The Politics of Power and Influence and What Medical Professionals Should Know

Dr. Daryl Oakes, Clinical Professor at Stanford School of Medicine, joins Professor Jeffrey Pfeffer of Stanford Graduate School of Business to explore The Politics of Power and Influence: What Medical Professionals Should Know. Together, they examine how shifting power dynamics in a financialized healthcare system impact both clinicians and patients. This timely discussion highlights why physicians feel increasingly disempowered—and offers insights on how they can reclaim influence to combat burnout and enhance patient care.

Original Release Date: March 19, 2024
Review Date: May 5, 2025
Expiration Date: May 6, 2028
Estimated time to complete:~30 minutes
Registration Fee: Free

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1. Develop a drive for excellence by leveraging power and influence in their role within the healthcare system.

In support of improving patient care, Stanford Medicine is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team. 

Credit Designation 
American Medical Association (AMA) 
Stanford Medicine designates this Other activity (Enduring Material) for a maximum of 0.50 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits^TM.  Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. 

Accessibility Statement
 Stanford University School of Medicine is committed to ensuring that its programs, services, goods and facilities are accessible to individuals with disabilities as specified under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act of 2008.  If you have needs that require accommodations, please contact the CME Office.

Cultural and Linguistic Competency
The planners and speakers of this CME activity have been encouraged to address cultural issues relevant to their topic area for the purpose of complying with California Assembly Bill 1195. Moreover, the Stanford University School of Medicine Multicultural Health Portal contains many useful cultural and linguistic competency tools including culture guides, language access information and pertinent state and federal laws.  You are encouraged to visit the Multicultural Health Portal: https://laneguides.stanford.edu/multicultural-health

References/Bibliography
1.Marmot, M. G., Smith, G. D., Stansfeld, S., Patel, C., et al. (1991). Health inequalities among British civil servants: the Whitehall II study. Lancet, 337(8754), 1387–1393. https://doi.org/10.1016/0140-6736(91)93068-k 
2.Collins, J. (2001). Good to great. Random House Business Books.
3.Pfeffer, J. (2022). 7 Rules of Power: Surprising--but True--Advice on How to Get Things Done and Advance Your Career. BenBella Books.
4.Pfeffer, J., & Sutton, R. I. (2006). Hard facts, dangerous half-truths, and total nonsense: Profiting from evidence-based management. Harvard Business Press.
5.Holmgren AJ, Downing NL, Bates DW, et al. Assessment of Electronic Health Record Use Between US and Non-US Health Systems. JAMA Intern Med, 181(2, 251–259. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2020.7071 
6.Stoller, J. K., Goodall, A., & Baker, A. (2016). Why the best hospitals are managed by doctors. Harvard Business Review, 27, 2-5. https://hbr.org/2016/12/why-the-best-hospitals-are-managed-by-doctors 
7.Goodall, A. H. (2011). Physician-leaders and hospital performance: is there an association?. Social science & medicine, 73(4), 535-539. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.06.025 
8.Pearl, R. (2021). Uncaring: how the culture of medicine kills doctors and patients. Hachette UK.
9.Cochran, J. (2018) Healer Leader Partner: Optimizing Physician Leadership to Transform Healthcare. Lioncrest Publishing. 
10.Bruch, J. D., Roy, V., & Grogan, C. M. (2024). The Financialization of Health in the United States. The New England journal of medicine, 390(2), 178–182. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMms2308188 
11.Clemens, J., & Gottlieb, J. D. (2014). Do Physicians' Financial Incentives Affect Medical Treatment and Patient Health?. The American economic review, 104(4), 1320–1349. https://doi.org/10.1257/aer.104.4.1320 
12.Pearl, R. (2022). Breaking The Rules of Healthcare: The Doctor-Patient Power Dynamic. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/robertpearl/2022/04/11/breaking-the-rules-of-healthcare-the-doctor-patient-power-dynamic/?sh=563770e19de2 

For CME general questions, please contact 
     Email: [email protected]

Mitigation of Relevant Financial Relationships

Stanford Medicine adheres to the Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education.

The content of this activity is not related to products or the business lines of an ACCME-defined ineligible company. Hence, there are no relevant financial relationships with an ACCME-defined ineligible company for anyone who was in control of the content of this activity.

Member Information

Role in activity

Nature of Relationship(s) / Name of Ineligible Company(s)

Daryl A. Oakes, MD
Clinical Professor of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine
Stanford University School of Medicine

Faculty

Nothing to disclose

Jeffrey Pfeffer, PhD

Faculty