Knowledge, attitudes, and practice of leadership skills among undergraduate medical students

Background and aim: Medical knowledge alone is insufficient to provide excellent medical care. Modern healthcare challenges require that all physicians have leadership skills to better collaborate with other healthcare professionals and effectively lead their teams to provide the best possible care. The aim of the present study is to describe medical students’ prior knowledge of leadership concepts, to assess their common practice of its main skills, and to explore their general perception of its practice by their seniors. Methods: undergraduate medical students enrolled in the 5th year of medicine or above were invited to fill-in an anonymous online questionnaire. 267 students (66% women) from different Moroccan medical faculties took part in the study. Results: 44% of the participants hold a vague idea about leadership whereas 29% were completely ignorant of its concept. 52% of respondents thought that leadership is not to be expected from medical students, and 65% did not know that leadership in healthcare would benefit the patient. In their responses to simulated situations, the participants presented optimal attitudes embracing leadership attributes regarding self-awareness, receiving feedback, teamwork, stress and conflict management. However, they presented more contrasting attitudes when it comes to time management and questioning oneself. Seniors with good leadership skills were perceived as few by half the participants. Conclusions: This survey highlighted the need of introducing specific leadership training programs within the curriculum of medical studies in Morocco. (www.actabiomedica.it)