Investigator Profile: Sara Kim, PhD

SaraKim

Sara Kim, PhD

Research Professor, Division of General Surgery
Associate Dean for Educational Quality Improvement

Dr. Kim holds the George G. B. Bilsten Professorship in the Art of Communication with Peers and Patients. This professorship is an important platform for creating and implementing novel research and teaching programs in communication skills, with a particular emphasis on healthcare conflict management, speaking up skills, and negotiating power hierarchy. Based on partnerships with a wide range of clinical, administrative and educational stakeholders across UW Medicine, Dr. Kim has been awarded funding by the UW Medicine Patient Safety and Innovations Program (PSIP) and the Arnold P. Gold Foundation to examine sources of workplace conflicts. Her team’s work has generated pilot training models that aim at improving healthcare professionals’ knowledge, attitude and skills in handling interpersonal conflicts and negotiating power dynamics in expressing one’s concerns and opinions. Her work has been shared with audiences locally, regionally, nationally and internationally and has been published in journals such as Journal of Interprofessional Care, Journal of Healthcare Quality, and Conflict Resolution Quarterly.