The Reform Of Leadership Skills In Swedish Healthcare: An Innovative Behavior : A qualitative study about physician leadership in Swedish medical teams and how crises affect them.

Abstract:   Background:Sweden is known for having a good infrastructure in health care that enables the medical profession to provide effective patient care. The pandemic struck the world in March 2019 and has since then shown transparency, strengths and weaknesses in the system. Transit zones, modern solutions, and overworked staff have been noticed. The medical teams have been affected and the medical leaders with the right leadership skills have therefore been more important than ever.   Problem statement:The management and leadership structure are interconnected in health care, but there are some distinguishments, like personnel administration and budgeting within management, and vision and inspiration within the leadership concept. Physician leadership is provided in medical teams on wards and this person has two job responsibilities, as a leader and as a specialist. Their job has been greatly challenged these two years with an overloaded system and overworked staff. It has therefore been of great interest to provide good leadership.   Research purpose:The purpose of this thesis is to examine how Swedish physician leaders maintain good managerial power in a complex system and elaborate on the situational theory in health care. This is investigated by interviews with medical professions in different specialties. The findings are expected to contribute additional insights to the previous theoretical framework on contingent leadership. Method:This study has used a qualitative research design by conducting 8 semi-structured interviews. An interpretive paradigm was applied, and the data was supported by the theory which allowed subjectivity from the interviewed. The judgment sampling presented medical professionals that have worked during the pandemic on different wards, but with different amounts and different kinds of experience in health care. A thematic analysis was used for data analysis, providing the research with reflection regarding the professions’ experience of a medical team and the effect the crisis had on it.   Results:The work cycle is coherent for all professions, yet complex and changeable throughout the day. The physician leader is responsible for patient rounds and patient care and must be situational since the job comes with different challenges and work. Communication is deeply important in providing a good environment for team members’ competency improvement, as well as making them feel empowered. The team must have a hierarchy in emergencies and in crises, but it must be neglected in other situations, for example during consultations between a nurse and a physician. Subjective perception of the balance between these two must be present from a leader’s point of view, and health care lacks education on this perspective today. At the same time, the follower must be aware of the team structure in the room and not overestimate their own legitimacy. The professional designated color of the badge is there for the reason; to maintain order.