Leading with Grace and Curiosity

What 30 Years in Healthcare Leadership Taught Dea Robinson About Connection, Burnout, and Staying In It

The first time Dea Robinson realized she was really in charge, it wasn’t in a boardroom or an executive meeting.

It was in a small private practice she helped start with one physician and no safety net.

“I didn’t have a nurse. I was the staff,” she recalled. “I did the billing. I did the chaperoning. I did medical records. I did all of that stuff. And I realized that it’s just me and the physician.  A pure dyad.”

It was a big responsibility, she said, and it became a defining lesson. Leadership isn’t a title or a headcount. It’s what you do when the work has to get done and the people depending on you can’t wait.

Today, Robinson is Director of Hospital Medicine Programs for CommonSpirit Health’s Mountain Region, overseeing hospitalist, palliative and, depending on the site, critical care teams. In total, she supports about 200 physicians across Colorado, Kansas, and Utah. The thread from that early career moment is still there: lead with clarity, build trust deliberately, and never lose sight of the humans behind the work.

Leadership That Flexes, Vision That Doesn’t

Ask Robinson what kind of leader she is, and she won’t give you a neat label. “I think the reality is that we wear a lot of different hats when it comes to leadership,” she said. “We can be a servant leader one day and whatever the situation requires another day.”

If she had to name a default, it would be transformational leadership. “I set the vision, and I label it and name it,” she explained. “And I don’t tell them how to get there, but I tell them I’m here to help them get there. That’s where we’re going.”

In her current role, that approach is playing out in real time. Robinson recently navigated turnover among the managers reporting to her and noticed variation across markets, with processes working in one area but not another. Instead of smoothing over those differences, she pushed the team to define excellence together.

“What I was trying to help us co-construct is what does excellence look like for us now,” she said, “and what is excellence going to look like for us in a year.”

Some of the work was tactical, including patient distribution and operational consistency. Some of it was cultural, focused on creating a learning environment where people can stumble without lowering expectations.

“I set that goal that I’m not wavering on,” Robinson said, “and I allow them to create this culture of learning. I also allow them to stumble a little bit. Sometimes I stumble too.”

Why a Strong Dyad Still Matters at Any Size

Robinson has worked in everything from a small startup to a large integrated system, and she’s quick to reject the idea that one is inherently better than the other. The bigger question, she says, is what doesn’t change when the organization does. Her answer is the dyad relationship.

“I still start my day with my dyad partner physician,” she said. “What’s up? What are we doing today?”

Robinson is a firm believer in the strength of a dyad partnership when it’s done well. She’s had plenty of experience. “I started counting the other day how many dyad relationships I have had,” she said. “I’ve had 12 over the years.”

Not all were perfect, and some stood out more than others. But the model remains essential. “I’m a big believer in the strength of a dyad relationship that is strong,” Robinson said.

When dyads work well, they create alignment, speed, and shared ownership, all of which become harder to sustain as organizations scale.

From early startup days where she handled billing herself to leading hospital medicine programs across three states, Dea Robinson, PhD, FACMPE reflects on mentorship, ACMPE, and why human connection remains the most important leadership skill.

“The Larger We Become, The More Granular We Need to Be”

If the dyad is a constant, the pace and complexity of decision-making is not. “One of my internal sayings is the larger we become, the more granular we need to be,” Robinson said.

In private practice, she remembers the benefits clearly. Decisions move faster. There are fewer layers. Physicians are closer to ownership and accountability.

In large systems, leaders may not be solely responsible for every domain, such as HR, finance, or compliance, but they interact with all of them. Having enough working knowledge to translate across functions becomes critical.

“It’s a different type of relationship building versus being solely responsible for everything,” Robinson said. “It has its pluses and minuses for sure.”

For leaders moving between practice settings, her advice is practical. Don’t romanticize either environment. Learn what each one demands of you and what kind of support you’ll need to succeed.

The Motivation That Doesn’t Wear Out

Healthcare evolves, and in many ways repeats itself. Staffing challenges, operational pressure and burnout are familiar themes across decades. So what keeps Robinson motivated after 30 years?

“It still comes down to developing human connection,” she said. “That motivates me the most.”

She also finds renewed purpose in helping the next generation of leaders. “It’s really very rewarding to cultivate the next generations of physician leaders,” Robinson said, noting that it requires a different kind of patience than earlier in her career.

That patience shows up in how she builds trust, especially with managers she doesn’t see every day. Since stepping into her current role, Robinson created a monthly in-person meeting with her two practice managers. It’s a protected space with no distractions, shared lunch and time to think together. Often, she starts with a leadership article before moving into their shared work.

“They don’t know me,” Robinson said. “There’s no reason for them to trust me just because I am their direct supervisor or I might have more experience than they do. I have to gain that and earn that trust.”

Trust, for Robinson, is built in simple ways. “One way to foster trust is to put your lips together and not talk,” she said. “Listen a lot more than talking.”

MGMA, Mentorship, and the Night Fellowship Changed Everything

Robinson has been an MGMA member since 1994, and when she talks about that relationship, her tone shifts from reflective to unequivocal.

“I would not be where I am today without MGMA,” she said. “I’m saying that seriously.”

It began with a mentor she met at a MGMA conference — someone who gave her confidence when formal healthcare management pathways were still rare.

Later, MGMA became a place of professional belonging. Robinson recalls helping elevate hospital medicine’s presence during a time when the specialty was still emerging.

The moment she returns to most often, though, is 2013, when her practice dissolved and her future felt uncertain. “I had no idea what I was going to do,” she said. “I had had a wonderful career, but I didn’t know what was next.”

Her mentor asked why she hadn’t pursued Fellowship. Robinson did, and the experience surprised her. “That night was absolutely transformational,” she said. “It felt like a great big warm embrace, which I really needed at that point.”

Her message to others considering the same step is simple. Don’t hesitate.

Lessons Practice Leaders Can Take into Monday Morning

Robinson’s advice for leaders who feel tired, stretched, or unsure whether they can stay in healthcare long term is straightforward and durable. 

• Stay curious. “I still go to work and I don’t know everything,” she said. Curiosity keeps learning alive, even when the environment is hard.
• Give back. Volunteering helps leaders find people who understand the work and reminds them why they started.
• Find your people. Robinson credits conferences and volunteering, especially through MGMA, as essential sources of support.

On days when everything feels urgent, she still relies on an early lesson from a physician partner. Decide whether it’s “chest pain,” or something that can wait and be thought through more carefully.

A Timely Moment to Invest in What Helps You Stay

National Medical Group Practice Week is a reminder that practice leadership is a profession, one that deserves recognition, not just endurance.

Robinson sees the week as visibility for the people behind the curtain, the partners who help make the healthcare engine work. As ACMPE marks its 70th anniversary, the certification continues to represent the gold standard in continuing education for medical practice executives. 

For Robinson, the point isn’t the letters. It’s what they represent: a commitment to lifelong learning, intentional leadership, and a professional community that can support you when the work gets heavy.

“Don’t quit,” she tells practice leaders. “You’re going to have those really hard days, but don’t quit.”

Want to build a career with the same long-view mindset Dea describes, staying curious, finding your people, and investing in your skills? During National Medical Group Practice Week, MGMA is offering limited-time savings on ACMPE certification and professional resources.