As the head of a department you are bringing on several new members of staff. These young staff are asking for mentorship. While staff have been paired in the past, they almost never met and seldom did the mentee or mentor find the relationship effective. What are the expectations of a mentorship programme and how … Continue reading Mentorship
As head of a department, your faculty wants to try a new treatment involving intraocular injection of an experimental drug that has never been done at your centre. How do you address this concern? Introduction of innovation is an important component of high quality care. However, there is often little control over the introduction of … Continue reading Innovation
One of the Patient Relations team comes to see you with a complaint that one of your staff asked a woman to remove her hiqab in a clinic so he could better communicate with her. The husband and wife demand the staff member be fired for cultural insensitivity. How do you respond to their complaint … Continue reading Patient Complaints
You are called to the CEO’s office with other senior leaders. The father of a newborn in the ICU with a potentially fatal syndrome has met another family with an infant needing a cardiac transplant. The father of the newborn has called a press conference to discuss his plans to donate his child’s heart. How … Continue reading Crises/Media Relations
One of your employees comes to speak to you concerned about one of the staff. The individual in question frequently calls in sick, their mood seems quite labile and today there is concern that they are intoxicated. What do you need to do immediately to respond to this concern, and how do you ensure the … Continue reading Capacity
The head of the intensive care unit comes to see you as head of your department, concerned that one of your staff has a high treatment complication rate. They want you to immediately restrict the staff’s privileges. How do you ensure that the criticisms are correct and what is the appropriate response to the allegations? … Continue reading Competency
As departmental leader, one of the staff comes to you concerned about an unsettling episode. One of your team reportedly went on a “rampage” when the clinic was overbooked, raising their voice and belittling staff. This particular employee is known to have a ‘strong personality’. Should you let this go, take on the problem yourself, … Continue reading Disruptive Behaviour
As the head of a department, you have several leaders within the department of highly variable skills. Also, you have some young and enthusiastic faculty members who are clearly ambitious and are likely leaders of the future. How do you make your current leaders more effective and how should you make the next generation of … Continue reading Leadership Development
As head of a department you inherit a regular departmental meeting. You review minutes of past meetings and find packed agendas of items largely for information. You chair your first meeting to find less than 10% of the department attends. The presenters on the agenda do all the talking, and after 15 minutes, even you … Continue reading Running a Meeting
You are reviewing the performance of the department as a whole. Within your department there are widespread calls for accountability. How do you achieve accountability without disenfranchising your staff? While goodwill and desire drives performance, there must still be accountability for job performance. This may be at an individual or a group level. Accountability requires … Continue reading Accountability for Group Performance
Your agenda for change is underway. While some things are going well, others seem to have made no progress, and everything is taking longer than you thought. Your CEO, who has an MBA, suggests you need to learn about Change Management. Can the business world provide you any guidance as you struggle to accomplish your … Continue reading Change Management
One of your roles as clinical group head is to communicate with your staff. Some people complain they never hear about things, others seems to encourage gossip and misinformation, and everyone complains there are too many e-mails. What is the purpose of communication and how do you ensure that you hit the right mark? Communication … Continue reading Communication
As head of the department, you want to take stock of your faculty members. You want to ensure that the faculty are performing at their maximum potential. The current system doesn’t seem to have a real handle on performance and, if anything, seems to have led to disenfranchisement. How do you create a system that … Continue reading Performance Management
In your department, there are leaders who report to you. Many have been leaders for a long time. Several of the groups are restless for change and others have longstanding disagreements among members. How do you gain an understanding of how well the leaders and/or groups are functioning? This post deals with how to evaluate … Continue reading Reviewing Leaders
You have developed a shared agenda for change and the department seems enthusiastic about effecting real improvement. However, there appears to be an overwhelming amount of work for you alone and you are worried if you try to lead everything, everyone will find fault in some aspect of every effort. How do you distribute the … Continue reading Teams & Task Forces
As you plan for your agenda for change, you begin to wonder about the current organizational structure in your department. Several key roles within the department have been created specifically to meet the skill mix of the incumbents and to basically find a place for them. If your agenda for change is to be successful, … Continue reading Organizational Structure & Committees
You have developed an agenda for change. But now it’s time to put the plan into practice. You’ve engaged your team in discussion about strategies to encourage change and enhance individual performance. Many argue you need to tie performance to compensation, while others state the key to performance is punishment and singling out poor performers. … Continue reading Incentivizing Performance
Your clinical group lacks a strategic plan. You are asked by members of your group to allow them to have input into your plans for its future. It occurs to you that one approach to develop, gain feedback, and communicate a shared agenda for change would be to bring people together at a retreat or … Continue reading Vision, Mission, Values and Strategic Direction (Planning for a Retreat)
You have an ambitious agenda for change. While the specific initiatives are clear, you want to have an overarching approach to increase the potential for successful implementation. What should that approach look like? How do you maximise buy-in from everyone affected by the changes? A recurring theme throughout all my posts is the need … Continue reading Engaging in the Change: Co-creation
You have started as the head of a clinical group. During the selection process, you articulated several important changes, both short- and long-term, needed for the group. However, you realize many of the members in the team see different priorities. How do you bring everyone onto the same page? To be a transformational leader, an … Continue reading Laying the Groundwork: Developing an Agenda for Change
You have been appointed as the head of a clinical department. You don’t officially transition into the role for three months, but already you are receiving advice from the other leaders on how you should lead. Your predecessor stresses how important it is for you to get along with everyone. A respected physician at the … Continue reading Leadership Style
At every medical school and hospital, clinicians are thrust into leadership positions. While some are natural leaders and others have substantial experience, virtually all struggle with the practical aspects of the role. Clinical care is all about ensuring the highest quality treatment, while providing the best experience for patients and their families. Academic health science … Continue reading Introduction
