Medical directors tell national health bodies what they think
8 May 2014 02:40 PM
Top doctors say fellow
clinicians need more support and encouragement to take on NHS leadership roles
in hospital trusts, according to a survey conducted by Monitor and the NHS
Trust Development Authority.
Medical directors, the senior
consultants who sit on the boards of NHS trusts and foundation trusts, believe
that the job should be a clearer career option within the NHS to attract more
clinicians to this increasingly crucial management role.
The survey found that a high
proportion of current medical directors are new to the role – with a
quarter of respondents having served a year or less in their current job. New
medical directors indicated that they would value more mentoring and induction,
particularly on their corporate responsibilities. More established medical
directors value networking, coaching and board support.
The survey also found that it
would be useful for medical directors to have:
- greater role
clarity
- clearer training and career
pathways
- organisational and peer support
– from above, below and alongside
- more acknowledgements of the
strategic as well as the operational aspects of the role
Monitor will meet with national
partners over the coming months to consider the report and explore ways of
addressing the issues raised.
Professor Hugo Mascie-Taylor,
Medical Director at Monitor, said:
“The medical director role
is a varied and vital one. What our survey tells us is that medical directors
at all stages of their careers want more support and we’ll be working
with our partners to find out how we can best give it to them.
“One initial idea is to
offer a version of Monitor’s board induction days – currently aimed
at chief executives, chairs and non-executive directors – to medical
directors later in the year.
“But we’re open to
all ideas which will help us both offer support and a career pathway to current
medical directors and help us develop new ones. This is just the beginning of
what will be a very interesting project.”
- For further information on
Monitor please contact Syeda Hasnain, Media Relations Officer on press.office@monitor.gov.uk (020 3747 0800).