Wellbeing and Professional Climate: Connection, Transparency, Our Future

By Matthew Bucknor, MD

onnection, transparency, and our future have been guiding themes for our work these past 18 months, with new and ongoing projects that continuously refine and improve how we deliver on our mission and strategic plan. With the easing of pandemic restrictions, we have enjoyed gathering in person for retreats, conferences, symposia, and celebrations that shape our professional culture and contribute to wellbeing while also maintaining the benefits of a hybrid work environment.

Matthew Bucknor, MD

Education now going into its seventh year, the Research Initiative to Promote Diversity in Radiology (RIDR) brings high school, college, and medical students, from groups that are disadvantaged or historically underrepresented in radiology, to participate in basic science, translational, or clinical research projects for eight weeks during the summer. Fourteen students explored radiology as a career choice in 2021, and 18 in 2022. In fall 2021, thanks to the generosity of our faculty and alumni donors, we completed a successful crowdfunding campaign that supported two RIDR students in summer 2022. Student projects cover the full spectrum of imaging research, including studies focused on cancer, abdominal imaging, musculoskeletal imaging, neurodegenerative disease, and health care disparities.

Faculty Wellbeing efforts build on the results from the Health system’s annual Net Promoter Survey and our own internal climate survey to inform initiatives that foster connections, collaboration, and insight into how the department works. A new, interactive quarterly town hall series hosted an open discussion on Promoting broad input into dept decisions, a revenue cycle presentation

Cfrom our CFO Tom McElderry on Following the Dollar in Radiology, and a fireside chat exploring Workplace Culture: Moving from Good to Great with Chief Physician Experience Officers Diane Sliwka, MD (UCSF) and Starr Knight, MD (ZSFG). Building on the town hall series, department chair Chris Hess and I meet individually with section chiefs to address challenges related to physician burnout while amplifying the myriad strengths of our people. These efforts have seeded a new initiative of monthly dinners with three or four faculty members and department leadership to further explore opportunities to enhance our professional climate.

Book and Podcast Clubs foster a department culture of connection and learning. Research Administrator Stephanie Murphy leads a monthly staff podcast club that explores wellness, professional development, and work culture. I lead a department-wide book club that meets quarterly to discuss a wide range of works, from cognitive science to organizational culture, to values that shape our behavior.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee leadership. Elsewhere in this issue, you will see that Tatiana Kelil, MD, and Preethi Raghu, MD, are the new co-chairs of our faculty DEI committee, bringing their unique perspectives and talents to this work. Looking ahead to our future, I am confident that with Tatiana’s and Preethi’s leadership, we will continue to build on our successes and define new paths for inclusion and wellbeing in our profession.

Matthew Bucknor, MD, is associate chair of wellbeing and professional climate, associate professor in residence in the musculoskeletal imaging section, and immediate past chair of the faculty Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee in the Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging at the University of California, San Francisco.

Learn more about Faculty and Staff DEI Committee Leadership on page 72 .