title: Equipping clinical leaders for system and service improvements in quality and safety: an Australian experience.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To develop clinical leadership among health professionals working in public sector organisations to improve their skills in ensuring high quality and safe health services.
  
  
  METHODS
  A longitudinal pre-post-intervention mixed methods study that included 60 health professionals working in one state in Australia.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The program was successful in the development of clinical leaders.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  An interdisciplinary, inter-sectoral leadership development program involving health professionals from metropolitan, regional and rural areas can be successful in developing knowledge, skills and competencies among these health professionals in health service quality and safety.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Health professionals can participate in a development program to enhance their clinical leadership skills. While this was a post-qualification course, targeting experienced health professionals, the learnings could be applied to pre-qualification education of health professionals.
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology and Public Health, La Trobe University, Victoria.
authors.forename: Sandra G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Leggat
authors.affiliation: Organisational Consulting, Victoria.
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Smyth
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology and Public Health, La Trobe University, Victoria.
authors.forename: Cathy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Balding
authors.affiliation: Learning and Teaching Centre, Macquarie University, New South Wales.
authors.forename: Iain
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: McAlpine
mesh_terms: D000288:Administrative Personnel / Q000193:education; D001315:Australia; D006282:Health Personnel / Q000193:education*; D006801:Humans; D007857:Leadership; D011361:Professional Competence; D016730:Program Development; D058996:Quality Improvement; D017751:Safety Management / Q000379:methods* / Q000458:organization & administration
keywords: clinical leadership; leadership development; quality of care