Leading the Leaders of Medical Education | David Skorton, MD

The Doctor's Art

The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) plays a crucial role in health care. As the organization that oversees medical education and thus the pipeline of future medical professionals in the United States, its critical duties include administering the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), managing the residency application service, drafting guidelines for faculty members and departments at medical schools and academic hospitals, disseminating data on medical education and workforce trends that shape policymaking at medical schools and government bodies, and promoting diversity in health care.

Leading this organization is David Skorton, MD, a cardiologist and pioneer of cardiac imaging and computer processing techniques, who also previously served as the 13th Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution and as President of Cornell University and of the University of Iowa. In this episode, Dr. Skorton shares with us how his family's immigrant past has shaped him, how he went from struggling during his own medical school application process more than 50 years ago to now leading an organization that represents all medical schools and teaching hospitals, why the arts and humanities matter to him, how he thinks about medical education given the emergence of generative artificial intelligence, what great mentors look like, how effective leadership often means learning from everyone around you, and more.

In this episode, you will hear about:

2:42 - Dr. Skorton’s unexpected path from jazz musician to President of the AAMC

7:42 - Why current medical admissions aim to be “holistic”

12:09 - The lessons Dr. Skorton learned through mentorship and why the arts and humanities can create better doctors

17:32 - How Dr. Skorton has been able to “see past himself” enough to receive challenging criticism from mentors

28:01 - The core tenets of Dr. Skorton’s leadership philosophy

31:35 - How the AAMC views the future of medical education especially in light of advances in artificial intelligence

38:47 - The importance of diverse healthcare teams

46:32 - Issues that Dr. Skorton addresses through his role at the AAMC

Dr. David Skorton can be found on Twitter/X at @DavidJSkorton.

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