Systems asked to provide roster of program participants
In May, CHA will begin surveying ministry executives to determine what types of formation programs are most effective and impactful. The association will share results with the ministry later this year.
Later this month, CHA will contact Catholic health system chief executives and mission leaders by email to ask for a roster of executives who have participated in — or are scheduled to participate in — in-depth formation programs. The association will contact those formation program participants by email in May to request that they complete an online survey of about 75 questions.
CHA and its Ministry Leadership Development Committee are conducting the research project with the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Washington, DC-based Georgetown University.
"The research will help CHA and individual ministry systems to determine whether leader formation programs are accomplishing what we hope they are," explained Brian Smith, CHA senior director of mission integration and leadership formation.
Many of the study questions will be based on concepts from CHA's 2011 "Framework for Senior Leadership Formation: Building On Experience, Preparing for the Future," a booklet that provides advice on how Catholic health ministries can create or seek out well-structured, intensive leadership formation programs.
The Framework explains the rationale for forming ministry leaders in the Catholic tradition, describes the foundational elements and core content that should be part of ministry formation programs, sets expectations for the outcomes of such programs and provides examples of approaches some ministry systems are taking.
Some ministry systems provide one-on-one mentoring to form leaders, some have developed their own multiyear courses, and some have collaborated with other systems to offer formation courses.
The upcoming survey will explore how well ministry formation programs are incorporating the foundational elements put forth in the Framework.
CHA will present results of the survey in articles in Health Progress and will share individual systems' results with them, so they can use the information to refine their approaches.
Additional information about the survey is available from Smith at (314) 253-3503.
According to the "Framework for Senior Leadership Formation: Building On Experience, Preparing for the Future," ministry formation programs should be:
- Rooted in the Catholic tradition
- Guided by the charism of the founders and foundresses of Catholic health care
- Structured to encourage the engagement of all leaders in the ministry
- An ongoing process, open to all leaders who share the ministry's values
Copyright © 2013 by the Catholic Health Association of the United States
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