| Abstrakt: |
Aim: To describe, analyse and interpret symbolic leadership in Swedish public hospitals. Background: Swedish hospitals are undergoing major structural changes. Hospitals are amalgamated in order to increase productivity and accessibility and reduce health care costs. Method: In-depth interviews have been performed with 54 politicians, senior civil servants, medical directors and trade union representatives at nine hospitals. The interviews have been analysed and interpreted following a grounded theory approach. Findings: The results show that leadership is manifested in two dimensions-management and symbolic leadership. The management dimension comprises general leadership aspects like planning, regulation and control. In the symbolic leadership dimension, the leader acts as a guide, inspirer and visionary. Leaders consider they are acting in two large arenas: a public arena and a hospital arena. In the public arena their professional competence is thought to be most important and in the hospital arena their social competence. Conclusions: Structural changes in Swedish hospitals have forced the actors to come out into the public arena, where they increasingly meet the media and have to defend budget cut-backs. This reduces their manoeuvring space in the hospital arena. When leaders work as a team, and make full use of their symbolic role, this helps to promote the process of transition. Symbolic leadership has a potential to increase the role repertory for not least the head nurse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
