The tipping point: Management and leadership development in Tasmanian health and human services

This paper describes the initiatives undertaken by the Tasmanian Department of Health and Human Services, in partnership with the University of Tasmania, to promulgate staff learning and development for healthcare management and health leadership. This has occurred against a backdrop of public sector fiscal restraint and health system reform. It suggests that only those initiatives that are economically sustainable and strategically aligned are likely to survive the continued climate of fiscal restraint and the ongoing reform program. Those elements of the program that do not fulfil these requirements will ‘drop off’ the tipping point instead of ‘managing at the edge’. This paper describes potential tipping points for each initiative, for discussion in the interactive conference session.