Abstract
PurposeThe purpose of this study is to review evidence on the nature of effective leadership in interprofessional health and social care teams.Design/methodology/approachA critical review and thematic synthesis of research literature conducted using systematic methods to identify and construct a framework to explain the available evidence about leadership in interprofessional health and social care teams.FindingsTwenty-eight papers were reviewed and contributed to the framework for interprofessional leadership. Twelve themes emerged from the literature, the themes were: facilitate shared leadership; transformation and change; personal qualities; goal alignment; creativity and innovation; communication; team-building; leadership clarity; direction setting; external liaison; skill mix and diversity; clinical and contextual expertise. The discussion includes some comparative analysis with theories and themes in team management and team leadership.Originality/valueThis research identifies some of the characteristics of effective leadership of interprofessional health and social care teams. By capturing and synthesising the literature, it is clear that effective interprofessional health and social care team leadership requires a unique blend of knowledge and skills that support innovation and improvement. Further research is required to deepen the understanding of the degree to which team leadership results in better outcomes for both patients and teams.
Highlights
This paper reports on the results of a critical literature review (Grant and Booth, 2009) that aimed to evaluate the evidence and to present an analysis of leadership in interprofessional teams in health and social care organisations
Leadership development has been a priority within health care but less attention has been given to the effectiveness of leadership on the outcomes of teams
This paper presents a review of leadership in interprofessional health and social care teams, seeking to identify elements that are characteristic of and/or associated with higher performance and achieving better patient outcomes
Summary
This paper reports on the results of a critical literature review (Grant and Booth, 2009) that aimed to evaluate the evidence and to present an analysis of leadership in interprofessional teams in health and social care organisations. Concerns over leadership in the UK National Health Service (NHS) first became an area of focus in the late 1980s when professional management was introduced (Mackie, 1987). When the labour government came to power in 1997, leadership capacity was recognised as a critical factor in the reform agenda; to modernise the NHS (Goodwin, 2000). Reports on health service failures at an organisational level have further regularly identified poor leadership as a contributory factor in criminally negligent care (Keogh, 2013; Francis, 2013; Berwick, 2013)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
