Coaching to Increase Leader Capability

The first purpose of patient safety coaching is to increase the capability of healthcare leaders, managers, and executives so that they prevent the occurrence of adverse events and keep patients safe from harm. Coaching assists leaders to take a more active role in creating a psychologically safe patient safety environment in which staff feel able to report near misses so that everyone learns from them. Coaching increases leaders’ ability to communicate and relate better with patients and staff members, actively engage in dialog with staff, and encourage others to do the same. Leaders who are coached become more self-and-other aware and more socially adept with colleagues and patients, and learn how to better manage their responses to adverse events when they occur. Leaders who adopt a coaching leadership style listen to what staff members are saying and utilize the strengths of interdisciplinary teams. They encourage staff to analyze situations, think critically about possible outcomes, and take preventative action in relation to potentially adverse situations that may cause patients harm.