Leadership In Contemporary Nursing: Characteristics And Approaches

Effective Leadership Characteristics In Clinical Context

The complexity and dynamism associated with the modern nursing practice has made the adoption of an effective leadership style a requirement. Nurse leaders play a significant role in enhancing the quality of healthcare service. They facilitate adoption best practice; inspire nurses to act in the best interests of their patients by acting as role models. Leaders also play an advocacy role for the nursing profession. Due to the integral role played by nurses, Modern healthcare organizations have increasingly become on identifying potential nurse leaders and developing them. It is, however, challenging to do so. Nurses play a major role in influencing the beliefs, feelings, attitude, and behaviors of the people they lead (Hutchinson and Jackson, 2013). There are multiple approaches used by nurse leaders. Some of the most commonly applied leadership approaches in clinical settings are situational leadership style, Transformational leadership style, Autocratic leadership style, transactional leadership style, participative leadership style, Laissez-Faire Leadership style and participative leadership style(Curtis, de Vries, and Sheerin, 2011). The adoption of different leadership styles is determined by factors such as the personality of a leader, workplace diversity, corporate culture influences and they type of task involved. This essay offers a critical analysis of leadership in Contemporary nursing.

Some Characteristics define effective leadership in the clinical context. Leadership in nursing entails critical suspects such as acting with integrity, resolving conflicts, a delegation of duties and responsibilities and effective decision making. Though these attributes, nurse leaders make major contributions in their organization. Discussed are some of the most common leadership characteristics.

First, emotional intelligence is one of the most important characteristics of effective leaders. Nurse leaders work with different categories of people in the clinical setting. They work collaboratively with and offer support to both experienced and graduate nurses. This characteristic enables them to understand their own emotions potential impact of their emotions top others. It also enables them to understand, recognize and influence the emotions of their juniors (Feltner et al., 2008). Also, they work with graduate nurses to equip them with stress management skills, enable them to deal with work challenges and assist them to develop emotional intelligence. These aspects, therefore, make emotional intelligence on of the important characteristics of effective leaders.

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Secondly, integrity is also one of the most important characteristics in the clinical setting. Leaders with this virtue walk the talk at all times. Their words match Their actions. They act in trustworthy, moral, honest manner and are consistent. On the contrary, leaders lacking this virtue cannot be trusted by the public, colleagues, employees or bosses. Integrity enables effective leaders to use and instill among their employee’s ethical practices hence enabling nurses to make effective decisions regarding healthcare. Personal integrity also aids nurse leaders to make decisions consistent with their code of professional practice (Milton, 2009).

Contemporary Leadership Models Relevant To Healthcare

Thirdly, effective leaders are people who are dedicated to excellence. They are people tasked with the responsibility of prioritizing the best of their patients, staff, and organization irrespective of the prevailing circumstances. Dedication to excellence is centered on ensuring that exceptional care is provided to patients by individual nurses and teams within a clinical setting (McSherry et al., 2012). Leaders can instill this attribute among their staff through regular performance appraisals. Exceptional Leaders focus on improving the performance of other nurses and trainees by acting as role models.

Fourthly, effective communication skills are key for leaders. Effective communication is a major requirement in the contemporary multidisciplinary patient care environment that is characterized by high-level collaboration. Exceptional communication skills aid leaders in the provision of outstanding patient care and the management of their staff. Through their ability to communicate effectively through writing and in speech makes it easier for them to motivate. Lead and win the trust of their staff (Tourangeau et al., 2010).

Finally, professionalism is also a core trait for effective leaders. The dynamism associated with the Nursing profession requires leaders who are both competent and confident. Leaders, they represent their organization at different levels and interact will all their staff. For this reason, professionalism is an important characteristic. Professionalism among nurse leaders is integral for healthy work environments (Ghadirian, Salsali and Cheraghi, 2014).

Contemporary leadership models are relevant to healthcare. A common understanding exists among leaders in contemporary healthcare that the effectiveness of their organizations does not solely rely on them. Therefore, there is a need for alignment of various expertise and integration among departments to facilitate focused patient care, encourage innovation and improve organizational efficiency (Wikström and Dellve, 2009). The healthcare industry has also undergone various transformations creating the need for new more effective leadership approaches. Some of these transitions have come through the introductions of new technologies, new payment methods, care coordination models, new laws and regulations. A need has therefore arisen for modification of patient care and workplace collaborations to meet these emergent needs. These changes have also necessitated Leaders in these contemporary healthcare settings adapt to the following leadership model.

An autocratic leader is a leader who has all control decisions. Such leaders make choices and dictate what needs to be done without accepting the input of others. Autocratic leaders are the bosses, and their word is final. An autocratic leader in the clinical setting makes all decisions individually and directs their subordinates with specific instructions on what needs to be done. They require their subordinates to obey given orders without questioning. Autocratic leaders also do not tolerate mistakes by their staff (Bolden, 2011). This style can be quite effective in emergency situations, in situations needing strict adherence to medical or legal guidelines or where simple tasks are involved. This style, however, can hinder creative problem solving, teamwork and building of trust between Nurse Leader and staff.

