PELI Advanced Course: McAfee Fellows – Transforming Health & Healthcare

The Advanced Course, part of our Physician & Provider Executive Leadership Institute (PELI), is aimed at physician and provider leaders who have the experience, commitment, and passion to lead initiatives that will transform and improve health and healthcare systems at local, regional, and statewide levels.

This course was created to give clinicians the management and leadership skills they needed to transform health and healthcare in various settings. PELI Advance brings national caliber training and faculty to New England, specific to the needs of physicians and providers in the region.

We designate our PELI Advance graduates ‘McAfee Fellows’ in honor of the late, distinguished physician leader, Robert McAfee, who was a general and vascular surgeon, physician and advocate for the prevention of family violence and improved healthcare. He was the 149th President of the American Medical Association and Chairman of the Board of the Dirigo Health Plan. The PELI Advanced experience prepares physicians to tackle today’s healthcare challenges while strategizing to resolve tomorrow’s, following in Dr. McAfee’s footsteps.

This course is competency-based, highly experiential, and systems focused using an adult learning theory model. Participants attend a series of six, 2-day residential sessions over a 12-month period of time in order to provide participants with the opportunity to bring new learning to their work settings, share experiences, devote considerable time and thought to complex issues, and build and strengthen professional relationships and trust with colleagues.

The physicians and providers attending the advanced course will benefit from a long-standing and supportive network of physicians and advanced practice providers across the state.

About the Physician & Provider Executive Leadership Institute (PELI)

About the Physician & Provider Executive Leadership Institute (PELI)

A first-in-the-nation program, Hanley’s Physician & Provider Executive Leadership Institute (PELI) develops physician and provider leaders through intensive, national-caliber professional development coursework. Courses are available for both individuals, and organizations purchasing for their employees.

The PELI institute hosts 3 courses: Foundational, Foundational for Advanced Practice Providers (PELI APP), and Advanced:

  • The Foundational Course is aimed at physicians and other providers who are taking on roles that require management and leadership skills.
  • The PELI APP course focuses on Advanced Practice Professionals, and imparts the management and leadership skills and tools necessary to assure their success in leading practices, teams and projects.
  • The Advanced Course provides a deeper graduate level of leadership competency and theory based professional development for experienced physician and senior level advanced practice providers. 

Both the Foundational and Advanced Courses focus on the following set of core competencies:

1. Systems Awareness

Systems awareness recognizes that decisions made at one level affect all others. This core competency will teach leaders how to:

  • influence these decisions to improve productivity and community welfare
  • think and act from a whole system perspective
  • make decisions in light of the long-term health of the whole system

2. Strategic Focus

Strategic focus measures the creative use of power, effective decision-making, and the ability to influence systems and policies. Strategic focus develops leaders to be purposeful, visionary, and goal-directed so they develop goal achievement, execution, and high performance.

3. Key Management/Business Skills

The area of key management/business skills teaches leaders how to understand and interpret financial statements, use financial ratios, and prepare an effective budget. Also:

  • key marketing concepts and strategies
  • IT tools and their use in healthcare organizations
  • performance management tools
  • the importance of having effective conversations with employees/direct reports
  • the basics of reimbursement – Medicare/Medicaid
  • allocation of expenses

4. Self-Awareness

The self-awareness competency focuses on ongoing professional and personal development that is expressed through integrity and vulnerability, such as taking tough stands, having uncomfortable conversations, and handling relationship problems.

5. Healthcare Trends

The healthcare trend competency teaches emerging healthcare delivery system models, understanding the new post-pandemic normal, and navigating the continuing healthcare workforce shortage.

6. Teamwork and Collaboration

The teamwork and collaboration competency teaches leaders how to foster collaborative, high-performance teamwork among members across their organization. It will also teach:

  • how to find mutually beneficial agreements
  • how to develop synergy
  • how to create win-win situations
Program CME Information
  • CME Certificate for 80 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)TM awarded to MDs and DOs.
  • Certificate of Completions for 80 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)TM awarded to all others.

This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of the Maine Medical Education Trust and Daniel Hanley Center for Health Leadership. The Maine Medical Education Trust is accredited by the Maine Medical Association Committee on Continuing Medical Education and Accreditation to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

Program Dates and Tuition

Program Dates

Each session listed below takes place over three consecutive days—Thursday through Saturday. Participants have the opportunity to book a complimentary hotel room for the duration of the session if they choose.

