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Explain the concept of servant leadership in theory and practice
Explain the concept of servant leadership in theory and practice
Explain the concept of servant leadership in theory and practice
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In the nursing profession, strategic thinking, effective decision making and delegation is important. With this, the goal of providing quality care is key and can be accomplished through a theory called servant leadership. In this style of leadership and management, the entire team has input into decision making based on the organization’s values and ideals. Servant leaders create devoted followers in response to the positive attention they give (Nursing Community Journal, 2015).
Importance of Leadership
Whether in businesses, governments, communities, organizations and even relationships, a form of leadership or management exists. The difference between the two positions can be simply put as, in management you manage things and materials,
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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, …show more content…
This views all subordinates equally and recognizes individual values and strengths of all members. Creating an environment where patients are respected, well-informed and empowered acknowledges their needs and goals as paramount (Marquis & Huston, 2015). Personal persuasion and reward is usually used rather than coercive power to influence others in a healthcare setting to get tasks at hand completed.
Active Listening
Active listening puts attention to the needs of the nursing staff and supports their decision-making for providing quality patient-centered care. In The Servant (1998), a teacher of leadership principles explained that listening is one of the most important skills a leader can choose to develop (pg. 25).
Awareness
Awareness exercises the theory of emotional intelligence, which perceives and identifies emotions, integrates them into thought processes then understands and manages the situation. Having a higher level of emotional intelligence views situations from an integrated holistic viewpoint (Marquis & Huston, 2015).
Management is defined as the act or manner of managing, handling, direction, or control (dictionary.com). Leadership is defined as an act or instance of leading; guidance; direction (dictionary.com). They do not mean the same thing; however, it is thought that a manager should have leadership skills to be able to manage an organization. Not all managers have great leadership skills and just because a manager does not have these skills does not mean he or she is a bad manager.
Hunter shed light on the topic of servant leadership, which is one I was unfamiliar with until reading this book. This book opened my eyes to the importance of servant leadership and demonstrated ways it will serve me in my career as a nurse. Although servant leadership embodies many characteristics, I believe that the qualities of greatest importance are discussed within this paper. One point the book touched on that resonated with me was the meaning of love as a verb. I had never thought of love in that way, but I think it is an important concept that should be applied to leadership. My goal for my future is to learn to love others through my actions. I hope to accomplish this by establishing trust and demonstrating commitment, and remaining respectful and appreciative of each member of my team by maintaining a sense of humility. I expect that doing this will aid me in forming meaningful relationships throughout my life and help me become an effective servant
Leadership is the ability to influence employees to voluntarily pursue organizational goals. Leadership is vision, enthusiasm, love, trust, passion and consistency. Management is to pursue organizational goals efficiently and effectively by integrating the work of people through planning, organizing, leading, and controlling organizations resources. Leadership and management are not the same. They are not interchangeable. Leadership is coping with change and management is coping with complexity (Williams 444).
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.
Clinical Nurse Leaders (CNLs) perform a balancing act that encompasses patient, administration and nurse practitioner interests. They are key executives in contemporary hospital settings. Prospective CNLs must obtain a master’s degree to qualify for this career track. Hospital administrators trust nurse leaders as nursing pool heads. CNLs also monitor and control the caregiving environment. As America’s healthcare needs increase, so will the need for Clinical Nurse Leaders.
Within the nursing environment one thing that is certain is the constant changes in policies and procedures. It is imperative for the nurses to receive a certain level of support from their nurse leaders (Mullarkey et al., 2011). Establishing and creating human relationships is key in a well-balanced nurse leader. The transformational nurse leader is a perfect example of trustworthiness. This leadership style brings her staff together to work as a team while keeping them on track to reach the finish line (Mullarkey et al., 2011). The transformational leader honors good relationships while leading by example (Mullarkey et al., 2011). This gives staff in any healthcare setting the opportunity to trust in their nurse manager and work as a well-rounded employee (Mullarkey et al., 2011).
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.
Boston, MA: Pearson University Press, 1994. ISBN-13: 9780205683581 Waterman, H., (2011), Principles of servant leadership and how they can enhance practice, Nursing Management, 17(9). Retrieved from EBSCOhost on August 9, 2011.
Presently many of us have learned that managers are primarily administrators who have learned to write business plans, utilize their resources and keep track of progress. We must learn that we are not limited by job title, and that means we can utilize our management skills in any position that we are in. We must also know that we can use our leadership skills in the same situations. On the other hand we have also learned that leaders are people who have an impact on those that surround them. The main difference that separates these two roles is that management is a function that must be utilized in any type of business, and leadership is the relationship that the leader has with his followers, which in turn can motivate and energize the organization.
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).
There are several differences between leadership and management leadership involves individuals who understand and trust in a vision and who work to accomplish the goals. While management is overseeing the day-to-day activities and ensure they are running smoothly. Management offers order and regularity throughout an organizations and leadership creates change and movement. Management seeks out order and stability while leadership is about seeking adaptively and construction change. Difference between leadership and management involves the approach that is used towards the individuals who follow the leader or work for the
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.