NCHL was founded in 2001, as the result of a national summit on healthcare leadership funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which identified a need for greater emphasis within the health sector on adopting organizationally-based leadership development practices. During its early years, NCHL supported an Advanced Leadership Development Program for healthcare executives, and developed the validated National Health Leadership Competency Model. in collaboration with the Hay Group. NCHL also established an invitational symposium and national leadership award dinner, which is held every November in Chicago. In the mid-2000s NCHL, in collaboration with the accrediting body ACEHSA, supported the evolution of graduate healthcare management education from a knowledge-based to a competency-based approach. By 2007, competency-based education had become an established part of the accreditation process, and was expanded further in the 2013 revision of the accrediting guidelines. In Spring of 2011, NCHL developed a joint operating agreement with Rush University Medical Center and the Griffith Leadership Center of the University of Michigan School of Public Health. The agreement was pursued in recognition of changing healthcare leadership development needs associated with the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. In 2013, NCHL's programs were expanded to include the US Cooperative for International Patient Programs, an organizational membership program with a mission to expand global access to US expertise in high-quality healthcare. In 2014, NCHL established a coordinated improvement effort for administrative fellowships, the National Council for Administrative Fellowships. Members include hospitals and health systems that sponsor these post-graduate fellowships, as well as accredited graduate health management programs with a focus on preparing students for careers in the profession of health management.
Current activity
The programs of NCHL are supported primarily through dues contributed by organizational members. Participants in NCHL programs, called Councils, vary based on the specific program, but generally involve leaders who are responsible a specific leadership activity within their own health system or university. Participants identify and prioritize areas in which support from NCHL can help pursue improvements collaboratively. In addition to Councils, NCHL maintains a validated interprofessional health leadership competency model, which is made available to the field via their . NCHL also operates an awards program that recognizes health systems for their use of evidence-based practices in leadership development. The survey used by the program receives updates based on emerging research on the science of leadership development. Data generated by survey takers has been used to assess relationships between leadership development practices and specific health system outcomes such as financial performance and patient experience.
