Publications

Competency framework to build a strong foundation. The purpose of this article is to introduce the first edition of Laboratory Leadership Competency Framework published by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2019. This Framework was sought for many years worldwide by laboratories in order to establish a unified “know-how” model, which can be used to build sustainable national health laboratory systems that are a component of overall health systems. The Framework is intended to be used as a tool in mentoring current and emerging laboratory leaders engaged in the process of building, strengthening and sustaining national laboratory systems. It can be used as a roadmap to build an effective and efficient learning and training programme for leadership and used as a benchmark tool to assess competency of not only laboratory leadership but healthcare leaders worldwide. It is the first of its kind that provides a consensus process by six leading organisations as a holistic approach for leadership competency. The Framework consists of nine competencies where each competency is designed in a way that allows complementary learning opportunities for those who need to develop a particular competency. The leadership performance activities are designed in three levels according to proficiency, which are developing, skilled or expert. The framework is a tool for assessment that has been launched and ready for use, however, the Learning Package, with its attendant course materials and guidance, is currently under evelopment. The following sections are captured from the framework to emphasise on its importance of implementation in laboratories in particular and healthcare settings in general.