Health care organizations and the way patient care is delivered is rapidly changing. The ability to manage, promote, and facilitate change is one of the most important skills that nursing leaders need to be successful. Influencing change requires effective communication skills, and the ability to help others see the vision (Curtis, De Vries, & Sheerin, 2011). Nursing leadership can no longer take a top down approach when leading change. During periods of organizational change there is great uncertainty. Nurse leaders are responsible for influencing change by creating an atmosphere where information is shared, there is a reshaping of ideas, and a vision is created (Samela, Eriksson, & Fagerstrom, 2011). Effective communication is an essential …show more content…
Change Theory for Nursing Leaders
a. Transformational Leadership and Electronic Health Record Adoption
Adoption of new technology is affected by the perception of benefit, compatibility with workflow, ease of use, leadership presence and their support to gain buy in from end-users. In an unsuccessful adoption of new technology there is an underappreciation of the impact for the organization, the number resources required, and leaderships inability to communicate transformational change. In cases where technology adoption was successful staff were engaged early on by leadership as key users (Gagnon et al., 2012).
b. Organizational Change
Change requires the reshaping of ideas and the ability to communicate the vision. Influencing others and the ability to develop relations ships is essential. Nurse leaders successfully manage change by directing, guiding, motivating and supporting staff. They communicative and inspire trust (Samela et al., 2011). Since leadership is a skill that is learned over time, education at all levels of nursing within an organization is essential. Nursing leaders within an organization are encouraged to move away from the traditional nursing service models and move to shared and distributed leadership models. An example of distributed leadership model would be shared governance, where bed-side nurses have the opportunity to have input regarding organizational change (MacLeod,
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Internal reputations, authentic leadership, and transparent communication in an organization are all related. Employees who are managed by fair and authentic leaders described their organization more favorably. A positive internal reputation projects more credibility for the organization. Transparent communication helps employees have a better relationship with leaders and in turn, the organization has a better brand and are more trusted by the public (Men, 2014).
b. Accountability and Authentic Leadership
The ability to facilitate change through the use of authentic leadership is an essential competency for nurse leaders. The ability to be a visionary and inspire others, and set expectations during times of change will be essential as a leader in the future (Huston, 2008). Accountably and goals start with the Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) and flows down through the nursing leadership to the shared governance staff level.
V. Multiculturalism and Diversity the Impact on Leadership
a. Cultural
The authors in this article aimed to discover nurse manager leadership styles and their outcomes. Nurses from hospitals in the Northeastern part of the United States were asked questions. The data was collected in a locked room, alone, so no one would influence the answers of someone else. The results were put into a software program and displayed for analysis. Results showed when choosing a nurse for a managerial leadership role, one should choose someone if they have the basic components of transformational leadership, not transactional leadership. The authors show that transformational leadership had revealed positive patient outcomes, retention, and satisfaction in the nursing staff. Those nurse leaders who have qualities of transformational leadership are encouraged to build on those skills constantly.
The article I chose to discuss for this week’s discussion is by Doody, C. & Doody, O. (2012). This article focuses on transformational leadership and its use in nursing/health care. This article draws attention to the many changes that have taken place in nursing/healthcare and how nursing theories and nursing frameworks must continue to evolve as changes are made. As nursing theories and nursing frameworks continue to advance and change, leadership styles must also continue to evolve as time progresses and as changes are made in the healthcare field. This article points out current healthcare issues and the need for strong leaders to overcome obstacles and challenges. Also, background information and a definition of transformational leadership
Nursing is an ever changing profession, making strong leadership a crucial aspect. “Nursing leaders play a significant role in creating positive work environments for nurses” (Young – Ritchie, Laschinger, & Wong, 2007, para 1). This paper will define the concept of leadership in nursing. Many qualities are required to be a successful nursing leader. Some of the qualities discussed in this paper are: supporting and empowering team members, being well organized, remaining consistent with their expectations, and being able to effectively communicate with their team. Furthermore, this paper will identify the relationship between leadership qualities and role of the Practical Nurse.
