Leadership in Health Professions Education a.)

Apply knowledge of the administrative aspects of leading educational programs for health professions.

Artifact Reflection:

Plan for Effective and Positive Leadership/HPTT 823 Leadership in Health Professions Education

Creating my leadership plan gave me the opportunity to bring together many of the concepts we explored throughout this course and apply them to my own leadership identity. As I reflected on my approach, I realized that my tendency toward being calm and composed can be a strength in maintaining stability, but it also requires intentional effort to make sure I am actively engaging and empowering others. This assignment helped me recognize that effective leadership is not just about how I show up, but how I create space for others to contribute and grow.

A major takeaway for me was the importance of striving to be a “multiplier” leader, rather than unintentionally becoming a diminisher. Leaders who act as multipliers amplify the intelligence and capability of their teams, while diminishers can unknowingly limit growth by micromanaging or controlling outcomes . This challenged me to reflect on how often I provide answers versus asking questions, and how I can better empower students in clinical environments.

Additionally, this project reinforced the importance of communication, conflict management, and building high-performing teams. I recognized that psychological safety is foundational to all of these areas, especially in clinical education. Moving forward, I plan to be more intentional in open dialogue, encouraging diverse perspectives, and creating an environment where individuals feel both supported and challenged.

Overall, this assignment helped me move from understanding leadership concepts to actively applying them in a way that aligns with my role and values.

Artifact Reflection:

Communicating Your Leadership Vision/HPTT 823 Leadership in Health Professions Education

My leadership vision project for the Leadership in Health Professions Education course focuses on developing a preceptor development program or educational lecture specifically tailored to ultrasound education. I created this vision to support and strengthen the clinical training experience for diagnostic medical sonography students I teach at the University of Iowa. This project emerged from recognizing the real-world challenges in clinical education, including time limitations, physical constraints in the scanning environment, balancing patient care with teaching responsibilities, and appropriately identifying and responding to individual learner needs.

Our students rotate through approximately 30 clinical sites, which presents a significant challenge. Each site—and each preceptor—approaches teaching in slightly different ways. As a result, students must adapt to new teaching styles every few weeks while trying to master ultrasound, already a technically and cognitively demanding skill. This variability can create additional barriers to learning and increase student frustration.

Through this course, I have learned that effective leadership begins with clearly communicating the “why” behind a project—why it matters, why I care about it, and how it can positively impact both educational culture and student outcomes. I am still in the early stages of this leadership vision and have not yet implemented the program. Looking ahead, my goal is to present this vision to lead preceptors across our clinical sites and gain meaningful buy-in. Ultimately, I hope to help establish a shared foundation of effective clinical teaching practices that better support our ultrasound students and enhance consistency across clinical experiences.