of patient-education materials, developing and implementing novel teaching methodologies, participation in courses outside the institution, development as an authority in a clinical field (as demonstrated by patient referrals, invited visiting lectureships, and elected membership in professional societies), successful competition for external funding of educational activities, leadership role in local-regional-national clinical affairs and professional organizations, significant editorial services to textbooks and journals. Significant impact on our internal educational or administrative practices might include, for example, curricular revision, implementation of new programs and administrative practices, creation of new educational or administrative tools, etc. Such impact should be documented rigorously by describing in detail the preexisting practice, the revised practice, and the impact the revisions have had."

But what does that really mean, and how does one go about achieving it?

Unlike in the other faculty tracks, in which the pathway to promotion is relatively formulaic (i.e., it must involve research accomplishment, which occurs in well-understood steps), there are hundreds of potential pathways to promotion in the Clinician-Educator track. The only common element is that these pathways must culminate in appreciation or recognition of one's accomplishments outside this institution. Accordingly, providing a "one size fits all" list of steps towards promotion in the Clinician-Educator track is difficult.

To provide some guidance and examples of how one might qualify for promotion, in early 2005, ten recently-promoted associate professors in the Clinician-Educator track volunteered to explain how they qualified for promotion. Each story is different, but some aspects are strikingly similar in every account:

1. Find an unfilled niche, and fill it. This may be an educational topic that needs coverage, a new or under-represented clinical practice, a research topic, or a vacant administrative role. The specific unfilled niches of each associate professor are in red; they vary greatly. If you can't find an unfilled niche, ask your section chief, chair or a senior colleague what niches need filling.

2. Talk about your niche (inside). Conferences and grand rounds in the Medical Center are a natural starting point. Sometimes a talk may begin as a medical student or residency lecture and morph into a presentation. As soon as possible, talk outside of your immediate colleagues and interest group.

3. Seek and exploit mentorship. Find a mentor (or several), who could be your chair, section chief, senior colleague, or anyone well-connected. Ask this person or persons to help arrange for you to speak to a wider array of audiences. Some mentors can help you hone your message so that it is well-received when you present it.

4. Follow the network. First steps outside the institution could be volunteering to speak at local/regional medical societies or in CME, or asking industry representatives to arrange for you to speak locally/regionally. Some niches (e.g., clinical research coordination) may even require that you attend external meetings. At external presentations, make it known that you are interested in talking to other audiences. Ask your mentor(s) to help you receive invitations to speak on an ever-widening scale. Pursue volunteer positions in local, regional, or national medical societies. Interact with grand rounds presenters and other visitors to the Medical Center. Volunteer to review manuscripts for appropriate professional journals. Attend meetings of local, regional, and national medical societies, and interact with other attendees.

Here are their stories:

Martin Burke Medicine Laser lead extraction Quicktime Windows Media Player	Deborah Burnet Medicine Diversity of patients Quicktime Windows Media Player	David Cohen Obstetrics & Gynecology Reproductive endocrinology Quicktime Windows Media Player
Jill Glick Pediatrics Child abuse prevention Quicktime Windows Media Player	Karen Kim Medicine Asian patients Quicktime Windows Media Player	Allan Klock Anesthesia & Critical Care Engineering; Airways Quicktime Windows Media Player
Patrick Murray Medicine Critical care+nephrology +pharmacology Quicktime Windows Media Player	Terrance Peabody Surgery Surgical oncology Quicktime Windows Media Player	Mary Strek Medicine Clinical research leader Quicktime Windows Media Player
	Bobbie Sweitzer Anesthesia & Critical Care Preoperative screening Quicktime Windows Media Player

[ Download free Quicktime Player]

[ Download free Windows Media Player]

Technical: The size of the video window is intentionally small to improve loading time. If you cannot hear the sound, please play the presentation on a computer equipped with speakers [and increase the volume].

Some additional advice:

Educational activity (i.e., volunteering to give lectures or rounds, participation in journal clubs, etc.) outside your immediate circle is a good way to become known throughout the institution and enhance your networking.

Another way is to volunteer to help organize your department's grand rounds, or counterpart conferences/seminars that bring in invited speakers. You can thereby introduce yourself to those whom you invite, and become known to them.

Promotion is not inconsistent with a life outside this institution. Listen, for example, to Dr. Mary Strek's account of being promoted while part-time.

While publication is not required for promotion in the Clinician-Educator track, it certainly can help. Publication can be in regular medical journals, journals of medical education and administration, textbooks, and/or as websites. If you have not published, co-authorship with a colleague is an easy way to get started and learn the process. Remember that the promotion process will require letters from external evaluators, and these are easier to compose if the letter writer can review your published work.

While mentors can be very helpful, ultimately you are the one responsible for your own career. Take initiative. Make things happen.

A WORD TO THOSE ALREADY PROMOTED

You have a very important role to play in helping Clinician-Educators become promoted. Their promotion depends critically on becoming known throughout and outside this institution. Thus, please be proactive in helping them obtain this recognition:

--If you are writing a manuscript or book chapter, please consider recruiting a qualified C-E assistant professor as a co-author.

--If you must decline a request to review a manuscript or grant application, please consider recommending a qualified C-E assistant professor as a replacement.

--When organizing or participating in CME courses, please consider recommending a qualified C-E assistant professor as an instructor.

--When interacting with colleagues outside your immediate circle (e.g., elsewhere in this institution, at other institutions in the region, in local or regional professional societies), please consider recommending a qualified C-E assistant professor as a speaker or candidate for professional society office.

--Often C-E assistant professors may have something to present – a clinical insight, an educational or administrative contribution, or a research finding – that YOU know would be of great interest or value to others but that the C-E assistant professor thinks is routine, mundane, or unworthy of notice. Do politely suggest to such C-E assistant professors that their work is worthy of presentation; they may not realize it.

--If you are asked to provide mentorship to a C-E assistant professor, please do. If you see a C-E assistant professor that would benefit from your mentorship, don't wait to be asked – volunteer!