Leadership knowledge and behaviours: outcomes of a full-day leadership workshop focusing on personal growth in foundation doctors

Abstract

Background Effective clinical leadership is required at every level, including in Foundation doctors. Most leadership programmes neglect self-awareness and personal growth aspects of leadership training. We modified the Basildon Leadership Hub to focus on these aspects and evaluated the new programme. Methods Large group sessions were led by speakers with varied leadership roles, interspersed by breakout sessions incorporating experiential and reflective learning. Attendees answered anonymous surveys before, immediately after, and 2months after the workshop, with 5-point Likert-scale responses (1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree) designed around reaction, knowledge and behaviour levels of evaluation. We assessed differences in median responses using the Mann-Whitney U test with Bonferroni-Holm correction. Results The full-day workshop was attended by 27 trainees, 93% of whom considered it enjoyable and relevant. Attendees agreed more strongly to the statements 'I am a leader' and 'I know how I can demonstrate and develop my own leadership knowledge, skills and behaviours' in postcourse versus precourse surveys (p<0.001). The follow-up survey had a poor response rate of 26% with non-significant differences. Conclusion A full-day leadership workshop for Foundation doctors focusing on personal growth resulted in improvement in self-assessed precourse and postcourse knowledge and attitudes; however, poor follow-up response rate limited demonstration of sustained outcomes or changes in behaviour.Copyright © Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2025. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ Group.