Research Proposal on "Nursing Leadership and Management"

Research Proposal 4 pages (1572 words) Sources: 3 Style: APA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Nursing Leadership and Management

A nurse manager's main role is that of leadership. The role of a nurse manger demands a lot of responsibility. A person must be able to recognize this challenge and all the duties and responsibilities that come with this skilled, professional line of work and be prepared for them. The duties of a nurse manager ultimately reside with the nurses that are assigned to a particular unit. A nurse manager oversees that all duties and work responsibilities within a unit are done in accordance with the organization's vision and statement. A nurse manager must be a reliable person and have very good communication skills in order to be successful. They have to be able to work with people from all ethnic backgrounds, ages and races (Nurse Manager Role, n.d.).

Nurse Manager's roles also involve the idea of building a good leadership team. Nurses within a particular unit must be able to work well together as a team in order to ensure the success of the nursing unit. A nurse manager must posses creativity, critical thinking and be energetic as these are pivotal qualities to the nurse manager role. Because of the long hours of work and strenuous demand that is placed on a nurse manager, they should be aware of the consequences associated with this job. These include possible burn out along with excessive stress and fatigue that may come with the job. A nurse manager should have the ability to cope with these situations so that their job is not only challenging but rewarding as well. As a nurse manager, role model behavior is an absolute necessity. A person who has a leadership position should always live and represent the organization in an ethical way. A nurse manager will often be required to make important decisions within the organization for the good of patients and staff (Nurse Manager Role, n.d.).

There are several philosophies of nursing leadership but the three theories that can best describe leadership include quantum leadership, transformational leadership and the model of dynamic leader-follower relationship. These three theories all specifically embrace leadership at all levels. Quantum leadership involves how the changing healthcare system has required new leadership characteristics and roles from nurses. Over the years technology has changed the traditional way that leadership is carried out. Conventionally it has been thought that workers knowledge increased vertically as the worker moved up within the organization. In today's world, leadership and the information associated with it has changed to reflect a more horizontal knowledge pattern. New nurses often enter the profession with a wider base of skills than ever before. Staff nurses that are at the bedside of patients all the time have a distinctive power to influence sustainable outcomes and productivity within the organization. They are often seen as being on the ground level of making decisions. By allowing some autonomy in a nurse's decision-making, a foundation of leadership is formed. Nurses are the ones who decide the appropriate times to call a physician; they choose applicable care plans and manage important interventions. These early independent steps form the building blocks of good leadership (Valentine, n.d.).

The philosophy of transformational leadership combines the ideals of leaders and followers. The idea is to join the manager and employee in order to pursue a greater good while encouraging the exercise leadership. Transformational leadership can readily pertain to situations that are common among new nurses. Transformational leadership promotes change within the extremely dynamic health care system. The focus is on changing and can be directly applicable to the nursing profession. New nurses are often put into the position of assessing the effectiveness of policies and procedures that are being used. By using transformational leadership, managers can encourage nurses to submit feedback on how well different procedures are carried out. The key is listening and instituting relevant suggestions that not only promote good patient outcomes, but also help to build a good leadership base (Valentine, n.d.). The experiences that nurses have when on the floor help them to become strong leaders in the future.

A third philosophy of nursing leadership theory is molded after Ida J. Orlando's nursing model. This theory says that leader and follower exchanges are very important. It is believed that both parties are very important to the accomplishment of the unit. The leader is thought to provide direction to the employee allowing for maximum participation by the employee. This type of relationship among manager and new nurse can encourage motivation and commitment. When nurses are first finding their function, they can concurrently increase their basic leadership principles by interacting with established nursing leaders (Valentine, n.d.). Having mentors is very important in shaping the leadership styles of nurses that are new to the leadership environment

Nursing management aims to ensure that a vibrant and skilled nursing workforce can flourish and respond effectively to the diversifying needs of healthcare recipients and the general public. This task is the modern mission of nursing management and has evolved over time. It is one that entails ensuring healthcare environments are responsive to the needs of providers and users. Healthcare is often defined as a symbiotic relationship of trust, respect and knowledgeable exchange between systems designed to develop and sustain health and populations able to access and fully benefit from such systems. As the system changes and evolves, nurses have to make sure that they change and evolve as well. More and more, the healthcare models have begun to resemble macro versions of the nurse-patient relationship in their pursuit of holistic approaches to health. As leaders in nursing care, nurse managers must provide leadership in able to ensure that health systems deliver quality outcomes to all that they serve. Patient satisfaction and safety are foremost on the nursing agenda nowadays and the strategies by which these are achieved fall within the area of expertise of nursing management (Oulton, 2006).

Achieving quality management in nursing requires an investment in nurse leaders and in broadening the definitions and outcomes of nursing education. The nursing profession must play its part and support the evolution of new and existing disciplines of the nursing sciences, designed to foster leadership in nurses and maintain a vibrant academic and professional environment in the field of nursing management. Nursing leadership includes the coaching and mentoring others along with creating an environment of conditions that lead to ongoing development and quality care. Leadership through a professional nurses association helps to develop the profession and positions it purposefully to influence health planning and policy. Maintaining networks and links to the key stakeholders is necessary to effective leadership and management. It is also very critical that a nurse manager has the ability to continually assess the environment, to monitor performance, and to create or adapt to change as it is needed (Oulton, 2006).

Nurses who begin their careers by working as floor nurses are able to gain invaluable experience that will help them to become good leaders. Situational learning experiences are tremendous experiences that not only help a nurse develop their nursing role but also help to develop them as a person. Having an experienced nurse that takes on a mentoring role is also a good thing to have happen. Since nursing is such a hands on profession having someone with experience in to talk things through with is an invaluable way of learning while on the job. These leaders often mold those beneath them into good leaders just as they are. It is also important for a nurse to obtain a good education in preparation for management. This will vary according to the roles and career paths of individual nurse managers. Professional nursing associations can offer support by providing important opportunities and promoting these to their members. It is important that individual nurses take responsibility for their own education,… READ MORE

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