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New Leadership Program Trains Primary Care Providers to Advocate for Good

ByLynlee Espeseth

Turn on the TV, go online, pick up a newspaper, it’s not hard to see that healthcare and health policy are hot and contentious topics.

The endless debate can leave healthcare providers wondering: how can I possibly make a difference? How can we add the voice of experience and reason to all the noise?

Primary Care Movers and Changers (PCMAC) is a new leadership training program that answers those questions.

The program is open to a wide range of primary care providers, including physicians, nurses, physician assistants, behavioral health specialists, and dental providers, who practice in underserved metropolitan communities, or who are themselves from an underserved community or background.

The program is offered by the Regional Institute for Health and Environmental Leadership, in collaboration with many partnering organizations throughout the state. The program will teach participants a wide range of leadership skills, delivered through four transformative in-person sessions facilitated by renowned leadership experts and coaches.

Participants can expect to learn about their own natural leadership style and how to harness it to create change. Practical skills like communication, media training and conflict resolution are taught. Plus, participants will have access to a peer coach and will work on a real-world advocacy project that makes sure ideas are translated into action. The in-person sessions help participants find collaboration and connection with follow providers who seek to make a difference for patients and the greater healthcare community in Colorado.

The program is offered for free, and participants have access to stipends and financial assistance to cover travel and related expenses. Additionally, for providers who are currently participating in a loan repayment program like the Colorado Health Service Corps or the State Dental Loan Repayment Program, an additional $1,000 of loan repayment assistance is available upon completion of the program.

Primary Care Movers and Changers is accepting applications until March 15, 2018. Learn more about the program, requirements, and how to apply here.