Classroom Policies Per Instructor for Peer Responses
Responses to peers are a minimum of 100 words (with citations and references per APA Format). All assignments must have citations and references for credit. Sources must be published within the last 5 years and appropriate for the assignment criteria and relevant to nursing practice.
I expect conversation, rather than drop a quote and leave. It is best to add references and personal experiences or current events. Again, just as if you were in a ground classroom, the goal is to share and stimulate a conversation, not simply agree with everything. On that note, it is ok to agree, just support your answer and why. If I suspect copy and pasting, you will receive a zero.
Classroom Resource Materials
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Chapter 5 in Trends in Health Care: A Nursing Perspective.
“The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health,”
“ANA Leadership: Competency Model,”
“Nursing Leadership Thought Leaders”
URL: https://www.aonl.org/resources/thought-leaders
10 Tips to Boost Employee Engagement,”
URL: https://www.americannursetoday.com/10-tips-boost-employee-engagement/
“Growing Diverse Nurse Leaders: The Current Progress of the Future of Nursing Campaign for Action,” by Perez, Nichols, and Quinn, from Nurse Leader (2018)
URL: https://www-sciencedirect-com.lopes.idm.oclc.org/science/article/pii/S1541461217303129
“Leadership Skills for Nurses,” from Nursing Times (2011)
URL: https://www.nursingtimes.net/Journals/2011/08/24/j/n/i/Leadership-Skills-for-Nurses.pdf
“Transformational Leadership,” by Cherry (2019), located on the Very Well Mind website.
URL: https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-transformational-leadership-2795313
“What Is Transactional Leadership and Why It Matters” (2018), located on the blog page of the Mindvalley website.
URL: https://blog.mindvalley.com/transactional-leadership/?utm_source=google
“How Great Leaders Inspire Action,” by Sinek (2010), located on the YouTube website.
URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qp0HIF3SfI4
“Nine Behaviors of Servant Leaders,” by Servant Leadership Institute (2017), located on the YouTube website.
URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tiq0ZmN6sq8
American Organization for Nursing Leadership (AONL) website
American Nurses Association (ANA) website
URL: https://www.nursingworld.org/practice-policy/
Discussion Question:
Discuss a formal role where a nurse is in a position of leadership. Outline the essential responsibilities of that role and the educational preparation required. Explain what leadership traits, styles, or qualities are required to be successful in this role and why.
Peer’s Answer:
Trisha Mcpheeters
A nurse leader develops trusting relationships with colleagues, fosters accountability, takes action to improve their own nursing practice, and encourages others to improve their nursing practice (Whitney, 2018). A successful leader must have self-awareness, through self-reflection, acceptance of feedback, and be able to make necessary changes to improve themselves in their leadership role. All leaders must have self-awareness of personal values, goals, motivations, and skills. An example of a formal nursing leadership role would be a Director of Nursing (DON) over a department. A DON that is an effective leader must have communication and listening skills, knowledge in conflict management, self-awareness, vision and strategy, influence, and professional relationships with fellow employees. The DON’s responsibilities include overseeing the nursing staff and patient care, staff scheduling/assignments, keeping records, and budgets for the department. Many health care facilities require new DON’s to have a BSN, experience in management is preferred. A positive and collaborative environment is said to lead to staff contentment and job retention. I would say a combination of an authoritative and affiliative leadership style would be best for a DON. An authoritative leader shows confidence, maps the way for others, sets expectations and engages with others (Martinuzzi, 2019). An affiliative leader provides support and pays attention to team members, by forming collaborative relationships with staff (Martinuzzi, 2019). Nurses in leading positions should empower fellow nurses to lead with optimism, create a positive and healthy work environment, be visible and available, foster interpersonal and organizational trust, cultivate interprofessional relationships, set goals and provide feedback, produce meaningful work, encourage autonomy and growth, communicate and collaborate, and practice professional transparency (Clark, 2018).
Reference
Clark, C. (2018). 10 tips to boost employee engagement. American Nurse Today, 13(1),12-14. Retrieved from https://www.americannursetoday.com/10-tips-boost-employee-engagement/
Martinuzzi, B. (2019). The 7 Most Common Leadership Styles (and How to Find Your Own). Retrieved from https://www.americanexpress.com/en-us/business/trends-and-insights/articles/the-7-most-common-leadership-styles-and-how-to-find-your-own/
Whitney, S. (2018). Every Nurse is a Leader. In Grand Canyon University (Ed.), Trends in Health Care: A Nursing Perspective, (ch. 5). Retrieved from https://www.gcumedia.com/digital-resources/grand-canyon-university/2018/trends-in-health-care_a-nursing-perspective_1e.php
Peer’s Answer:
Cathy Wills
I chose a Public Health Nurse because is an excellent example of nurse leadership. There is overwhelming evidence supporting the critical need to boost health promotion and prevention efforts as well as answer the public demand for increased leadership in nursing. While most nurses care for one patient at a time, public health nurses care for entire populations. By working with whole communities, they are able to educate individuals about health issues, improve community health and safety and increase access to care. Public health nurses believe a person’s health is affected by many factors, including genetic makeup, lifestyle and environment (Public Health Nurse, 2020). Instead of waiting for patients to come to the hospital with an illness, they go into communities to try and help people improve their health and prevent disease. For people who don’t have access to care, they may also provide direct health care services, including preventive care, screening services and health education.
