PHYSICIAN LEADERS
Leading the Way : KMA ’ s KPLI Program Cultivates the Next Generation of Physician Leaders
Kentucky Supreme Court Justice Michelle Keller meets with members of the 2023 KPLI cohort during the program ’ s advocacy weekend in Frankfort .
KMA Past President and 2017 KPLI graduate Monalisa Tailor , MD , participates in a 2021 KPLI panel discussion on communication and working with the media
8 LOUISVILLE MEDICINE
Is “ leadership ” innate or is it a skill that can be taught ? For physicians , that doesn ’ t really apply because we must be leaders by the sheer nature of our profession .
I believe that leadership can be taught , or at least honed and refined . And for physicians in Kentucky looking to increase their leadership abilities , there is no better place to start than the Kentucky Medical Association ’ s ( KMA ) award-winning Kentucky Physicians ’ Leadership Institute ( KPLI ), which started its seventh class in July .
The results speak for themselves . All of the current officers of the KMA are KPLI graduates . The current Presidents of the Greater Louisville Medical Society and the Lexington Medical Society are
Fred Williams , MD , who served as Chair of the KPLI program through 2022 , interviews then-University of Louisville President Neeli Bendapudi as part of a “ fireside chat ” in 2019 .
by MONALISA TAILOR , MD
KPLI graduates . Many physicians you might see on local television and other media are KPLI graduates . Many other graduates have put their skills to work behind the scenes in organizational leadership roles , some within health care and others not .
The Program
Being a member of a KPLI cohort involves commitment since it takes place over four weekends in the summer – Fridays and Saturdays – and has physicians step out of their clinical roles and into subjects they may have never considered . I was honored to be in the first KPLI class and have participated on panels and as a speaker in the program since that first year . It has changed since I went through it , evolving and growing based on changing elements in health care and the feedback we have provided based on our