I’m a big believer in coaching. Having coaches – both formal and informal – has been invaluable to me over years; at their best, coaches are thoughtful observers who can ask us the right questions to elicit our coming up with our own right answers. I remember an “aha” moment with a talented executive coach […]
Latest articles
How can we protect NHS BAME Staff? by Sonali Dutta-Knight
An analysis of media reports published in the Health Services Journal in April showed that 95% of the Doctors who have died from Covid-19 were from BAME backgrounds. Currently 44% of NHS doctors are identified as being BAME. To date, the NHS has not enacted a uniform, timely approach to protecting this vulnerable group of staff. […]
Effective Followership – The Holy Grail of Improved Employee Engagement? by Keith Stanton
I have always enjoyed coming across philosophical statements that encapsulate life. One of my favorites has always been “that which I am aware of I can control, that which I am unaware of controls me”. The premise that by raising awareness you can achieve a greater degree of performance has manifested itself in numerous areas […]
Evaluating Values by Rageshri Dhairyawan
As medical leaders, we are encouraged to think about our values. The Faculty of Medical Leadership and management standards for medical professionals are guided by values espoused in the Seven Principles of Public Life, which include integrity and accountability. But who and what we value is just as important as our personal values. And ideally, […]
After the speeches: what now for NHS staff race discrimination? by Roger Kline
Six years ago The Snowy White Peaks of the NHS 1 highlighted the scale of race discrimination in the NHS, the UK’s biggest employer of Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) staff. COVID-19 has shown so much more needs to be done. 300 health and social care staff have died so far from COVID-19, a disproportionate number […]
Leadership and Racism in Pandemic Times by Jamiu Busari
On the 9th of June 2020, George Perry Floyd Jr. was laid to rest in Pearland, Texas. What ensued in the aftermath of his killing was a cathartic revolt to a pre-existent global pandemic. It was a pandemic that the world preferred to believe did not exist, but pervaded the inner fabric of our educational, […]
The heroic NHS immigrants: an idea that has run its course? by Saurabh Jain
In my view, Britain has always had a thorny relationship with race and immigration, and this is magnified in the NHS. The NHS has relied on migrant labour using colonial ties to fill its ranks such as nurses from the Windrush generation or doctors from the Indian subcontinent. 43% of senior NHS doctors and 47% of junior doctors are from Black, […]
The Importance of Leading Self by Keith Stanton
There are literally hundreds of leadership courses out there in the market today, but only a fraction deal with the most critical and basic of topics, the ability to lead self. But without this firm foundation all other aspects of leadership are built on sand. In today’s “COVID” world the ability to lead self is […]
Adapting Leadership and Staying Empowered – the Three Critical T’s by Nicci Statham
So here we are just past the first peak of a virus outbreak. A BIG shock for our NHS leaders and the world. Part of me wonders if this is a big wake up call to the reality that things can change at any time, in any way. We really aren’t in control of anything, […]
Can healthcare leaders provide emotional containment for their staff as COVID-19 levels fall? by Catherine Sandler
As an executive coach working with business and public sector leaders during the 2008-11 recession, I was struck by how some groups of employees coped much better than others during difficult times. Certain organisations seemed able to maintain productivity, motivation and trust during the crisis while others in the same sector were characterised by high […]