Leading change in the South African District Health Service

Dovey, KA; Strydom, A; Penderis, B; Kemp, P

Leading change in the South African District Health Service

Dovey, KA

Strydom, A Penderis, B Kemp, P

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Publisher:: Emerald
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: International Journal of Public Sector Management, 2007, 20 (3), pp. 192 - 205
Issue Date:: 2007-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Dovey, KA https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8182-2166	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Strydom, A	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Penderis, B	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Kemp, P	en_US
dc.date.issued	2007-01	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	International Journal of Public Sector Management, 2007, 20 (3), pp. 192 - 205	en_US
dc.identifier.issn	0951-3558	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/4973
dc.description.abstract	<B>Purpose</B> - The paper sets out to explore the leadership processes and dynamics of change management in a fragmented, and resource-poor, health service in an impoverished rural region in South Africa. <B>Design/methodology/approach</B> - The paper outlines an action research process aimed at assisting the stakeholders of two rural clinics to integrate psychiatric care into the Primary Health Care service that they offer their respective communities. This involved the transformation of existing practices through a form of praxis that involved learning from action and acting on learning. <B>Findings</B> - The findings of the paper relate to the role of leadership in the facilitation of transformational learning in team-based social action. Four areas of leadership responsibility are highlighted: the transformation of inappropriate mental models; the development of strategic resilience; the shifting of the <IT>locus</IT> of control of stakeholders to a more internal position; and the creation of a social environment in which intangible capital resources are generated and leveraged in the collective interest. <B>Research limitations/implications</B> - This paper is subject to the limitations of potential bias and distortion in action research. Although the "objective" evidence of the integration of psychiatric services at <IT>Pelsrus</IT> and <IT>Kwanomzamo</IT> clinics exists, the portrayal of the learning processes through which this was achieved could have been influenced unwittingly by the authors' own knowledge and other interests. <B>Practical implications</B> - The paper endorses the educational importance of work-based projects through which strong tacit leadership knowledge bases can be developed in health sector personnel.	en_US
dc.publisher	Emerald	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	International Journal of Public Sector Management	en_US
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1108/09513550710740607	en_US
dc.rights	This article is (c) Emerald Group Publishing and permission has been granted for this version to appear here - https://dx.doi.org/10.1108/09513550710740607. Emerald does not grant permission for this article to be further copied/distributed or hosted elsewhere without the express permission from Emerald Group Publishing Limited.	en_US
dc.subject.classification	Political Science & Public Administration	en_US
dc.title	Leading change in the South African District Health Service	en_US
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	3	en_US
utslib.citation.volume	20	en_US
utslib.for	1503 Business and Management	en_US
utslib.for	1605 Policy and Administration	en_US
utslib.for	1501 Accounting, Auditing and Accountability	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology/School of Professional Practice and Leadership
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Strength - HCTD - Human Centred Technology Design
utslib.copyright.status	open_access
pubs.consider-herdc	true	en_US
pubs.issue	3	en_US
pubs.volume	20	en_US

Abstract:

Purpose - The paper sets out to explore the leadership processes and dynamics of change management in a fragmented, and resource-poor, health service in an impoverished rural region in South Africa. Design/methodology/approach - The paper outlines an action research process aimed at assisting the stakeholders of two rural clinics to integrate psychiatric care into the Primary Health Care service that they offer their respective communities. This involved the transformation of existing practices through a form of praxis that involved learning from action and acting on learning. Findings - The findings of the paper relate to the role of leadership in the facilitation of transformational learning in team-based social action. Four areas of leadership responsibility are highlighted: the transformation of inappropriate mental models; the development of strategic resilience; the shifting of the locus of control of stakeholders to a more internal position; and the creation of a social environment in which intangible capital resources are generated and leveraged in the collective interest. Research limitations/implications - This paper is subject to the limitations of potential bias and distortion in action research. Although the "objective" evidence of the integration of psychiatric services at Pelsrus and Kwanomzamo clinics exists, the portrayal of the learning processes through which this was achieved could have been influenced unwittingly by the authors' own knowledge and other interests. Practical implications - The paper endorses the educational importance of work-based projects through which strong tacit leadership knowledge bases can be developed in health sector personnel.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/4973