NRS 440VN Role of A Nurse
NRS 440VN Role of A Nurse
Question 1 – 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.
SHANNON BOLIN
1 – The unit manager is a nurse leader that holds a position on a hospital unit and who is responsible for the day to day operations, as well as the long-term goals and success of a unit. The unit manager’s role is critical to the function and productivity of unit and can negatively affect the staff and outcomes when not properly managed. As an effective leader the unit manager must remain focused on the long-term goals of the company and be able to balance that with a highly functioning unit that supports job satisfaction and positive patient outcomes.
The unit managers duties include planning, organizing, staffing, motivating and controlling. Planning is one of the most essential competencies a unit manger must possess as the goals of the unit cannot be achieved without a concrete plan (Patarru’ et al., 2020). The unit manager is also responsible for the staffing on the unit and must look ahead and anticipate hiring needs for provide adequate staffing not only for the day to day shifts but long-term positions as the staffing needs changes. Unit managers must also balance the need for adequate staffing with their own unit budget. Motivation or the lack of it can change the dynamic of the unit and its outcomes. The unit manager as a motivator must continuously find ways to challenge, reward and support their units in order to create a cohesive unit.
The nurse as a unit manager must understands the importance of supporting autonomy, managing resources and building relationships and continue to strive to improve their own competency (Patarru’ et al., 2020). The unit managers must understand that their own leadership style can affect the outcomes of the unit. For example, a leader with a lassie-faire style may not have the structure necessary to achieve higher level goals, where as a leader with a dictatorship style may have low employee satisfaction as they are unable to voice their concerns and feel heard. Leaders must be able to unify their team memembers and provide the support and motivation needed to run a successful and thriving unit.
The educational requirements of the unit manager begin with a bachelor’s degree in nursing (BSN), with a minimal requirement of years spent in direct patients care, which is typically at least five years (RN, 2021). After the nurse has gained the necessary experience the next step is to obtain either a Master of Science in nursing (MSN) or master’s in healthcare or Business Administration (MHA/MBA) (RN, 2021). The unit manager can also obtain a certification in Certified in Executive Nursing Practice (CENP) after two years of working as an MSN in the executive leadership position or a Certified Nurse Manager and Leader (CNML) which requires a BSN with at least two years of direct patient care (RN, 2021).
Patarru’, F., Weu, B. Y., Handini, F. S., & Heryyanoor, H., (2020). The role of the nurse unit manager function on nursing work performance: A systematic Review. Jurnal Ners, 14(3), 231–235. https://doi-org.lopes.idm.oclc.org/10.20473/jn.v14i3.17108
Registered Nursing (2021). What is a nursing manager? Nursing Careers & Specialties. Retrieved from https://www.registerednursing.org/specialty/nurse-…
NRS 440VN Role of A Nurse
DAVID EDERHART
2 – Clinical Nurse Leaders (CNL) are master’s prepared nurses who can practice in any healthcare setting across the continuum of care (American Association of Colleges of Nursing [AACN], 2020). The role of the CNL was developed by the AACN in collaboration with other nurse leaders. It was primarily done to enhance the quality of patient care and help prepare other nurses with the skills they need in a transforming health care system (AACN, 2020). A Clinical Nurse Leader can work at the point of care with patients being the center focus, while also collaborating with other caregivers. The role of the CNL can extend to policies, data collection, and payment structures, in order to provide quality care that is the safest for the patient (SNHU, 2018).
The American Association of Colleges of Nursing recognizes that quality care truly begins at the bedside. However, nursing leadership transcends the beside to the managerial and administrative levels. To bridge this gap, Clinical Nurse Leaders act as a relay. They have a heavy hand in evaluating patient outcomes and recommending changes when it is needed. In order to be successful, Clinical Nurse Leaders must realize the level of responsibility a CNL holds and advocate for nurses and patients alike. It is important the CNL build relationships with fellow colleagues and coordinate care between team members (Sacred Heart University [SHU], n.d.). Two prominent leadership styles are democratic and affiliative. A democratic leadership style would allow other nurses/team members to have a say in the decision-making process, but ultimately relies on the leader to make the final decision (SHU, n.d.). This style of leadership is beneficial because it encourages open communication with staff and actively seeks input from the team. An affiliative leadership style would place the team members first. This style promotes positivity in the workplace, team-building, and conflict resolution. This leadership style would be beneficial to help build a sense of community and trust among the team members.
