The Path to Department Chair: Arriving and Thriving

Dr. Collins credited numerous people who have been strong role models for him on his path to chair. “In retrospect, I have even more respect for my former chairs because now I know what they were dealing with behind the scenes,” he said. His partial list includes retired Drs. W. Jarrard “Jerry” Goodwin, George T. Singleton, and Nicholas J. Cassisi, as well as Thomas J. Balkany (deceased), and Patrick J Antonelli, who is still at UF. “I also learned a lot from other academic leaders I’ve had the good fortune to cross paths with, including Drs. George H. Zalzal, a pediatric otolaryngologist at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, D.C., and Roy R. Casiano, at the University of Miami. “As I’ve transitioned into more administrative and leadership positions, I’ve sought out the guidance of some local UF leaders, such as vascular surgeon and former CMO, Timothy Flynn, MD, and pediatric subspecialist, Douglas Barrett, MD, who is also former dean and vice president of health affairs at UF.”

Advice for Chairs-To-Be

The first thing that otolaryngologists who are thinking about becoming department chair should do is decide whether they really want to do it, said Dr. Chandra. “This is a 24-hour job,” he said. “I go to bed and wake up thinking about it every day. I don’t know of any chair positions where you just go to ribbon-cutting and get your picture in the school newspaper. This position occupies a lot of your bandwidth, so think about how that expenditure of time and effort matches up with your family life.”

It is also important to examine your reasons for wanting the position, suggested Dr. Lin. “I feel that my role as chair is to facilitate the success of each of my faculty in their academic missions,” she said. “It isn’t about me, it’s about the team. So really look at why you want to do it.”

Dr. Collins also issued a friendly warning to those who aspire to the position. “Understand that leadership is not for the faint-hearted,” he said. “It is important early in one’s career to try out different roles. Don’t be afraid to take on some smaller roles to see if you like them and to prove your value. The result of doing good work is the opportunity to do more, and the goal of leadership is to have a great impact and leave things better than you found them. That is what led many of us into medicine, and whether you are working as a clinician or a leader, that ultimate goal does not change.”