The Concept of Leadership in the Health Care Sector

The health care sector is characterised by constant reforms aimed at the efficient delivery of safe, effective, and high-quality care. Effective leadership is required to lead and drive changes at all levels of the health system to actualise the goals of the ongoing reforms in health care organisations. Leadership in the health care sector is spread across management and clinical workforces, creating peculiar challenges. The chapter examines the concept of leadership in the health care sector within the context of the recent drive by health care organisations to identify essential competencies and training required by health management and leadership workforces for effective performance in roles. It concludes that further research is needed to build the evidence on the relationships between targeted training and professional development interventions, individual competence of leaders from health management and clinical backgrounds and organisational performance.