I. Review of Clinical Manager job description draft.

The job description for Clinic Managers was provided to the Medical Directors for their review.

II. Review of Medical Director job description draft.

The draft job description for Medical Directors was provided along with a diagram indicating the reporting relationships between the Clinic Manager and Medical Director to each other, the department/division, and institutionally.

Dr. Rutherford noted that after receiving comments from the Medical Directors and Employee Development Task Force (both meetings being held today), he  would then take this job description to the Executive Committee of the Clinical  Chairs on February 3rd and to all the Chairs at the Clinical Chairs meeting on Feb. 10th.

Members asked if the Chairs were aware that this job description is being developed.

It was agreed that a variety of responsibilities should be the combined decision of the Medical Director and the department Chair as input and insight from each would be beneficial.  The Medical Director needs to have the ability to review and evaluate their faculty’s clinical performance.

It must be the Medical Director that emphasizes the need that patients receive the best care; that physicians follow appropriate quality standards and assure that the best practice standards for their specialty are followed.

The Committee agreed that we will need to help provide the Medical Directors more “business savvy” so that they can communicate with the clinical manager and faculty, make recommendations regarding the department practice to their Chairs, and to think corporately regarding the group practice as a whole.

The Medical Directors expressed their need for business training.  Dr. Behrendt assured them that he is here to help develop those types of training programs that will help them  meet the challenges of their new, expanded roles.

A brief discussion followed regarding the percentage of time that the Medical Directors felt they must devote to the administrative duties of their clinics.  Time estimates varied, 
but there was overall agreement that it could not be less than 20% and in some cases may be more than 50%.

Dr. Behrendt reminded the Medical Directors that the transition of administrataive oversight from the Chair to the Medical Director in most clinics will take some time to achieve. 

The next meeting of the Medical Directors Clinical Operations Committee is scheduled for Friday, February 20, 2004 from 7:00 – 8:30 a.m. in the B12 conference room.