In my career, I’ve seen change framed as strategy, as policy, as training. But the most powerful changes I’ve witnessed, the ones that stick, are framed as relationship, language, and learning.
Change is not just something we do. It’s something we hold, steward, and grow together.
Following our Capability Corner Podcast, I’m sharing a two-part series where I explore this shift:
Each piece can be read on its own or as part of a whole. Together, they invite a deeper reflection on what it really takes to build workforce capability - not just through content or compliance, but through connection, courage, and care.
Part 1: Creating the Conditions for Change
Why Change Hurts (and What We Can Do About It)
If you’ve ever tried to lead change in healthcare, you’ll know that resistance isn’t the problem. It’s pain. The discomfort of uncertainty. The disorientation of letting go. The fear of not being enough, or not being heard.
As a nurse, midwife, educator, researcher and executive, I have spent a lot of time listening. To learners. To leaders. To policy-makers and educators. And underneath the metrics and mandates, I hear one thing again and again:
That’s why I believe we need to talk not just about systems and strategy but also about psychology - about what it takes to create the internal and interpersonal conditions where change becomes not only possible but meaningful.
The Case for Change, Differently
Behavioural science tells us that people aren’t “rational actors.” They’re human. Which means:
- We are loss-averse.
- We default to habit.
- We are deeply influenced by social cues, language, and emotion.
Yet, many healthcare change initiatives still rely on logic-first, message-heavy models. We try to convince people to change rather than cultivating the conditions for change to emerge.
The IHI Psychology of Change Framework offers a powerful alternative (Hilton et al., 2020):
- Unleash intrinsic motivation
- Co-design people-driven change
- Distribute power
- Build psychological safety
- Engage with emotion
At Ausmed, this framework has sharpened our focus on how learning feels - not just what it delivers. The best education doesn’t just transfer knowledge; it shifts mindsets, identities, and professional confidence.
Psychological Safety Is Not a Soft Thing
In our work with healthcare teams, one thing is clear: psychological safety isn’t a “nice to have.” It’s the foundation of adaptive learning.
Recent research I contributed to on behavioural markers of psychological safety in clinical meetings showed that simple acts, like inviting questions, admitting uncertainty, or calling out disrespect, can make or break a learning culture (Fischer et al., 2024).
If clinicians don’t feel safe to speak up, reflect honestly, or say “I don’t know,” then no amount of training will build capability. Because capability isn’t just about skills - it’s about confidence, context, and connection.
For organisations, this means investing in culture and leadership as much as in curriculum. For individuals, it means being supported to explore not just what they do, but how they think and feel about what they do.
From Training to Capability - A Psychological Shift
The move from compliance-based training to workforce capability is not just semantic. It’s psychological.
Training often asks: Have you completed the module?
Capability asks: Can you apply this with confidence, in complexity, over time?
| Training (Compliance-Based) | Capability (Psychologically Informed) |
| Module-based | Context-based |
| Knowledge transfer | Identity shift |
| Assessed at one point | Demonstrated over time |
| Emphasis on completion | Emphasis on confidence + application |
| External motivation | Intrinsic motivation |
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Inspired by the IHI Psychology of Change Framework (2020) |
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This shift demands that we:
- Design learning that is emotionally resonant and context-aware
- Use reflection and storytelling, not just assessment
- Acknowledge that change is relational and iterative
At Ausmed, we’ve begun embedding this thinking into our content, conversations, and partnerships. It’s why we talk about learning as a capability platform, not just a delivery system.
Let’s Lead With Humanity
What if we stopped treating change as a hurdle and started seeing it as a human process of meaning-making? What if our measure of success wasn’t just uptake or completion, but felt experience?
So next time change approaches you, appreciate that the pull toward resisting is human, take a moment to ponder and surface your meaning, so you can authentically connect with others. Some thought starters could be:
- What does it mean to navigate change when you are the change?
- What if the change is right, but it hurts?
- How do we measure change that matters - not just what’s visible?
Let’s reframe capability as something more than competence. Let’s see it as courage, connection, and the capacity to adapt; not in spite of being human, but because of it.
