TY - JOUR T1 - 10 minutes with Dr Hassan Mahmood, Consultant Psychiatrist and Interim Divisional Medical Director, Learning Disability Division, Birmingham Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham JF - BMJ Leader JO - BMJ Leader SP - 67 LP - 69 DO - 10.1136/leader-2020-000359 VL - 6 IS - 1 AU - Hassan Mahmood AU - Gamal Hardy Y1 - 2022/03/01 UR - http://bmjleader.bmj.com/content/6/1/67.abstract N2 - BiographyDr Hassan Mahmood is a consultant psychiatrist working in the Learning Disability Division of Birmingham Community Healthcare National Health Service Foundation Trust. He took up the role of interim divisional medical director for the Learning Disability Division in March 2020 as part of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. He has experience in various quality improvement projects across the Trust, such as developing Multicultural STOMP that is, stopping the overmedication of people with a learning disability, autism or both, within ethnic minority groups. This is the first initiative of its kind in the UK. He is an author of the ‘Management of Dementia in Intellectual Disability’ chapter in the book ‘Seminars in the Psychiatry of Intellectual Disability’, third edition. He also has a passion for sport and exercise psychiatry. He is an author for the chapter ‘Cricket: Mental Health Emergencies’ in the book ‘Case Studies in Sports Psychiatry’, first edition. People look up to a leader; especially in a time of crisis. It is important to remain calm, composed, enthusiastic and dedicated. Your outward displays of interest result in people being willing to listen and engage with your vision. Leaders should be visible to others. It is important to show colleagues that you are there to lead and provide guidance during challenging times.Believe in your ability to solve problems. This is important when dealing with complex scenarios where the solution may not present itself so clearly. Having confidence in your own ability will allow you to come up with solutions in a pragmatic manner.Respect the views of others as there is always something to learn and results in a more harmonious working environment. Listen to others’ concerns and alleviate their anxieties, in order to ensure cohesion within a team towards a common goal. There are times when a … ER -