Nursing Leadership
The task that awaits a newly hired nurse unit manager in this particular care facility is going to be challenging. With nurses complaining out loud about assignments, and with nurses calling in sick, being late to work and not being productive, the new unit manager has her hands full. This paper uses scholarly literature to propose steps to be taken to get the care facility back to operating the way it should be operating. The two most important components of her plan to get the unit back to being fully productive are conflict resolution and problem-solving.
Conflict Management Should Come Into Play
Before any major overhaul of the policies in the care unit can be completed, the new unit manager must deal with the conflict that exists. And so, because there is a great deal of literature on managing conflict, and because the manager has had experience in resolving conflicts in other venues, the new manager decides to go in that direction first.
An article in the peer-reviewed journal Dimensions of Critical Care Nursing points out that when there is conflict in a nursing environment, along with that conflict the leadership will encounter "negative feelings" (Kelly, 2006, 22). Negative feelings in turn generate hostility and discomfort, Kelly explains, and these conditions have a way of "…draining energy and reducing focus," and hence, it is obvious that quality nursing care is not likely when these conditions exist in a care unit.
After being on the job for a day or two, the manager realizes that some of the more experienced nurses among the thirty-seven nurses she is responsible for have been using the tactic of "avoidance," as a way to attempt to stay out of the tensions that sometimes boil over in the unit. But as Kelly points out, and as the manager well knows from past experience, avoidance as a way to reduce conflict will not be successful because it only postpones the implementation of a solution. In addition, Kelly maintains that taking a "passive role" is a "recipe for low morale" and so in order to improve the morale of this unit the recommendation is to "confront conflict openly and respectfully" using "assertive behavior" (23). Advocating the use of assertive behavior doesn't mean nurses snipe at each other or become bullies; it means for example that nurses should be provided with "…emotional intelligence training" so they can bring a sense of "rational thought" rather than anger and tension into a conflict-ridden situation.
Transformational Leadership rather than Transactional Leadership
The manager in this instance, being fully aware of the conflict that exists, should avoid using transactional leadership as a strategy and instead she should engage in transformational leadership, according to Kelly (26). Transactional managers tend to "honor stability" and they insist that nurses must concentrate on their patients and their tasks and therefore tensions are ignored in many cases (Kelly, 26). However, the transformational nurse leader utilizes tactics like "inspirational motivation," "idealized influence," intellectual incentives and she uses creative assertiveness when it comes to conflict resolution.
In The New York Times-owned publication About.com, journalist Kendra Cherry explains that transformational leaders are "…energetic, enthusiastic and passionate." Transformational leaders challenge the status quo -- which in this case is vitally important -- and they encourage their staff professionals to "…explore new ways of doing things" (Cherry, 2013). Moreover, transformational leaders gain respect through the following behaviors: a) they make sure to keep "lines of communication open" and they welcome contributions from staff; b) they have a "clear vision" and they articulate that vision often and with credibility; c) they serve as a role model for their followers; and d) through their dynamic approach to nursing, they inspire others to "change expectations, perceptions and motivations" so that the unit can function more productively (Cherry).
How to Solve Problems -- Create a Healthy Work Environment
While the new nurse manager is providing the leadership that addresses conflict in the unit, she must also be focusing on creating a healthy work environment. She can do this by setting a course that will lead to problem solving (Wiggins, et al., 2011, 1). One could argue that providing leadership vis-a-vis conflict management is a way of solving problems, but there is a bigger picture that goes beyond just putting out fires and getting nurses to confront issues (rather than avoiding issues). Wiggins and colleague assert that in order to create a healthy work environment, the manager must seek to help bring about the following...
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