Bridging Worlds to Lead: A conceptual review with stakeholder  consultation to create the LEADS+ Development Model        

Abstract

Purpose: Healthcare leadership within academic health centres is increasingly complex. To handle this increasing complexity, we need models to support emerging and practicing leaders within health systems. Method: Through stakeholder consultation this conceptual review sought to examine leadership constructs and how they intersect with current leadership practices in academic health centres. The goal was to develop a new model of healthcare leadership development. The authors used sequential iterative cycles of divergent and convergent thinking approaches to explore and synthesize various literature vantage points. Approaches used simulated personas and stories to test the model. Finally, the approach sought feedback from stakeholders (including healthcare leaders, medical educators, leadership developers) to offer refinements. Results: After five rounds of discussion and reformulation, the authors arrived at a new model for leadership development: theLEADS+ Development Model . During their stakeholder consultation stage, they garnered feedback from 29 out of 65 recruited individuals (44.6% response rate). More than a quarter of respondents served as a senior leader in a healthcare network or national society (27.5%, n=8). During the stakeholder consultation stage, participants were invited to indicate their endorsement for the new model using a 10-point scale (10=highest level of endorsement). There was a high level of endorsement: 7.93 (SD 1.7) out of 10. Conclusion: The LEADS+ Development Model is a new model to foster leadership development in academic health centers. In addition to describing leadership development trajectories, this model describes the various leadership and followership paradigms adopted by leaders within health systems.