American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (2020). Clinical nurse leader (CNL). Retrieved from https://www.aacnnursing.org/CNL.
Sacred Heart University. (n.d.). The many roles of a clinical nurse leader. Retrieved from https://onlineprograms.sacredheart.edu/resources/article/the-many-roles-of-a-clinical-nurse-leader/.
Southern New Hampshire University. (2018). What is a clinical nurse leader? Retrieved from https://www.snhu.edu/about-us/newsroom/2018/08/what-is-a-clinical-nurse-leader.
NRS 440VN Role of A Nurse
GINO MARTELLI
3-Nurses has a lot of different roles in the healthcare field, they can be a floor nurse, work in management, be supervisor, nurse leader or may be as a healthcare providers such as APRN. But one thing is for sure is that nurses are patient advocate and help promote better patient outcomes. Nurses are active members of the interdisciplinary team and make a huge contribution to patient outcomes and care plan (Whitney, 2018). “It is crucial that nurses develop an effective leadership role to deliver high-quality care and ensure patient safety while engaging in numerous daily leadership roles” (AL-Dossary, 2017). Nurses also serve in the managerial positions as Nurse Managers. They can be found not only in the hospitals but also in clinics, schools, doctor’s office, and psychiatric institutions (Duquesne University School of Nursing, 2018). They are responsible for the patient outcomes along with the administrative duties. They also do record management, case management, staff management, recruitment, budgeting, patient feedback responses, responsible for overall rating of the clinic or unit, responsible for providing feedback to the higher management, assessing and developing educational plans for the staff, mentoring, setting goals for the team/clinic/unit, performance elevation of the staff, scheduling, treatment planning, etc. (Duquesne University School of Nursing, 2018). Leadership skills are tested to the fullest in this position. Keeping the staff motivated along with getting the job done in a timely fashion is no easy task. Nurse Managers need to be very excellent communicators along with being with being a good leader. Leadership skills are highly valued. “They should be adept at coordinating resources and personnel and meeting goals and objectives. They must be effective leaders who can strike a balance between working with the nursing staff and the healthcare facility administrators” (Duquesne University School of Nursing, 2018). Nurse managers have to have some inherent traits like effective communicators, advocacy, able to build strong interpersonal connections, mentoring, participation in both the patient outcome and the administrative responsibilities, maturity, professionalism, supportive, and a sense of fairness. Nurses works with an interdisciplinary team to find and implement changes in the existing system to achieve best patient outcomes. They are also responsible for implementing the state and federal law or regulation regarding health management. Leadership qualities are developed with advance education. A minimum of Bachelor’s along with some years of patient care experience is required for the job. Today we find so many nurse managers who have masters and higher education.
Reference
AL-Dossary, R. N. (2017). Leadership in nursing. IntechOpen. Retrieved from DOI: 10.5772/65308
Duquesne University School of Nursing. (2018, July 17). The roles of a nurse manager: Leading the nursing profession into the future. Retrieved from https://onlinenursing.duq.edu/blog/roles-nurse-man…
NRS 440VN Role of A Nurse
Whitney, S. (2018). Every nurse is a leader. In Trends in health care: A nursing perspective. Retrieved from https://lc.gcumedia.com/nrs440vn/trends-in-health-…
CAROLINA HARDIN
4- Complexity, chaos, hIgh rates of change, serious safety and quality issues, and workforce shortages in healthcare are some of the reasons why clinical leadership is important. These changes in the context of healthcare delivery have driven the need to supercharge RNs leadership knowledge, skills, and abilities and developed coordinated and intgrated care and be prepared to lead all aspects of healthcare. Clinical Nurse Leaders (CNL) have been described as the front-line innovator.Clinical nurse leaders connect bedside care with complicated data driven healthcare delivery systems, addressing the needs of specific patients while also transforming healthcare practice to make care better for everyone. One of the focus of CNLs is to improve patient care outcomes, costs, and satifaction in the healthcare system through the development of competencies including clinician educator, advocate, and manager. CNL role is especially suited to collaborative work with interprofessional teams and coordination of care CNLs are prepared at the master’s level, receiving the knowledge , skills, and abilities for evidence-based practice, care coordination, teamwork, quality and safety, outcomes management, and operational management to make improvements in patient care that directly impact patients and families. CNL curriculum centers focus on the domains of nursing leadership, clinical outcomes management, and care environment management.