According to Public Health Nurse (2020) Public health nurses also:
- Monitor health trends and identify health risk factors unique to specific communities
- Set local priorities for health-related interventions to provide the greatest benefit to the most people
- Advocate with local, state and federal authorities to improve access to health services for underserved communities
- Design and implement health education campaigns and disease prevention activities, such as immunizations and screenings
- Tell people about locally available health care programs and services to improve access to care
- Educate and provide direct health care services to vulnerable and at-risk populations
Health education is a primary focus of public health nurses. Drawing on their training as registered nurses, they provide people reliable, useful information about how to protect their health. Public health nurses may travel to schools, community groups, senior centers and other local groups, and explain proper nutrition, demonstrate effective safety practices, promote early detection of common diseases, tell people how to care for disabled or ill family members and inform people about other important health issues. Their goal is to make health information easy to comprehend, so people can take greater control over their health. In low-income and rural communities, they also provide critical health care services. They immunize schoolchildren, provide pre-natal and well-baby care and teach the elderly how to stay safe and healthy at home (Public Health Nurse, 2020). They also must be able to recognize and respond to potential health crises.
Public health nurses often work for government agencies, nonprofit groups, community health centers and other organizations that aim to improve health at the community level. They may work alone or on multidisciplinary teams, and they often supervise other health care and lay personnel. In addition to working with communities, they work behind the scenes planning activities, managing budgets and evaluating the effectiveness of public health programs (Public Health Nurse, 2020). They may travel locally or across significant distances to meet with community groups and bring health care services into underserved communities.
The average salary for a public health nurse is $51,000. There are better paying nursing jobs, but most public health nurses find their reward in the work rather than the pay. Salaries also vary greatly depending on job location and requirements. To become a public health nurse, you must first train as a registered nurse (RN); likely needing to earn a bachelor’s degree in nursing at an accredited four-year college, although some communities will employ public health nurses with associate’s degrees. While in college, it may be beneficial to look for opportunities to work in community settings and to assist with public health activities. Seek additional training in public health, public policy, health administration and related subjects.
To be successful in this role the nurse must have integrity. Integrity for one’s self is a primary objective for nurse leaders. Personal integrity aids nurses in making the right choices during critical junctures in patients’ treatment plans (Regis College, n.d). Additionally, effective leaders adapt to use, and teach, ethically viable practices that enable nurse leaders to make safe and effective care decisions intrinsically. I think that Public Health Nurses must focus on leading theirselves and must possess adaptability, initiative, and self-awareness. Per Whitney, self-awareness is understanding one’s self by recognizing strengths and weaknesses, moral values, thought processes, character, emotions, motivations, desires, and goals (Whitney, 2018). Critical thinking skills is needed also. Nurse leaders use critical thinking to develop their ability to make decisions based on a complex array of factors. This skill is vital in a health care environment with increasing instances of multidisciplinary collaboration such as public health nursing.
The Public Health Nurse must have good communication skills and professional socialization to work with society and the public. The current multidisciplinary treatment environment greatly increases the importance of collaboration in the care provider setting. Nurse leaders are passionate, dynamic influencers who inspire change in others and, in the process, win the respect and trust of others. Nursing is a dynamic profession that requires competent, confident leadership.
Reference
Public Health Nurse. (2020). Retrieved from https://explorehealthcareers.org/career/nursing/public-health-nurse/
Regis College. (n.d). 9 Essential Qualities of Nurse Leadership. Retrieved from https://online.regiscollege.edu/blog/9-essential-qualities-nurse-leadership/
Whitney, S. (2018). Trends in Health Care: A Nursing Perspective. Every Nurse is a Leader. Grand Canyon University. Retrieved from https://lc.gcumedia.com/nrs440vn/trends-in-health-care-a-nursing-perspective/v1.1/#/chapter/5
Peer’s Answer:
Stacey Walker
An excellent example of a formal role where a nurse is in a position of leadership is that of the nurse educator. A nurse educator is a nurse that teaches other nurses either in the academic setting or as a part of continuing education, generally at a healthcare place of employment. The nurse educator is responsible for designing, evaluating, and implementing nursing curriculum in their respective forum. The educational preparation needed to fulfill this role is an advanced degree, MSN or doctorate (Ph.D. or DNP), depending intended place of employment. Emphasis should either be on education, or have an additional 9(+) credit hours of graduate-level education classes. In addition to strong clinical experience and comprehension, nurse educators also should enjoy teaching and mentoring. They function as both advisors and as role models, so it is important that they have strong interpersonal skills to evaluate and meet student needs, and strong communication skills interact effectively with both students and executive leadership. As role models, nurse educators are expected to be “expert” on a given subject, and possessed of the integrity to ensure best practices are the standard in subject matter, and critical thinking skills to be able to appropriately apply best practice in atypical situations. In terms of leadership style, transformational leadership, meaning an approach that seeks to create positive change in individuals and organizations, would be most appropriate.