Thursday sessions are 5:30-9pm, Fridays are 8:00am-6:00pm, and Saturdays are 7:30am-11:30am.

2025: 

Session 1: March 27-29*
Session 2: May 15-17**
Session 3: June 5-7**
Session 4: September 11-13*
Session 5: November 13-15* 

2026:
Session 6: January 29-31*

*These sessions will be held at the Harraseeket Inn in Freeport, ME.
**These sessions will be help at the Brunswick Hotel in Brunswick, ME.

Tuition

Tuition costs $9,595.

Tuition includes coursework, most meals, overnight accommodations, and all educational materials. Tuition does not cover travel and personal expenses incurred by participants at each session.

Faculty

Brandeis Faculty

CAROLE CARLSON, PHD

Carole Carlson is the Director of the Brandeis University MBA Program, she teaches Heller courses in Strategic Management, Social Entrepreneurship, and Team Consulting. She is the Concentration Chair for the Social Entrepreneurship and Impact Management concentration in the Heller MBA program. She also coaches mid-career executives participating in executive education programs at the Harvard Business School and is currently engaged with HBS in delivering online education programs to leading companies worldwide. She was the 2013 recipient of the Heller Teaching Award, and a 2014 recipient of the Davis Teaching and Learning Fellowship.

JOEL CUTCHER-GERSHENFELD, PHD

Joel Cutcher-Gershenfeld is a professor in the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University, where he leads research on agile institutions and teaches classes on strategy and operations. Previously he served as a professor and dean in the School of Labor and Employment Relations at the University of Illinois. Joel is editor for the Negotiation Journal at the Program on Negotiation at the Harvard Law School and is past president of the Labor and Employment Relations Association. He holds a PhD in industrial relations from MIT and a BS in industrial and labor relations from Cornell University.

MICHAEL DOONAN, PHD

Michael Doonan is an associate professor at the Heller Graduate School at Brandeis University. He is the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Health Policy Forum, and Director of the Council for Health Care Economics and Policy.  Michael worked as a program specialist for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), in the area of Medicaid managed care and state health care reform. He served as a member of President Clinton’s Health Care Taskforce working primarily on the Low-Income and Working Families work group, and as a member of the Taskforce Speakers Bureau. Michael also worked as a fellow for the U.S. Senate Finance Committee as they considered national reform in 1994. He began his career as a legislative aide for Senator John Kerry where he worked on health and environmental issues.

JODY HOFFER GITTELL, PHD

The author of “High Performance Healthcare,” Dr. Gittell is a Visiting Scholar at the MIT Sloan School of Management and Associate Professor of Management and former MBA Program Director at Brandeis University’s Heller School for Social Policy and Management. Gittell’s research explores how coordination by front-line workers contributes to quality and efficiency outcomes in service settings, with a particular focus on the airline and healthcare industries.

BRAD MORRISON, PHD

Brad Morrison is an Associate Professor of Management in the Brandeis International Business School. Brad has previously taught at the Sloan School at M.I.T. and in executive education in a variety of settings. He has been a partner at a leading global management consulting firm and has more than 15 years of consulting experience in the retail and consumer products and healthcare industries. He has extensive experience in Asia where he has worked in 11 countries for his clients from North America, Asia, and Europe. In 2012, he was recognized for his work on dynamic problem solving as the recipient of the Jay W. Forrester Award from the System Dynamics Society for the best published work in the field for the preceding five years.

Are You a Good Fit?

The PELI Advanced Course will be a good fit for physicians and senior level advanced practice providers who:

  • Have at least 5 years of leadership experience (strong leaders with slightly less experience will be considered)
  • Seek to build your leadership skills and confidence, particularly in areas such as systems thinking, strategic planning, finance and the development of public policy
  • Want the opportunity to build a larger network of trusted colleagues
  • Want to prepare to take on greater leadership responsibilities within their own organization or to lead initiatives that will improve care in the community
  • Are looking for new ideas, colleagues to challenge their thinking, and to grow professionally in a positive environment
  • Are able to attend six, 2-day sessions over the course of the year in Freeport, including overnights

To enroll in the PELI advanced course, please fill out the enrollment form. 

To nominate someone for the PELI advanced course, please fill out the nomination form.


American Disabilities Act (ADA)
If special arrangements are required for an individual with a disability to attend this course, please contact Janell Lewis