Leadership

HEIW widened their portfolio to optometrists on the Welsh Clinical Leadership Training Fellowship (WCLTF) in 2020. The fellowship gives the opportunity for optometrists to take a year out of training / employment with a focus on leadership and quality improvement activities.

During the training year, fellows have a wide and varied programme of leadership training including a taught element in medical leadership and the opportunity to shadow leaders from across health, education and training. The fellows’ work at the top tier of organisations conducting a range of quality improvement projects. Furthermore, they have opportunities to network on a national and international stage with subsidised attendance at a number of quality improvement and leadership conferences.

Previous Optometry Fellows have gone on to take leadership roles in a number of NHS organisations and the private sector in organisations such as Optometry Wales, NHS Wales and the Welsh Government. NHS organisations in Wales have been highly engaged with the WCLTF process and have been fully committed by offering quality improvement projects within their organisations. It is imperative that as an organisation we lead the transformation of the clinical workforce from all different healthcare backgrounds and developing healthcare leaders of the future is a critical component of achieving this.

The fellows carry out a project during their year which aims to transform a healthcare profession.