Future of clinical leadership: the critical role of front-line doctors

Abstract

This is the accepted version of the paper.This version of the publication may differ from the final published version. Contributorship: The first author initiated the essay and contributed to identifying and synthesizing relevant literature, and the initial and final drafting of the manuscript. The second author joined as a co-author after the initial submission. She contributed to identifying and synthesizing relevant literature, and revising drafts after the initial submission. Funding information: There was no external funding for this research. Ethics approval: This research did not involve the use of human subjects, and hence there was no ethics approval process for this manuscript. Permanent repository link

Looking to the future of clinical leadership

“…Most recently, Nigam and Gao5 have emphasised the importance of front-line clinicians as leaders. Although not necessarily in formal leadership or management positions, they play a key role in implementing service improvement, ‘including efforts to improve the quality, safety or efficiency of health services’.…”

“…The first is the requirement for leaders to maintain clinical credibility. The front-line clinicians described by Nigam and Gao5 are perhaps the most credible of all, but those who have become full-time managers can be just as credible by maintaining their patient-focused values. It is not necessary to maintain a clinical practice to achieve this.…”