Last week, we discussed empathy and how we as doctors can be empathetic to our patients . This week, we carry on in our series of 7 Skills We Wish Were Taught at Medical College and delve into leadership. Doctors as Leaders and Managers As we continue in our study on 7 Skills We Wish Were Taught at Medical College, I now want to focus on a key set of competencies that are clubbed under the umbrella of Leadership skills . Let’s begin by asking a fundamental but important question: “Are doctors leaders?” In order to derive an effective and complete answer to this question, it is important to define and understand leadership.
So, who is a leader? Understanding Leadership There are a number of theories on Leadership that have evolved over time. From the idea in the late 40s that leaders are born and not made, ( the Trait Theory or Great Man of Leadership ) there was a shift in the 60s to…
