Final Report > Chapter 5: Management in Bristol > The role of Dr Roylance

The role of Dr Roylance

20 Dr Roylance was the first Chief Executive of the Trust. According to Mrs Rachel Ferris, General Manager, Director of Cardiac Services since 1994:

`... it was accepted in management circles that Dr Roylance was known for saying "don't give me your problems, give me your solutions". All my peers were told that responsibility for dealing with issues must be pushed back to the Directorates. My perception was that if this did not happen, then it was seen as a failure on the part of the Manager ... I saw Mrs Maisey's role as controlling the General Managers in order that Dr Roylance could get on with other things.' [19]

21 Dr Roylance's management style was referred to variously as giving rise to an `oral culture', in that he preferred to avoid setting things down in writing unless necessary, and as creating a `club culture', to which you either belonged or not.

22 Dr Roylance believed that healthcare in the hospital was: `led by consultants', [20] and that they were `self-teaching' and `self-correcting'. [21] Dr Roylance said that it was `impossible' for managers to interfere. [22] It was `a fact' that only clinicians could identify defects in the performance of other clinicians. [23] He saw the role of management as being: `to provide and co-ordinate the facilities which would allow the consultants to exercise clinical freedom'. [24] He outlined to us some of the difficulties he saw in managing consultants: `... anybody who wishes to manage consultants should do their apprenticeship in the voluntary sector where none of the staff are paid and they can all please themselves. Unlike consultants, in that area I am told it is much easier to get rid of them without an industrial tribunal, but consultants are not manageable.' [25] Therefore, he said: ` ... one has to adopt a leadership style and one has to free up their abilities and recognise their culture.' [26] Dr Roylance's management philosophy attached importance to: `management by values and not by objectives'. [27]

Footnotes

[19] WIT 0089 0032 Mrs Ferris

[20] T24 p.14 Dr Roylance

[21] T24 p.14 Dr Roylance

[22] T24 p.14 Dr Roylance

[23] T24 p.17 Dr Roylance

[24] WIT 0108 0018 Dr Roylance

[25] T25 p.168 Dr Roylance

[26] T25 p.168 Dr Roylance

[27] UBHT 0006 0202; minutes of Executive Committee Meeting on 21 May 1993