title: The courageous follower.
abstract: With the recent changes in the delivery of medical care in the United States, physicians are being thrust into new and unsettling roles. Many are finding themselves for the first time in the role of the follower, subject to myriad types of leadership. Leaders frequently complain that leading physicians is like "herding cats." What are the characteristics of followers? Do physicians make good followers? This article examines the role of the "cats"--what is effective followership, why physicians may fall short in followership skills, and how physicians might become better "followers."
authors.affiliation: San Diego Cardiology Network, Murrieta, CA, USA.
authors.forename: N W
authors.initials: NW
authors.lastname: Treister
authors.forename: J H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Schultz
mesh_terms: D003659:Decision Making, Organizational; D019033:Delivery of Health Care, Integrated; D006801:Humans; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D007857:Leadership; D017146:Models, Organizational; D015279:Organizational Culture; D009937:Organizational Objectives; D008486:Physician Executives / Q000523:psychology* / Q000592:standards; D010819:Physician's Role; D011361:Professional Competence; D014481:United States