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By Tony Grew - 18th May 2011
The NHS needs a new style of leadership in order to deal with "unprecedented financial pressures", according to a new report.
The King's Fund, a leading health think tank, has concluded after a nine month inquiry that the health service faces a transformation and needs a new style of management.
Its commission on NHS leadership and management found high-quality, stable management to be key to high-performing health services.
"Across the NHS, the average chief executive spends just 700 days in post," the King's Fund said.
"In part, this reflects a culture where 'heroic' leaders grapple with problems only from the top of the organisation, or are 'parachuted in' to replace individual managers and 'turn around' troubled NHS services.
"The report advocates a new type of 'shared leadership'- involving leaders at different levels of the workforce working collaboratively with all those involved in patient care to lead change and improve services, rather than only tackling problems inside specific institutions."
The Chartered Management Institute has backed the report's conclusion that the NHS needs better leadership and management support.
Ruth Spellman, CEO of CMI, said: "NHS resources have to be refocused to meet the priorities of the next fifteen to twenty years, but if change is to be successful we need a health service where leadership and management standards are consistent, no matter what part of the country a patient is in or whether the people they come across are clinical or general managers.
"Ultimately every manager and leader ought to have access to the best available learning materials so that the right skills are developed and patient-centred care becomes a reality."
CMI's research found that 40 per cent of healthcare professionals feel they aren't reaching their full potential because of bad management.
"If we are serious about improving health services in the UK, we need an NHS where all managers are trained and developed to national professional standards," she said.
"Under plans for a more devolved health service managers and leaders will enjoy greater autonomy, but with this comes a responsibility to exercise autonomy properly and effectively.
"It means that training must also be accredited so that the skills our NHS managers develop are world class and recognised by patients and employers alike."
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Article Comments
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lynne heal
19th May 2011 at 6:12 pm
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