The nursing career has a growing workforce, spurred on by the high demand for caregivers. The growing need for nurses has caused in influx of new nurses, graduating from school and ready to begin their career. Although there are many different work settings for nurses, one universal aspect of assisting new nurses is nursing leadership. Leaders within nursing are tasked with assisting new nurses as well as those who are veteran nurses, and their role is indispensible. “Health leaders model the behavior expected in the organization” (Ledlow & Stephens, 2018). Susan Eckert, the senior vice-president of nursing and chief nursing executive at Medstar Washington Hospital Center, is a prime example of a nursing leader.
Leadership is described as the behavior of an individual when directing the activity of a group towards a common goal (Al- Sawai, 2013). Healthcare system involves multiple related, interconnected relations with other departments and health care professionals from various cultural backgrounds; therefore, the understanding of individuals’ behavior and group dynamics within the healthcare organization is imperative for a leader and or organization to be successful (Bukowski, 2009). A transformative leader has the attributes that are necessary for twenty- first century leader to have to be an effective leader in a changing nursing service organization and the healthcare system. A transformative leader is a type of leader that collaborates, encourages, and motivates people adapt to changes with charisma (University of Kent, n.d). Study shows that some leaders fail because of
Whether it is in healthcare or in a corporate office, leadership is about having a vision and making it into a reality (Parker & Hyrask, 2011). In healthcare with all the changes that are constantly happening it is imperative that our leaders in nursing continue to evolve and continue to prioritize in their nursing units. To continue to embrace your career as a nurse leader it is essential to always make sure they have professional development and continue to provide great care for all their patients (Parker & Hyrask, 2011). This all needs to be done while they lead their staff and continue to have fiscal responsibility. To be a leader in the nursing field one must possess certain characteristics such as assertiveness
The article I chose discusses the continual change in the roles of nurses. The article also poses a concept that nursing now is not based on caring, but medicine. “By accepting continual changes to the role of the nurse, the core function of nursing has become obscured and, despite assuming medical tasks, the occupation continues to be seen in terms of a role that is subordinate to and dependent on medicine.” (Iley 2004) Nurses are taking a more professional role, and more tasks are being delegated to assertive personnel. Therefore, with all these changes occurring, the role of the enrolled nurse is unclear. “Previously, having two levels of qualified nurse in the United Kingdom had been seen as problematic for health service managers and nurses themselves, and the ending of enrolled nurse programs in 1992 helped to solve this problem.” (2004) The study in this article gathered the characteristics of enrolled nurses and differentiated the groups converting to registered nurses, groups in the process of conversion, and groups interested or not interested in conversion. This study reveals the situation of enrolled nurses in context of continuing towards the professionalization of nursing. “The data from this study support the possibility that the role of nurses as direct caregivers is seen as a positive dimension of the work they undertake.” (2004) The findings imply that nurses need to get back to being caregivers, instead of concentrating on obtaining professional status in medicine.
Murphy J, Quillinan B, Carolan M. "Role of clinical nurse leadership in improving patient care." Nurs Manage 16, no. 8 (2012): 26-28.
The ability to promote structure, safety, and positive environments for both patients and colleagues alike are unique characteristics to quality leadership. Those same traits are essential to possess to have a cohesive interdisciplinary team of healthcare providers. There are various strategies that a nurse can employ to foster the collaboration of a particular team. The most influential strategy is the use of active communication, more specifically assertive communication. This type of communication is considered the healthiest because it is free from any bias. The nurse who is an assertive communicator values the whole picture as opposed to only one small piece of the equation. This approach takes into account all individuals involved, and validates the thoughts and feelings of others.
