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19 September 2011
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What... you think my emails are too long?

Over the summer I got the chance to be a medical student guinea pig for a 360° feedback tool based on the new NHS Leadership Framework. This new framework applies to all staff in the NHS and builds upon FMLM’s Medical Leadership Competency Framework, with which I am sure you are familiar.

This was my first experience of 360° feedback and I was especially excited to take part because it would be exploring my competence in leadership and management.  After badgering colleagues, supervisors and friends to review me, I had my feedback session last week... Besides learning that I send excessively wordy emails, the facilitator pulled out lots of areas for me to develop - some of which I was aware of but many of which were as unexpected as the email admonishment.  

I learned that the NHS Leadership Framework and the MLCF build upon the strikingly common sense yet revolutionary concept of shared leadership within the NHS.  Upon reflection, I wonder if some of my shortcomings highlighted by the 360 exist because my modus operandi has been built around the outmoded idea of the heroic leader.  In fact I wonder if this is just me or does the hierarchical nature of medicine encourage this kind of thinking?

For those of you who are interested to see how you fare against the Leadership Framework, the 360° feedback tool is unfortunately not yet out of the pilot stage but a self-assessment version for clinicians is available online.  Why not have a go, reflect on what you learn and develop an action plan for ways to improve?  For any other students or trainees, that sounds like an excellent addition for your portfolio!

But in case my reprimand about length of email applies to blog posts too, I shall sign off here.

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About the author

Stuart Holmes's picture

Stuart Holmes

Stuart is a soon-to-be final year medical student at the University of Manchester. He has interrupted his studies this year and is working at NHS North West where he is involved in leadership development activity for trainees in the North Western Deanery. He coordinates the North West Buddy Scheme, which pairs NHS management trainees with junior doctors for mutual learning.

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