Background

Leadership is a critical element for developing effective integrated care (Miller and Stein, 2020; Goodwin, 2020; Dickson and Smith, 2021; Miller, et al. 2023). While many health and social care systems have focused on the technical changes needed for integration, fewer systems have successfully identified and addressed the adaptive changes required to ensure technical changes are achieved. Adaptive change strategies enable leaders and staff to identify and address the changes in work, relationships and capabilities needed to create integrated care through supporting staff, encouraging diverse voices and enabling individuals and teams to retain focus and work through their anxieties. These challenges exist at several levels: for individuals, for teams, for sectoral realignment, and for broader health and care system oversight. This workshop identifies some key adaptive challenges and emergent change strategies for leaders in two systems: Ontario Health Teams, the integrated care initiative underway in Ontario Canada, and Integrated Care Systems, the strategy being deployed across the English health and care system. This workshop will emphasize issues, tools and strategies that catalyze adaptive change in these two health and care systems.

Audience

The target audience for this workshop are formal and informal leaders at all levels of integrated care systems, including clinical teams, departments, programs, organizations and citizen leaders.

Approach (60-minute workshop)

This workshop will focus on specific adaptive leadership issues facing OHT and ICS teams and the adaptive change strategies and tools to address these changes. For example, the reorganization of home care services in Ontario has connected home care workers with integrated care bodies, changing the structure of these programs and work relationships and reporting.

Workshop structure:

• An overview of adaptive leadership concepts, strategies and tools and why these resources are critical for integrated care: didactic (12 minutes) Ross Baker and Robin Miller
• Case studies of the use of adaptive leadership approaches to complex problems described by ICS and OHT leaders (15 minutes) ICS and OHT leads to be identified
• Group work on specific adaptive leadership issues facilitated at round tables (20 minutes). Facilitators to include Robin Miller, Ross Baker, Patrick Fung and Michelle Nelson along with 2 or more ICS and OHT leaders
• Feedback on group work and discussion (10 minutes) Facilitated by Patrick Fung
• Summary and provision of additional resources Robin Miller

Outcomes

This workshop introduces adaptative leadership strategies and tools to IFIC conference attendees, and we will share additional resources. A summary of the workshop outcomes will be offered at the conclusion and shared with relevant Special Interest Groups. We will ask attendees if they want to participate in additional activities to further develop knowledge and skills on adaptative leadership.