Leadership Development in Medicine: A Review

The complex and unique challenges of healthcare require physicians who are competent leaders. Leadership is shaped by complex dynamic processes and various factors. Such factors include intrapersonal (leadership identity, cognitive abilities, and self-leadership) and interpersonal factors (vision and mission development and team building). The purpose of this paper is to review current thinking and advancements in leader and leader development by drawing on the administrative literature and discussing how it may apply to medicine, focusing on the contemporary approaches, challenges, and opportunities in this field. More specifically, this review analyses the intrapersonal and interpersonal development of medical leadership, beginning with a consideration of the current state of medical education and practice. It also covers the current challenges affecting medical leadership, as well as the implications for practice, policy, and research. In this paper, it was found that leader and leadership development are both essential for leader growth and to enhance leaders' competencies and effectiveness. The latter leads to improved organizational performance. The paper also highlights the importance of integrating various methods of teaching and learning to optimize leadership development programs.