King's Fund: Five myths of compassionate leadership (28 May 2019)

Summary

Sustaining the NHS as a culture of high-quality compassionate care requires compassionate leadership at every level and in interactions between all parts of the system – from national leaders to local teams. Compassionate leadership in practice means leaders listening with fascination to those they lead, arriving at a shared (rather than imposed) understanding of the challenges they face, empathising with and caring for them, and then taking action to help or support them.

This article discusses the myths that must be addressed to ensure people see the value of compassionate leadership.