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Summary

This article contains information on how to complete a Collaborative Leadership Assessment Skills (LEADER).

What is the Collaborative LEADER LX?

The Leadership Assessment Skills (LEADER) is a Workplace Based Assessment (WBA) tool that can be used to provide formative assessment as part of an approved training and development program and/or for inclusion towards ANZCAP recognition.

It can be used to facilitate exploration of a pharmacist's management, leadership and/or teamwork skills through real-time or retrospective review of a professional situation.

The main outcome of the interaction between pharmacist and collaborator should be to promote feedback and reflection of current professional practice in a situation that utilizes a combination of management, leadership and/or teamwork skills in a chosen professional setting or topic.

Leadership Assessment Skills (LEADER) Process

When used for ANZCAP recognition a LEADER learning experience may be either collaborative or autonomous. A LEADER may be conducted in real-time or as a retrospective reflection.

The process for completing a collaborative LEADER is as follows:

🧩 Prepare

🗓️ Engage

💭 Reflect

The pharmacist or the collaborator highlights a suitable skill or situation to utilize the LEADER LX.
The pharmacist and collaborator should also confirm the practice recognition level and clinical setting/topic that the LEADER scenario is to focus on.

The collaborator should ensure that they have directly observed or debriefed on a significant proportion or key stages of the skill or scenario being carried out by the pharmacist.
At conclusion of the skill or situation the Pharmacist discusses the skill or scenario with the collaborator(s)
Collaborator(s) engages pharmacist in discussion to further explore knowledge and skills critical to the situation

This discussion should typically take 10-15 minutes.

Pharmacist and collaborator engage in reflection of this discussion utilizing the Pendleton/Positive critique method
Collaborator assists pharmacist to identify key development goals from the reflection utilizing the SMART goal method

The reflection and goal setting should typically take 10-15 minutes

The total time for a LEADER should take between 20-30 minutes. However, the observation period may be over an extended period of time depending on the activity the pharmacist is carrying out.

The final discussion aspect of the LEADER should be conducted in an appropriate working space that lends itself to privacy due to pharmacist comfort.

Choosing a Situation or Skill

There is a wide variety of skills or situations that may be appropriate for reflection using the LEADER LX.

Examples

Contribution to the development of a new service 
Supporting a team member(s) with a challenging situation 
Managing a customer complaint
Managing a dispensing error
Making an improvement to service following feedback
Conducting a performance review on a member or your team
Overseeing the implementation of a new professional service in your pharmacy

Prior to the LEADER experience the pharmacist and collaborator should confirm the practice recognition level and clinical setting/topic that the situation will allow the pharmacist to show.

Practice Recognition Level

The LEADER Learning Experience is mapped to Domain 4 of the National Competency Standards Framework for Pharmacists in Australia 2016.

Please refer to the ANZCAP recognition descriptors article for the further guidance on markers of performance for each ANZCAP recognition level. The pharmacist and collaborator should indicate in the Learning Experience which of the three levels of practice recognition (resident, register, consultant) they are currently practicing at or a candidate for. Please note that not all the domain 4 indicators listed in this document may be relevant to this Learning Experience.

Complexity

In some scenarios the same skill or situation may be used for pharmacists aiming for different levels of practice recognition. However, the complexity and expected knowledge and skills expected to be displayed will vary.

The pharmacist and collaborator should come to an agreement on the complexity (low, medium or high) of the case in relation to the level of recognition the pharmacist is practicing at.

Collaborator

The collaborator must be familiar with the LEADER LX.

The Collaborator must ensure that they have the required expertise and scope of practice to confidently provide the candidate with feedback on the setting/topic being assessed in the LEADER e.g. a direct line manager or colleague who is a topic specialist.

The collaborator should ensure that they have directly observed a significant proportion or key stages of the skill being carried out by the pharmacist. Alternatively, if it is not appropriate for the collaborator to be present, they should have been involved in debrief discussions at key stages before, after and/or during the experience.

Collaborators may come from a variety of health professional backgrounds e.g., pharmacy, medical, surgical.

Further guidance for collaborators involved in this learning experience can be found here.

Reflection, Feedback & Goal Setting

The main aim of the LEADER as a Learning Experience is to promote feedback and reflection of a pharmacist's management, leadership and/or teamwork skills through real-time or retrospective review of a professional situation.

Skill Evaluation

Within the LEADER LX there are key skills (and descriptors) that the pharmacist and collaborator should discuss during the feedback and reflection. Each skill should be evaluated with comments from the discussion and a marker of; Not yet met, meets, exceeds or n/a.

Not yet met	Performance does not yet meet the expected for the indicated practice recognition level.
Meets	Performance meets the standard expected for the indicated practice recognition level.
Exceeds	Performance is above the standard expected for the indicated practice recognition level and is moving towards progression in recognition level.

Feedback

The LEADER LX encourages use of the Pendleton feedback method to guide reflection. This method encourages self-reflection and proactive discussions for development.

Development Goals

The pharmacist and collaborator are encouraged to utilize the SMART goal technique to develop any learning or development goals that are identified from the reflection and feedback discussion.

Although some collaborators who are also supervisors or clinical educators in a formalized training program may choose to use this LX as an initiation for delivery of formal teaching, this is an extension of the LEADER LX and not a requirement.

Forms and Templates

Evidence of the LEADER activity is documented directly into the ANZCAP digital platform as a Collaborative Learning Experience (LX). For further step by step instructions on how to do this please refer to the How to complete a Learning Experience article.

If ANZCAP members wish to use a LEADER form from their own organisation, the completed form may be uploaded into the Supporting Evidence section of the LX. (Please note that for the LX to become validated the candidate must still complete all sections marked with an asterisk (*) and the collaborator must document their involvement via the electronic collaborator declaration process).

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