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The purpose of this paper is to provide a summary of a research and consultation project being undertaken by the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement and The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges to develop an integrated medical management and leadership competency framework. This will apply to all doctors in training at undergraduate and postgraduate levels and post‐registration.

A literature review and consultation approach has been adopted. By interviewing appropriate stakeholders from medical professional, educational, service and regulatory bodies, a high level of awareness and engagement has been realised. This should pay dividends at the implementation phase.

Whilst some management and leadership is included within current curricula, it is highly variable both in terms of its coverage and relevance. At undergraduate level, it is often covered within professional development modules. At postgraduate level, some exciting initiatives are offered for some doctors but no integrated, systematic and coherent framework exists. Findings from the research are influencing the design and content of the emerging competency framework.

The approach used has provided a good range of information however, neither an exhaustive set of views or a full literature review has been obtained.

Introduction of the Medical Leadership Competency Framework will have a significant impact on how doctors are trained. To be deemed an effective and safe doctor in the future, competence in both clinical and wider non‐clinical competences including management and leadership will be required.

This paper will raise awareness of this important initiative and offer a methodology for other clinical professional groups, nationally and internationally.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the use of competences in medical education and training and to discuss some existing standards, curricula and competency frameworks used by the medical profession in both the UK and internationally to inform leadership development.

This research reinforces the message delivered by the medical profession and policy makers in recent years that all doctors should attain management and leadership competences in addition to clinical knowledge and skills to be an effective and safe practitioner. In the UK, this message and research has helped inform the development of a Medical Leadership Competency Framework (MLCF) published by The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges[1] and NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement[2].

Widespread acceptance of the MLCF is now resulting in the integration of leadership and management competences into all undergraduate and postgraduate curricula.

Other countries with similar histories of low medical engagement in planning, delivery and transformation of services may also benefit from the research undertaken and the MLCF

The paper shows that the MLCF may well inspire more doctors in the future to seek formal leadership positions.

Although medical leadership and management (MLM) is increasingly being recognised as important to improving healthcare outcomes, little is understood about current training of medical students in MLM skills and behaviours in the UK. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

This qualitative study used validated structured interviews with expert faculty members from medical schools across the UK to ascertain MLM framework integration, teaching methods employed, evaluation methods and barriers to improvement.

Data were collected from 25 of the 33 UK medical schools (76 per cent response rate), with 23/25 reporting that MLM content is included in their curriculum. More medical schools assessed MLM competencies on admission than at any other time of the curriculum. Only 12 schools had evaluated MLM teaching at the time of data collection. The majority of medical schools reported barriers, including overfilled curricula and reluctance of staff to teach. Whilst 88 per cent of schools planned to increase MLM content over the next two years, there was a lack of consensus on proposed teaching content and methods.

There is widespread inclusion of MLM in UK medical schools’ curricula, despite the existence of barriers. This study identified substantial heterogeneity in MLM teaching and assessment methods which does not meet students’ desired modes of delivery. Examples of national undergraduate MLM teaching exist worldwide, and lessons can be taken from these.

This is the first national evaluation of MLM in undergraduate medical school curricula in the UK, highlighting continuing challenges with executing MLM content despite numerous frameworks and international examples of successful execution.

The understanding of “organisations” has changed fundamentally from seeing them as concrete entities to viewing them as communities of meaning. Mature adults in healthcare learn best when addressing pressing problems in company of their peers. Healthcare is unlike other sectors because of the emotional labour which is part of the experience of clinical staff. Absorptive capacity offers a conceptual model for viewing organisational learning and the encouragement of systemic eloquence can be enabled through a variety of approaches, provided they are designed and delivered as part of a well-thought-through approach to developing local absorptive capacity.

This is a viewpoint paper.

Healthcare differs from other sectors. Organisational learning can be enabled by a range of approaches, but these need to be sensitive to local circumstances.

The paper asserts that healthcare is unlike other sectors because of emotional labour on the part of clinical staff. It maintains that organisations are communities of meaning, rather than concrete entities. Systemic eloquence can be enhanced by the concept of absorptive capacity, applied in local contexts.