Inspiring and leading change in turbulent times: The role of resilience in healthcare leadership

Abstract

The recent COVID-19 pandemic has magnified the chronic stressors that healthcare leaders deal with, which can lead to significant burnout. This paper argues that leaders have the ability to influence and impact their teams’ and organisations’ resilience through their words and actions. But in order to do that leaders first have to build and maintain their own self-resilience. Drawing on the latest research and compelling case studies based on his executive coaching experience, the author proposes a practical model of resilience that he has used with numerous leaders. This evidence-based model focuses on the importance of optimism, empathy and gratitude, on the one hand, and selfcare behaviours such as strategic resting, taking time for reflection, realistic boundaries between professional and personal lives, and healthy sleep habits, on the other. The paper recommends practical behaviours that can enable leaders to manage the extreme demands on their time in order to build and maintain their own resilience, as well as that of their teams and organisations. It ends with a short case study describing the importance of resilience for a healthcare leader that the author has coached.