Leadership Challenges in Academic Anesthesiology

The leadership challenge for academic anesthesiology lies in developing leadership at all levels in the department to create a meaningful, equitable, academic environment, with an attractive culture which challenges but supports and mentors individual growth and in so doing retains faculty. Education, research and clinical care, important as they are, are not ends in themselves, but a means to personal fulfillment lending meaning and identity to the individual which would be different from that which might be achieved in a private practice setting. The concepts of leadership from contemporary business literature are reviewed and a framework within which leadership can occur is described. This framework is based on an understanding of the role that the development of a departmental vision plays. This vision should be based on shared values as well as the mission of the department and should draw on the concepts of strategy, and commitment to realize the departmental goals. Based on these ideas, suggestions are made to illustrate how these business concepts might be applied in academic anesthesia departments.