Reference:
Registerednursing.org (2019). Nurse educator. Retrieved from: https://www.registerednursing.org/nurse-educator/
Discussion Question:
The influence of leadership can be far-reaching in practice and improving patient outcomes even when not in a formal role. Describe advocacy strategies that you can use as a leader to create positive change in your current workplace. In response to peers, describe a time when you provided leadership and the outcome. Was there anything that you would do differently?
Peer’s Answer:
Trisha Mcpheeters
Any nurse can assume a leadership role without have a formal leadership position. Nurses are leaders in day to day practice. A nurse is considered a leader when advocating for a patient when speaking with the physician, alerting a supervisor or management leader about a concern in patient care or safety, or mentoring a newly hired nurse (Whitney, 2018). Nurse leaders inspire fellow nurses through role modeling, idea sharing, and mentoring. For a nurse leader to be successful, they must first have self-awareness. Self-awareness includes acknowledgement and acceptance of personal values, goals, motivations, and skills. Skills of a great leader include communication, listening, feedback, collaboration, conflict-management, accountability, and developing interprofessional relationships with fellow team members.
Strategies I can use to advocate for patients and team members include collaborating with physicians and interprofessional team members, encouraging and mentoring younger nurses, notifying my supervisor when noticing changes that could be made to improve patient care, and being self-aware. Ways I can improve as a nurse leader would be asking for feedback from others, keeping in mind that I am a role-model for my co-workers and they are paying attention to my actions/reactions, improving my conflict-management skills, and providing positive feedback and encouraging my co-workers more often.
Reference
Whitney, S. (2018). Every Nurse is a Leader. In Grand Canyon University (Ed.), Trends in Health Care: A Nursing Perspective, (ch. 5). Retrieved from https://www.gcumedia.com/digital-resources/grand-canyon-university/2018/trends-in-health-care_a-nursing-perspective_1e.php
Peer’s Answer:
Wendy Wylie
As a nurse, there are many opportunities for us to advocate for patients, families, communities and the nursing profession. Every day presents new opportunities for growth and development of this skill in nursing practice and daily life. At this writers hospital and within the organization I work for, shared governance is promoted as an advocacy strategy. Shared governance is also known as shared leadership. The goal of this strategy is to “integrate core values and beliefs that professional practice embraces, as a means of achieving quality care” (Anthony, 2004).
At this writer’s hospital, there are committees that identify an issue in nursing, or patient care, conduct research and brainstorm sessions, and propose ideas on implementing change to improve the identified issue. For example: Patient ratings had dropped in the area of medication communication. This was bringing our overall patient satisfaction scores down. A group formed and brainstormed ideas. They also tried to see if they could find ideas or interventions other organizations had used. The team came up with a pilot strategy to increase patients understanding about medications. The idea was to use a specific color of folder and include a general explanation about different types of medications (narcotics, antibiotics, steroids, and etcetera), side effects, implications, and other pertinent information. Also contained in this folder is information specific to medications the patient may be taking. To bring everything together, nurses used key words when communicating with patients to reinforce teaching.The pilot study, which was conducted on a telemetry unit, brought their patient scores related to medication communication from 65% to 100%. This idea has now been implemented throughout the hospital.
This was a way of advocating for patients and nurses. The patients were advocated for by ensuring that they understood what medications they were taking and what they were for. These topics are reinforced with patients so when they go home they will have a greater understanding of why they are on certain medications. This should increase medication compliance post-discharge. This process advocates for the nurses by letting surveyors and executives know that nurses are doing their job by communicating with patients regarding medications.
References
Anthony, M. (2004). Shared governance models: The theory, practice, and evidence. Online Journal of Issues in Nursing 9(1). Retrieved from www.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/ANAMarketplace/ANAPeriodicals/OJIN/TableofContents/Volume92004/No1Jan04/SharedGovernanceModels.aspx
Peer’s Answer:
Cathy Wills
Leadership takes many forms and can be found in all areas of nursing. Per Whitney, in each nurse lies the fruits of the vocation: compassion, wisdom, understanding, and service. The impact of leadership in nursing can be far-reaching by influencing change in practice and improving patient outcomes. Initiating change at can be accomplished in numerous ways such as advocating for important issues and encouraging fellow nurses through role modeling, idea sharing, and mentoring (Whitney, 2018). Leaders do not have to be in management roles to lead others. For example, collaboration between nursing management and bedside nurses, also known as shared governance, can provide opportunities to produce positive change at the bedside (Whitney, 2018). What kind of shared governance are at your place of employment?
I am often called upon to orient new employees to our unit. I try my best to lead by example and always see the glass half full instead of half empty. I think a good leader stands up for what is right. We have a lot of bullying in our unit and I try to always change the atmosphere to a work as a teamwork and redirect inappropriate conversations to create positive changes in my workplace.
Reference
Whitney, S. (2018). Trends in Health Care: A Nursing Perspective. Every Nurse is a Leader. Grand Canyon University. Retrieved from https://lc.gcumedia.com/nrs440vn/trends-in-health-care-a-nursing-perspective/v1.1/#/chapter/5
