Leadership career expectations of physicians and dentists in specialist education

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine specializing physicians and dentists’ perceptions of management and leadership, their interest in managerial work and the role of management in their future careers. Studying this topic is important because many of these specialists will become future leaders in healthcare. Design/methodology/approach The target group of the study consisted of 114 physicians and dentists attending a multidisciplinary management training course from 2023 to 2024 during their specialist training. The data were collected using a Webropol questionnaire, including structured and open-ended questions, and analyzed with quantitative and qualitative methods. The response rate was 32.5%. Findings Respondents’ views on management roles included perceptions of the roles of leader, resource allocator and entrepreneur. Three-quarters of the respondents believed that management and leadership would be part of their future careers. Their thoughts and assumptions regarding their future roles as specialized physicians or dentists suggest that, ten years from now, the role of expertise will become significantly stronger. However, they also anticipated that the roles of management and leadership would become more prominent in the future. Originality/value It is important to understand specialized physicians’ and dentists’ expectations about management and its role in their future to be able to prepare these professionals for their future responsibilities. Whether they want it or not, management will be a part of their work as specially trained professionals. Most of them will lead teams as operational-level managers, while some will advance to higher management positions.