Addressing the Learning Needs of A Charge Nurse
As nurses we all know the complexities of working with many individual personalities while trying to provide excellent patient care to extremely ill clientele. There is nothing that can make or break your nursing experience like having a great charge nurse to back you, and provide a wealth of knowledge and resources for you in times of conflict and accord. Many hospitals employ the use of charge nurses, but there have never been any set guidelines that distinguish the duties and role of the charge nurse (Connelly, Yoder, & Miner-Williams, 2003). As we have learned from various research studies, patient outcomes are greatly influenced by adequate staffing and nurse satisfaction rates so it is
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This topic is of significance, due to the need to have nurse leaders that can adequately supervise, problem solve and delegate, therefore keeping the unit running efficiently. When the charge nurse is not adequately prepared to function in the role, problems on the unit may arise. Background literature review on this topic revealed a correlation in excellent nursing leaders enhancing nurse satisfaction which then led to better patient outcomes (Cummings, G. G., MacGregor, T., Davey, M., Lee, H., Wong, C. A., Lo, E., …show more content…
The study gives the example for the question, what would be your top three needs to help you be successful in the role of charge nurse? The data showed that there were three categories that emerged consistently. These categories were, 1) The development of leadership skills, 2) Learning to manage others behaviors, and 3) The creation of a healthy work environment. Each of these categories had a theme. For the development of leadership skills, the themes that emerged were, critical thinking (n=1), prioritizing or multitasking (n=4), communications skills (n=5), delegating (n=6) and knowing your resources (n=7). The n assigned to the themes was derived from the number of times this response was submitted. For the remaining objectives in the survey, the answers were categorized in the same fashion and grouped and assigned a number to the frequency of the themes. An explanation of the data and results for the study was very thorough, it was explained in an organized and direct fashion. The results collected from the survey were overwhelmingly similiar and consistent amongst the charge nurses from the different
Nurse’s can demonstrate leadership by facilitating outstanding care to patients and it is related to how one’s values and behavior affect others. A leader is all about with success and contribution and a successful leader set his/her standards, goals and strategies at high. One can become a leader by assigned or emerged but both will be working towards a common goal of good or bad. In leadership, positive attitude is the key to success and problems and challenge in healthcare industry demand that nurses seek and fill the gap.
Whitehead, D. K., Weiss, S. A., & Tappen, R. M. (2010). Essentials of nursing leadership and
Being a charge nurse in the ICU at San Gabriel Valley Medical Center entails many different types of responsibilities including scheduling, leading and coordinating daily activities. They oversee a team of nurses and support staff, including CNAs and LVNs. They must be able to communicate effectively and delegate responsibilities. Being a
Nursing leaders ' responsibility extends to become a voice for the nurses and for offering quality in patient care, not just at their organizations but spanning the whole communities, interacting with law makers in revising regulations and laws, with researchers and educators. Nurse leaders, in particular those at manager and supervisory levels are spread sparsely. They are involved in business planning, human resources, information management and writing reports. It is advisable for them to refocus the leadership on care which matters to patients which is the essence of
Murphy J, Quillinan B, Carolan M. "Role of clinical nurse leadership in improving patient care." Nurs Manage 16, no. 8 (2012): 26-28.
Ever since I was in middle school I dreamed of working in the medical field. I realized nursing was the profession for me when my grandfather became terribly sick with lung cancer during my freshman year of high school. It puzzled me that one of the healthiest and most physically active people I knew could be afflicted by such a damaging disease. After watching my grandfather’s suffering and the pain my entire family felt from his death, I knew I wanted to go into a field to help others that are facing the same challenges. This is when I discovered all of the opportunities that a career in nursing could offer me.
Allison (2007) explored leadership and leadership development in the charge nurse role. Three main themes emerged: resources, relationships, and capacity building. Resources included items such as a) shortage of nurses, b) workload, c) time, d) job description, and e) resource manual. Within the context of relationships, trust, collaboration, and support from peers and management emerged. Within the capacity building theme, workshops and formalized education and mentoring emerged. The Charge Nurse Satisfaction Scale was developed based on the findings of this study.
During this semester, I went to many different clinical sites for clinical experience, and I had the opportunity to with the nurse leader and observed what he/she does during a shift. This paper will focus on the strength of a nurse leader, and on my self-evaluation as a potential nurse leader.
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.
Mrs. Denise Callaway (RN, BSN) is my charge nurse at the hospital in rural Georgia. She is a patient advocate. In her interview, she stated that she is a patient advocate first and foremost. She believes that all nurses, RN?s and LPN?s, have a responsibility to advocate for their patients. She admits that she try to put herself in the patient?s and/or family?s place. She was taught to? do unto others? and she has followed that philosophy throughout her nursing practice. Mrs. Callaway always encourages her staff to see the best in the patients. She never sets in an office. She is always out on the unit helping staff, it does not matter if it is housekeeping, and she is always there to lend a hand when needed. She always includes her patients
Hospital administrators will charge nurse leaders with ensuring that patient positive outcomes prevail while also controlling overhead. Nurse leaders are specially trained just for this task. Clinical Nurse Leaders are the experts that America’s patients will rely on to keep them safe and healthy in hospital settings.
In the leadership position, the nurse manager must be concerned with reducing incremental overtime for the common good in order for the unit to stay as it is and to prevent drastic changed that will make the nurses on the unit unhappy. The nurses are assigned hours based on availability and as a leader the nurse must realize that the overtime adds up and will eventually lead to decreased availability in hours and possible layoffs from the unit; therefore it is essential to complete tasks such as assessments, administering medications, documenting and providing basic care within the allotted time. When positive leaders create an encouraging and positive environment, then the nurses are more likely to comply. The nurses on the unit want to be motivated and inspired and that is where a leader can come in and give them encouragement and emphasize that they all want to achieve the same goal of providing excellent care in an appropriate amount of time, the end result is that there will be more hours available and rewards for those who are following the lead. The nursing manager cannot accomplish the task alone and as a leader, she must believe in the nursing team and each of the nurses on the unit to work towards the decreasing the incremental overtime. By believing in other people she can encourage the staff nurses and offer assistance by asking how they can work together to achieve this goal. Another important characteristic of a leader is being synergistic and bringing the team together to work towards the same goal. The nurse manager can bring the nurses together by reinforcing that it is a team effort and asking the nurses to step up and offer assistance when someone
They care and nurture patients back to health so they can develop and perform as highly as possible. Nurses must be willing to take the time to listen carefully to other staff members and patients for mutual respect and trust to evolve. Nursing leaders influence and motivate subordinates by building relationships and further developing the practice skills of individual team members. A Servant Leader makes sure the needs of the individual team members are addressed and any conflicts are dealt in way that enhances professional competency among nurses. Recognition that servant leadership advocates a more group-oriented approach to analysis and decision making helps to strengthen the organization and improve the healthcare community (Murphy,
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
These characteristics of a nurse manager show how their leadership plays a role in their position in the nursing field. Without this position in the nursing structure, it would be very difficult to produce positive results in providing optimal patient ca...