Conflict, stressors, broaching difficult conversations, and learning to say no—these are some of the “spookiest” challenges we've identified and addressed over the years on the Faculty Factory Podcast.

Since our 2019 inception, we've explored how to handle these issues with confidence and grace, featuring a series of incredible interview guests. We’re excited to share highlights from five of these conversations with four different guests in this week’s episode.

Since today is October 31st, we're delighted to present this “Best Of” episode of the Faculty Factory Podcast, showcasing some of the  most “spooky” challenges in academic medicine.

These may be the things keeping you up at night, but rest assured, they are common and manageable. This “Best of” show includes highlights from the following episodes:

• Episode 299 – Best Supporting Practices and Strategies for Stressed-Out Learners and Faculty with Jessica Seaman, EdD


• Episode 79 – Managing Difficult Issues with Charles G. Irvin, Ph.D., DE, ATSF, FERS


• Episode 75 – How to Handle Conflict with Dave Yousem, MD, MBA


• Episode 72 – The Art of Navigating a Difficult Conversation with Dave Yousem, MD, MBA


• Episode 46 – Prioritizing and the Art of Saying No with Jennifer Haythornthwaite, PhD

Interested in hearing the full conversations from any of these episodes? Click on the links above to explore each episode in-depth.

About Today’s Speakers

Jessica Seaman, EdD, serves as Assistant Professor of Medical Humanities, Co-Director of the Gold Track Curriculum, and Assistant Dean of Faculty Development at Creighton University School of Medicine in Phoenix, Arizona.

Jennifer Haythornthwaite, PhD, has joined the Faculty Factory for memorable episodes over the years with important feedback for our audience when it comes to time management and much more. Dr. Haythornthwaite is a professor in the department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Md

Charles G. Irvin, PhD, DE, ATSF, FERS, is a Professor of Medicine, Professor of Physiology and Biophysics, Vice Chairman for Research Department of Medicine and Director of the Vermont Lung Center at the University of Vermont. He was named Associate Dean for Faculty for the College of Medicine in 2012.

Dave Yousem, MD, MBA, is a frequent contributor to the Faculty Factory Podcast. He serves as Associate Dean for Professional Development at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. He is also the Vice Chairman of Program Development at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institution.