Turning the Titanic: physicians as both leaders and managers in healthcare reform

Purpose Physicians are instrumental in healthcare reform and their capacity to employ both leadership and management skills can affect change at all levels. This paper aims to present the challenges and opportunities for physicians in influencing system change and discuss how the two different but complementary skill sets may enable them to contribute to transformation of healthcare. Design/methodology/approach This is a conceptual paper and represents the viewpoints of both authors while incorporating current evidence through the literature. Findings Healthcare reform is important and underway in many Canadian provinces, yet it is difficult to achieve change. Leadership and management skills differ although these differences are often subtle in language. Physicians both lead and manage in the healthcare system; their capacity to do both is an advantage for healthcare reform. Originality/value This paper represents the opinions of both authors and is considered original as a conceptual paper.