High quality team leadership is linked to better skill development, satisfaction, and retention among staff. Team leadership is especially important in complex care because of the emotional labor required by all staff, diverse needs of patients and lack of resources, and medical and social care systems that are not set up to support individuals.

As well as providing oversight to frontline staff, complex care supervisors are often also responsible for developing, managing and growing programs and building relationships with other organizations.

However, complex care team leaders often do not receive the training necessary to do their jobs. They are often promoted from frontline work without specific training on building a supervisory alliance, running programs, and understanding data.

The Core competencies for complex care team leaders, to be released in the fall of 2024, will be the first time that the distinct knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed by complex care leaders are formally named and defined. They will be relevant to team leaders across disciplines, settings, and contexts.

These competencies will build on the Core competencies for frontline complex care providers and the Complex Care Certificate. They are an innovative and field-defining collection of the knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed to manage complex care programs and supervise staff who support people with complex health and social needs. The competencies will inform a new certificate for complex care supervisors and managers, coming in the fall of 2025.

The competencies are currently being developed by our National Center for Complex Health and Social Needs in partnership with a working group of experts from around the country from a variety of disciplines, geographies, and settings.

Working group members:

• Kymberly Centaro, Housing and Wellness Director, Community Support Network
• Kathy Burgoyne, Consultant, Uncommon Solutions
• Keshana Owens Cody, Workforce Director for Public Health, New York Office of Public Health
• Laura Fletcher, Behavioral Health Manager, Boston Medical Center
• Doreen Glover, Prevention Services Manager, Family Resources
• Meredith Jones, Director of Family Support Services, Transitions Life Care
• Carrie Lara, Clinical Director and Head of Behavioral Health, Community Support Network
• Salvador Nunez, Social Work Supervisor, Queen of the Valley Medical Center
• Kristin O’Neal-Burger, Population Health Strategy Lead, Humana
• Ren Pelley, Peer Manager, Oaks Integrated Care
• Aura Silva, Care Management Manager, Queen of the Valley Medical Center
• Lakisha Sturgis, Director of Community Care Management, Temple Center for Population Health
• Heather Thomas, Program Supervisor of Pledge to Connect, Oaks Integrated Care
• Marisol Caban, Associate Director, Camden Coalition

How to get involved

We’re looking for input and perspectives from across the field of complex care. You can help develop these competencies by:

1. Completing this survey to let us know what your program looks like and how these competencies can best reflect your work [link]
2. Signing up for Putting Care at the Center 2024 where the competencies will be released for the first time and where there will be sessions focused on the competencies and supervisor professional development

Keep checking back for more opportunities.