Reference
Joseph, M., & Huber, D. (2015). Clinical leadership development and education for nurses: Prospects and opportunities. Journal of healthcare leadership. 7: 55-64. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
QUESTION 2 – 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?
NRS 440VN Role of A Nurse
CARA HARRIS
5.2 – Leadership, and leadership qualities are very important for not only improving patient outcomes, but also to provide mentoring and training to the nursing team during the time and need for nursing care. Advocacy strategies are designed to protect those that so desperately need our care. To advocate for patients is to ensure a systematic approach to care, creating a plan of care that is updated according to change in condition, and managing the care needs to promote a safe discharge and positive patient outcomes. One specific strategy is ensuring in the environment that I work in to incorporate the interdisciplinary team in developing a base line care plan. This is part of the initial assessment process when admitting a new patient to a short-term rehabilitation center for rehab care. Understanding the patient needs on a clinical level is extremely important. Working as a team to identify diagnoses, medication needs, therapy needs, and other needs such as surgical site treatment or wound care treatment is essential. Additionally, we need to understand the patient on a holistic level to include spiritual and psychosocial needs as well. Next included is dietary and nutritional needs. The important aspect is keeping the interdisciplinary team engaged, informed, and updated as the patient care needs change. An example of this is when some of the reimbursement and regulations changed with Medicare. Leadership was provided to give guidance about initiating the base line care plan so the team and all caregivers had an initial foundation of care needs documented to follow. I directed this to be competed at admission, rather than wait 24/48 hours as we need this data to develop the pathway to care. This is the benchmark that will drive care for the entire short-term rehab stay. As the patient conditions change, so does the care plan all the way through a successful discharge. “The impact of leadership in nursing can be far-reaching by influencing change in practice and improving patient outcomes.” (GCU,2018) The only aspect of this leadership initiative we then did differently was to incorporate family and or responsible parties to assist in developing the plan of care as they all have prior knowledge of the patient prior top admission. This is now incorporated as part of the focus for the base line care plan and provides better information when developing the pathway to a successful discharge and outcome.
NRS 440VN Role of A Nurse
Reference
Grand Canyon University (Ed). (2018). Trends in health care: A nursing perspective. Retrieved from https://lc.gcumedia.com/nrs440vn/trends-in-health-…
SHANNON BOLIN
6.2 – As a leader, there are many strategies that can be implemented that will foster a better relationship between staff the leadership. Those in the positions of leadership have the responsibility to provide an atmosphere that is conducive to open communication, constructive criticism and timely feedback. As staff members feel supported in their roles, they will become more invested in supporting the organizations mission, vision and goals.
The American Nurses Association (ANA) has listed employee development as one of it competencies to becoming an effective nurse leader (ANA, 2018). In this competency there are several actions the nurse leader can take that also can be described as advocating for the betterment of the team and the unit. One such action is is supporting the decisions an actions of those on their unit, the leader that shows support to their team members, promotes confidence and autonomy for the nurses (ANA, 2018). Another advocacy action describe in the leadership training is encouraging nurses to independently determine how they would achieve larger goals within the unit and organization which will show that the leader is interested in including team member in the overall planning and success of the unit. The nurse as a leader must continue to find ways to support their team member and advocate on their behalf. Unit and hospital councils are also are effective tools that help upper level management better understand the needs of the team members and allows the council representatives to advocate on behalf of the team members.
NRS 440VN Role of A Nurse
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There are many studies that will show the increased job satisfaction leads to improved patient outcomes. One study discussed the link between transformational leadership style where the nursing staff is structurally empowered and highly satisfied results with delivery of the best quality patient care and outcomes (Asif et al., 2019). This type of leadership style focused on listening to and empowering nurses to take an active part in the work environment and requires the leader to hear their team members needs and take action to produce results. As the leader advocates for their team members not only will the patients benefit, but also the organization as well.
American Nurses Association [ANA], (2018). ANA leadership: Competency Model. Retrieved from https://www.nursingworld.org/~4a0a2e/globalassets/…
Asif, M., Jameel, A., Hussain, A., Hwang, J., & Sahito, N. (2019). Linking Transformational Leadership with Nurse-Assessed Adverse Patient Outcomes and the Quality of Care: Assessing the Role of Job Satisfaction and Structural Empowerment. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(13). https://doi-org.lopes.idm.oclc.org/10.3390/ijerph16132381
NRS 440VN Role of A Nurse