Doody, O., & Doody, C. (2012). Transformational leadership in nursing practice. British Journal of Nursing, 21(20). Retrieved from http://web.b.ebscohost.com.proxy.library.ohiou.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=3655bc92-b9ec-4a08-84d8-f5d3098ddfdf%40sessionmgr120&vid=17&hid=116
In healthcare it is very important to have strong leaders, especially in the nursing profession. A nurse leader typically uses several styles of leadership depending on the situation presented; this is known as situational leadership. It is important that the professional nurse choose the right style of leadership for any given situation to ensure their employees are performing at their highest potential. Depending on which leadership style a nurse leader uses, it can affect staff retention and the morale of the employees as well as nurse job satisfaction (Azaare & Gross, 2011.) “Nursing leaders have the responsibility to create and maintain a work environment which not only promotes positive patient outcomes but also positively influences teams and individual nurses” (Malloy & Penprase, 2010.) Let’s explore two different leadership styles and discuss how they can enhance or diminish the nursing process.
Marquis describes a leader as the motivation and the leading of the performance. Leader’s uniqueness and abilities are what make others to need to take after his or her way (2009 p.32). First, a leader must understand the self and others as the beginning in leading. As Kouzes and Posner stated “self-discovery and self-awareness are critical to developing the capacity to lead. And personal reflection and analysis of one’s own leadership behaviors are core components in that process” (2011, p. 13). In health care, the nursing leaders hold a vital role in inspiring, empowering, coaching, and supporting the nursing profession to engage with today 's changes in the healthcare. Importantly, the nursing leader’s priority is to advocate for the patients’ care by role modeling to the team on delivering a safe and quality care. Nursing leader who strives effectiveness in responding to challenges, will assess personal leadership style, personality traits and leadership competencies. Thus, self-reflection on leadership is the base for the
Nurses are uniquely qualified to fill a demand for change through leadership. Unlike business minded individuals whose primary outcome concern is monetary, a nurses’ primary concern is organic: a living, breathing, tangible being. In a leadership role, a nurse might consider an organization as if it were a grouping of patients, or perhaps an individual patient, each limb with its own characteristics and distinct concerns. They can effectively categorize and prioritize important personal and professional matters and are therefore ideally positioned to lead change efforts. Perhaps most importantly, effective nurse leaders can provide clarity to the common goal and empower others to see their self-interests served by a better common good (Yancer, 2012).
In today’s society, leadership is a common yet useful trait used in every aspect of life and how we use this trait depends on our role. What defines leadership is when someone has the capability to lead an organization or a group of people. There are many examples that display a great sense of leadership such being an educator in health, a parent to their child, or even a nurse. In the medical field, leadership is highly used among nurses, doctors, nurse managers, director of nursing, and even the vice president of patient care services. Among the many positions in the nursing field, one who is a nurse manager shows great leadership. The reason why nurse manager plays an important role in patient care is because it is known to be the most difficult position. As a nurse manager, one must deal with many patient care issues, relationships with medical staff, staff concerns, supplies, as well as maintaining work-life balance. Also, a nurse manager represents leadership by being accountable for the many responsibilities he or she holds. Furthermore, this position is a collaborative yet vital role because they provide the connection between nursing staff and higher level superiors, as well as giving direction and organization to accomplish tasks and goals. In addition, nurse managers provide nurse-patient ratios and the amount of workload nursing staff has. It is their responsibility to make sure that nursing staff is productive and well balanced between their work and personal lives.
Leaders in healthcare have so many daily obligations that they have to meet and be responsible for. Today’s leaders have to keep up with scheduling, flexing, covering vacation, meetings, their department as a whole, and make sure everything runs smoothly. With the ever changing healthcare nurses have to be up to date on new technology, training, and new education. The department head is not only a supervisor; she is a bedside nurse meeting multiple demands. She takes on tasks that include everything from the bedside nurse, to unit meetings, to charge nurse, and to scheduling, just to name a few. Speaking to leaders and managers in healthcare today the stress is at all time high from the new healthcare reform, nursing shortages, and meeting daily productivity.