Introducing healthcare professionals to systems thinking through an integrated curriculum for leading in health systems

In the operating conditions of the 21 century it is impossible to be competent alone' (O'Hara & Leicester, 2019, p. 16). Competence in leading and managing, as in any professional practice, is best understood as the ability to work with others to meet important challenges in complex human systems (Rychen & Salganik, 2003). Systems thinkers such as Oshry (1999, 2007, 2018, 2019, 2020) recognise that competence is a function of systems and culture; that is, of relationships. This insight acknowledges the importance of being able to work effectively in group settings but goes further in recognising that our lives are always lived in complex patterns of relationships with others (O'Hara & Leicester, 2019).