Session 2
Management and Leadership Continued
The aim of this session is to build on the knowledge of management and explore the concepts of leadership and its differences from management. Considering when it is appropriate to apply each approach. Explore various scenarios in healthcare organisations and analyse how leadership and management strategies can be effectively applied to address specific challenges. And delve into the concept of managing within the context of responsible leadership, considering ethical considerations and responsible decision-making.
Activity 3.1.1
What is leadership and management and how are they similar and how are they different? Considering your response, add examples and dimensions to illustrate the similarities and differences.
Activity 3.2.2: Applying Management and/or Leadership.
Scenario 1: Organisational Culture Transformation
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A healthcare organisation recognises the need for a cultural shift to improve employee engagement, patient-centered care, and innovation. Facing challenges related to low employee morale, resistance to change, and a hierarchical structure that hinders collaboration.
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Scenario 2: Budgeting and Financial Control in a Healthcare Organisation
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A healthcare organisation faces financial constraints and the need to maximise the utilisation of available resources while providing quality healthcare services. Struggling with budget deficits, rising costs, and limited funding.
Scenario 3: Quality Improvement in a Healthcare Facility
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A healthcare facility aims to enhance the quality of care provided to patients and improve patient outcomes. The facility faces challenges related to patient safety incidents, high readmission rates, and suboptimal care processes.
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Scenario 4: Leading Change in Healthcare Policy
A healthcare system is undergoing significant policy changes that impact patient care delivery, reimbursement models, and regulatory compliance. The organisation faces challenges related to resistance to change, ambiguity, and the need for stakeholder buy-in.
Scenario 5: Strategic Planning for Community Health Initiatives
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A public health agency aims to develop and implement strategic initiatives to address community health issues such as obesity, substance abuse, or mental health disparities. The agency faces challenges related to limited resources, complex stakeholder dynamics, and the need for cross-sector collaboration.
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Scenario 6: Hospital Operational Efficiency
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The hospital faces challenges related to long wait times, inefficient patient flow, and inadequate resource allocation.
Scenario 1: Leadership
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Transforming organisational culture requires a shift in mindset, which can only be achieved through vision, inspiration, and relationship-building. Leadership is essential for addressing low morale and fostering collaboration by motivating employees to embrace new values and practices.
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Scenario 2: Management
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Budgeting and financial control are operational challenges that demand precision, structure, and analytical problem-solving. Management practices are important for assessing financial performance, allocating resources efficiently, and implementing cost-control measures while ensuring quality healthcare. Managers can establish clear policies and monitor expenditures to address budget deficits effectively.
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Scenario 3: Both Leadership and Management​
Leadership is needed to inspire staff to prioritise patient safety and to foster a culture of continuous improvement. However, management is equally critical to implement structured processes, track performance metrics, and standardise care practices. Combining leadership’s motivational aspect with management’s focus on execution ensures sustainable improvements in quality and outcomes.
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Scenario 4: Leadership​
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Policy changes often involve uncertainty and resistance, requiring leaders to guide stakeholders through ambiguity and foster acceptance. Leadership is important for driving the vision behind the policy changes, building trust, and achieving stakeholder buy-in. By connecting the policy’s purpose to improved patient care, leaders can galvanise support and ensure smoother implementation.
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Scenario 5: Leadership
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Addressing community health issues demands collaboration across diverse sectors and stakeholders. Leadership is essential to build partnerships, align interests, and inspire collective action. Leaders can drive the strategic vision, navigate resource limitations, and ensure that initiatives are based on shared goals for community well-being.
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Scenario 6: Management
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Improving operational efficiency requires a structured analysis of a problem and a systematic improvement to processes, both of which are important management functions. Managers can identify inefficiencies, re-structure workflows, and allocate resources effectively to reduce wait times and improve patient flow. A data-driven and process-oriented approach is essential in this context.
Activity 3.2.3: Balancing Roles: When Leadership Meets Management
When should a leader act as a manager and when should a manager act as a leader?
A leader should act as a manager when clear structures, processes, and detailed plans are needed to achieve specific goals or resolve operational challenges. As we've seen before, when implementing new systems such as EHRs, it is more suitable for a leader to practice managerial functions to ensure the efficiencient uptake of new work procedures.
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A manager should act as a leader when motivation, vision, and engagement are required to inspire teams or drive cultural or strategic change.
