One of the more uncomfortable realities inside some advancement environments is how overly-engineered physician engagement is around grateful patient fundraising.
In my experience, physicians overwhelmingly understand and value the role philanthropy plays in advancing patient care, research, innovation, education, and access to better healthcare outcomes.
Some of medicine's most respected physicians, the individuals leading groundbreaking research, performing complex procedures, and caring for patients with extraordinary dedication—are frequently asked by advancement to step away from those responsibilities to participate in fundraising trainings, workshops, and educational sessions.
While well-intentioned, the approach I believe this approach is a miss for several reasons.
Over the years, I have observed institutions invest significant time and resources into physician fundraising education. The intent is understandable. Strong physician partnerships are essential to successful grateful patient programs.
The most successful programs I have encountered make participation easy, intuitive, and aligned with the physician's existing role. They remove barriers rather than create additional tasks for them. They recognize that a physician's greatest contribution to philanthropy is not mastering fundraising or being on the "lookout" for philanthropic patients.
Advancement's responsibility is not to transform or educate physicians into fundraisers, but rather create thoughtful systems that allow physicians to participate meaningfully without pulling them away from the vital work only they can do.
When physician engagement is designed well, philanthropy becomes a natural extension of patient care rather than an additional demand upon it.
And that distinction matters.
