During the last years, Statecharts have gained wide acceptance for the specification of reactive, embedded systems. However, most semantics suggested so far are either informal or hard to grasp. In this contribution, we present a Statecharts dialect that permits nondeterministic specifications, offers zero-delay broadcast communication, and handles negation in trigger expressions in a new way. We give a compositional formal semantics for this dialect, which is abstract enough for formal reasoning and yet easy to operationalize for simulators, model checking tools and code generation. * This work is partially funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) as part of the compound project "KorSys'.

IN 2006, QUEENSLAND HEALTH embarked upon a major reform program that included a comprehensive leadership development program for senior leaders, managers and supervisors. The objective was to achieve improvements in the leadership capabilities of key staff that will result in real improvements in workplace culture. The components of the program include: actionlearning leadership development workshops, 360-degree feedback, executive coaching, leadership learning modules and an interactive leadership website. The program is constantly evolving, and implementation commenced in 2007 of a second phase which includes a number of additional initiatives ? an Emerging Clinical Leaders Program, a Top 500 leaders Program, Conflict Resolution Program for Clinicians and a Clinical Network Chairs Leadership Program. Workforce statistics have shown a distinct improvement since the implementation of the program.

Purpose -This paper is a descriptive case study which seeks to outline how leadership development is being utilised across Queensland Health (Queensland Department of Health, Australia) to achieve improvements in workplace culture and ultimately improvements in clinical care and patient outcomes. Design/methodology/approach -Queensland Health has been implementing a comprehensive organisation-wide suite of leadership development programs since 2006. This includes a range of specific leadership development programs conducted over a period of time for clinical and non-clinical staff. It also includes specialist leadership development workshops of shorter duration, online leadership modules, web-based support, executive coaching and 360-degree feedback. The programs are based upon experiential learning which engages participants in critical thinking and self-reflection based upon in-context experiences relevant to themselves. Ongoing leadership program development has been evidence-based and identified through 360-degree feedback outcomes, staff opinion survey outcomes and program evaluation outcomes. Findings -The 360-degree feedback survey results of participants have improved. This demonstrates that the leadership development programs have impacted positively on participants' workplace behaviour. The culture and climate survey results have improved which demonstrates positive cultural change has taken place. The programs have been evaluated very highly by participants.Originality/value -This is one of the most comprehensive and innovative leadership development initiatives ever undertaken within the Australian health sector, with over 10,000 participants to date.

Introduction: We created a curriculum to help new physicians and nurses develop skills in interprofessional collaboration. This modular, team-based curriculum for early practitioners delivered training in the five following skill areas: listening for meaning, soliciting another's perspective, negotiating a transparent plan of care, attending to nonverbal communication and microaggression, and speaking up the hierarchy. Methods: We brought first-year medical and surgical residents and new nurses together for a 2-hour session monthly for 5 months. Each session began with an interactive large-group presentation, followed by small-group activities covering one of the five skill areas above, which had been identified as critical to interprofessional collaboration by national organizations. We measured relational coordination (RC), a validated measure of how well teams work together, before and after the curriculum was administered. We also obtained qualitative data from participant interviews and end-of-session evaluations. Results: Participants reported that the program helped them gain an understanding of each other's roles and workflow challenges. They felt that the curriculum allowed for the cultivation of professional relationships outside the clinical environment, which improved collegiality via gains in rapport and empathy towards each other. Nurses noted increased approachability of their physician colleagues after participation. RC scores improved for the entire cohort (p = .0232). Nurses had statistically higher RC gains than interns did (p = .0055). Discussion: Curriculum participants demonstrated improved RC scores and reported increased rapport with and empathy for each other. Curriculum development in this area is important because it may lead to better team-based patient care.

QUEENSLAND HEALTH IMPLEMENTED the ?Better Workplaces? staff opinion survey (the survey) in May 2006. The initiative stands as the largest single staff survey ever conducted in Queensland, and one of the largest in Australia. This case study outlines the process of this project, the outcomes to date and some of the pitfalls and successes along the way. Logistically it involved 37 health service districts and 10 corporate areas spread across the state. The survey process incorporated four survey periods over two years. The aim of the survey was: to improve workplace culture at the local level and across the organisation as a whole. Workplace culture is defined by Cole as ?The collection of unwritten rules, codes of behaviour and norms by which people operate, how we do things around here?1 Queensland Health proposed to improve its workplace culture by listening to staff and developing and driving targeted action plans following the survey with each district and division to create a climate of trust, respect, and innovation among staff which will ultimately improve patient outcomes. ?. . . The creation of a culture that is free of blame and encourages an open examination of error and failure is a key feature of services dedicated to quality improvement and to learning.?