It may be interesting. You get more of an inside scoop on operations, how the sausage is made so to speak. You get to have a hand in program building potentially.
But you're middle management which sucks. **** rolls uphill and downhill to you. And you may be more of a figurehead to fill a required role for various licensing/certifications rather than have any true power to make changes.
I've been the medical director for our hospital group out of a sense of obligation over the last 4 years, primarily because no one else in the hospital group has been willing to do it. But I don't find it enjoyable. It is more stress. The only saving grace was I did negotiate a relatively beneficial admin rate so my take home pay is up nicely. But even with that, looking back on the headaches over the last 4 years, it's hard to say it's been worth it for me.
It's definitely not for everybody and if you don't want the job don't take it. Personally I would avoid using reduced compensation as the reason, or make compensation demands for the job that can never been met. I'd worry this would just give a bad impression to your admin.
I think it's fair to say you just don't have a knack for leadership, it's never interested you, and you are a much better fit for direct patient care. Just saying "I'm not a leader" will probably make sense to them, because that's what they consider themselves. They look in the mirror and see a leader not an administrator.
