THE DEVELOPMENT OF CLINICAL LEADERSHIP

At DeakinCo., we understand the demands of strong clinical leadership in healthcare.

Recognised as indispensable, clinical leadership capability is increasingly becoming recognised as an essential requirement for new and existing leaders across the range of clinical professions. With recent literature, royal commissions, and reports highlighting its significance in achieving and sustaining improvements to care quality and patient safety, it’s clear that clinical expertise alone is no longer sufficient for assuming leadership roles.

DeakinCo. has worked with a range of clients in health and community care settings to design and deliver clinical leadership programs to both established clinical leaders and emerging leaders. For example, a recent 6-month program was tailored for Registered Health Professionals who are leaders of practice and included Nurses, Allied Health, and Medical Professionals.

These programs are designed to prepare clinical leaders to empower, support and develop their teams to deliver safe, high quality clinical services, across a range of settings.

Another flagship program, currently in its second iteration, spans 9 months and is tailored for clinical leaders in home, community and residential care settings. Co-designed with prominent healthcare providers operating nationwide, these programs ensure clinical leaders, whether in metropolitan hubs or rural areas, receive the necessary skills and support.

Feedback from the participant evaluations have been extremely positive, with clinicians reporting enhanced leadership skills and capability uplift, and increased confidence to lead and support clinical teams more effectively.

The design and development of clinical leadership programs starts by working closely with the client to understand the specific skills and capabilities the program needs to address, for example the topics in these programs have included:

• Leading within a clinical governance framework
• Managing clinical risk
• Critical thinking and problem-solving
• Emotional intelligence and self-awareness
• Influencing without authority
• Self-leadership and empowering others
• Leading and influencing change
• Adaptive thinking and innovation
• Integrity and values-based ethical practice
• Managing and leading multidisciplinary, cross-functional clinical teams

The program structure is always carefully designed to meet the needs of sometimes widely dispersed participants, who are shift-workers, and can include some or all these features:

Immersive self-directed short courses to encourage reflection on leadership capabilities.

• Interactive webinars and/or face-to-face workshops aligned to each topic.
• Panel discussions with experienced clinical leaders.
• Small group leadership coaching sessions.
• Action learning projects to bring topics to life through addressing a real workplace issue or opportunity.
• Opportunity to gain leadership micro-credentials through DeakinCo.
• Recognition of prior learning to gain formal DeakinCo. leadership qualifications (e.g. Graduate Certificate of Management or Graduate Diploma of Strategic Leadership).

At DeakinCo. we’re committed to shaping the future of healthcare leadership, one clinical leader at a time. For more information about how we can support your team, contact the DeakinCo. team or contact our team.