VC Notes for Friday, October 18, 2024

Good morning.

Today, I would like to talk about an important driver of change at the Medical Center: participation in the Association of American Medical College’s StandPoint™ Faculty Engagement Survey.

If you are a faculty member, by now you should have received an invitation to take part in the survey. I am aware we all get survey fatigue, but I want to assure you that we take the results of this survey very seriously. Also, please be assured that your responses are completely confidential. We receive feedback through the survey instrument from our faculty by school and by department (including trends over time) as well as comparable information for peer groups (similar institutions) and national trends.

Since 2009, UMMC has participated in the Faculty Engagement Survey. Originally presented to the School of Medicine faculty only, the survey expanded in 2015 to the Schools of Nursing, Dentistry and Health Related Professions. And since then, the survey has been extended to all faculty.

In fact, as a result of your candid feedback over the years, we have been able to adopt a number of transformative initiatives. A few examples include:

• Creation of the Office of Well-being
• More transparency in the promotion process
• Clarification of promotion and tenure guidelines
• Changes in compensation plans for all UMMC faculty
• Faculty Focus: Monthly presentations offered by the Office of Faculty Affairs to meet requests for more professional development opportunities focused on teaching/instruction, research/scholarship and leadership development. A recent example: “Hazards Ahead: Navigating Potential Leadership Challenges” by Dr. Chris Anderson, professor and chair of surgery
• Increased communication and nomination pathways for faculty to participate in shared school governance
• Inclusion of a report on institutional finances as part of my spring and fall faculty meeting presentations
• Establishment of the Building Bridges program to improve dialogue between faculty members and executive leadership
• More rewards and recognition through the creation of Faculty Appreciation Week
• An enhanced culture of engagement in an effort to attract and retain more talent to the Medical Center

Since we’ve been doing this AAMC-administered survey, I’m proud to say that we have one of the strongest response rates in the country. For 2021, when our last survey was conducted, we ranked second in the nation, at 83%. Our goal this year is 100% – not just for bragging rights but also to make sure this institution has the most accurate picture possible of our faculty’s ideas for nurturing a culture of excellence and innovation in the service of health care, education and research.

I urge all full-time and part-time ranked faculty hired before July 1, 2024 to set aside the 15-20 minutes needed to complete the survey. I completed mine this morning.

If you need more information, the Office of Faculty Affairs and your academic home leaders will be happy to provide it. You may also email StandPointSurveys@aamc.org.

Please keep in mind: Your participation will ultimately serve everyone here at the Medical Center – learner, researcher, healer and patient. So, I thank you ahead of time for your willingness to engage in this meaningful effort to make UMMC a better place for you and to strengthen this institution as a whole on our journey to A Healthier Mississippi.