A new nine-month leadership formation course from a Catholic university in Minneapolis–St. Paul is designed to strengthen team components of Catholic health care leadership.
As structured, two to four people from each participating Catholic health system or facility will participate simultaneously in the Executive Education in Catholic Health Care Leadership program from the University of St. Thomas. Only teams — not individuals — can participate. Course planners structured participation this way because they said evidence indicates that teams perform better in the workplace when they have engaged in a collective learning experience.
The course work is intended to help participants to understand the ministry's values as well as their respective organizations' long-term vision and to lead in accord with these values and vision. The Center for Business Excellence at St. Thomas' Opus College of Business developed the curriculum, with input from CHA. The course will examine the foundations of the church's healing ministry, the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services, the role of ministry sponsors, the call for ministry leaders to be ethical and authentic and the perspective needed to lead in times of change.
Participants will study as part of a cohort of about two dozen ministry executives. They will have access to a personal executive coach and online resources to supplement what they learn in their quarterly, in-person meetings.
The curriculum consists of four, four-day modules for small teams of executives and physician leaders. The first, third and fourth modules will be presented at retreat-style gatherings at the university. The second module will be taught in Rome, Italy. During the Rome module, course participants will meet with church leaders in the Roman Curia and attend a papal audience. The executives' family members can travel to Rome with them.
Michael J. Naughton, the program's lead faculty member, said it aims to promote a deep understanding of the responsibility inherent in heading the health care ministry of the church.
The inaugural course will run from August 2012 through May 2013. The $16,000, per-participant fee covers the program's 16 days of faculty instruction; the executive coaching; instructional materials; and the meals, lodging and transportation at the module sites. Transportation to and from the module host city is not included in the fee. St. Thomas is offering discounts for registering prior to Jan. 31, taking part in the course as an administrator and physician duo and/or registering additional participants from a particular organization beyond the initial two.
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