Autocratic Leadership Style

Transformational leadership model is centered on creating positive transformations in individuals and social systems. A transformative leader in the clinical setting works closely with individuals and teams within their organizations to identify the need for change, creates a vision for their organization and guides their staff through the change process. The focus of transformative nurse leader is always on improved organizational processes, better systems and improved patient care (Weberg, 2010). This leadership approach works best for healthcare organizations needing big improvements and changes. It is however not effective in situations requiring daily decision making on small issues.

A transactional leader acts as a manager .They act as supervisors for group and organizational performance. A nurse leader using this style uses rewards and punishments to motivate their followers. They tend to believe that followers have a primary role of following commands from their leaders. They also believe that for expectations to be realized, employees need to be monitored closely (Sfantou et al., 2017).

Situational Nurse Leaders are flexible leaders who constantly adapt to the changing needs of their organizations and the work environment. Such leaders do not have any specific skills but their skills are modified to meet the situation at hand and current organizational requirements. Through this leadership style, nurse leaders weigh available options within the clinical setting and pick the leadership style that suits the current circumstances and organizational goals(Sfantou et al., 2017). Through this approach, leaders are able to develop their employees and bring the best out of them as well as establish rapport within the organization.

Collaborative leaders in the clinical setting share control with their Nurses, take time to create meaningful relationships and handle workplace conflicts constructively (Sfantou et al., 2017). Leadership In Contemporary Nursing Discussion Paper They strive to make sure that all parties within the clinical setting are equally satisfied

It is a leadership approach based on a hands-off approach where a leader leaves individuals to make their own decisions. A nurse leader using this model does not provide any instructions to his staff and gives them full freedom to act independently. This leadership is most suitable in a clinical setting where all the members of staff are highly qualified and highly dedicated to their work (Vesterinen, Isola and Paasivaara, 2009). It can, however, be quite ineffective when used in a team that is composed of inexperienced members.

Servant leaders are generally focused on the success of the teams that they lead. They highly understand that for their teams to succeed, individual members should also succeed. They, therefore, focus on ensuring that individuals have the right tools, skills, and relationships. It is more effective for diverse teams where individuals have different responsibilities. It is however not effective where teams are required to follow collective directions (Al-Sawai, 2013).

Transformational Leadership Style

A democratic leader is a leader who involves subordinates in decision-making processes. They encourage open communication and ask for their staff’s input. It is also based on receiving and giving feedback. It works best in situations where the leader wants to build accountability and trust-based relationships. It does not work where quick decision making is required (Giltinane, 2013).

The writer believes that a nurse in the current healthcare environment would be more suited to adopt a transformative leadership approach. As analyzed in this essay, contemporary healthcare organizations are increasingly faced by new challenges that require a more adaptable leadership approach. Transformational leadership approach is future-oriented. Such leaders create a vision for their organization and guide their staff towards the realization of that vision. Their future-oriented approach enables them to deal with emergent organizational challenges (Day and Antonakis, 2013). The writer’s belief is based on several characteristics associated with this model.

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Transformational leaders are individuals who inspire a shared vision in their organization: There is a need for a modern organization to keep pace with the changes in the industry. These changes range from the introduction of new technologies, the introduction of new legal requirements regulating healthcare and new healthcare practices. Realization of these organizational changes requires leaders who are both adaptable and who can influence their teams towards the realization of these changes. Through their influence, transformational leaders are likely to influence improvement in the delivery of services within their organizations (Chummings et al., 2012).

Transformational leaders act as role models for their staff. The modern health workforces need leaders who they can look up to and get an emotional and intellectual stimulation. Transformational leaders are known to be people who encourage the hearts of their staff. Through this aspect, they improve the competence and engagement levels of their staff (Doody and Doody, 2012). Competence in healthcare delivery is one of the major areas of focus by modern organizations as they seek to improve the quality of healthcare services.

The increasing complexities of modern health have created the need for leaders who are not afraid to challenge the status quo. Transformational leaders are the caliber of leaders that modern organizations need. They play an advocacy role in the improvement of the quality of healthcare through the modification of systems. They are also individuals who are adaptable to modern healthcare changes and are therefore able to deal with emergent issues touching on needs of the society, diversity, and technology (Doody and Doody, 2012).

Transactional Leadership Style

Conclusion

In conclusion, effective leaders are defined by various characteristics that they possess. Some of the most common characteristics for effective leaders are emotional intelligence, dedication to excellence, high level of integrity, professionalism and effective communication skills. Apart from these characteristics leaders in the contemporary health care setting are also defined by the leadership model they adopt. Some of the most used leadership models in modern healthcare settings are the transformational leadership model, Autocratic leadership model, the servant leadership model, transactional leadership modeland democratic leadership model. The applicability of these leadership models differs in different situations. I Strongly believe that a transformational leadership model would be the most suitable for a nurse in the current healthcare setting. With the constant changes in the healthcare industry, the most effective leadership approach would be the one that is adaptable to these changes, Transformational leaders are not only adaptable, but they are also able to inspire and lead their staff through change

References

Al-Sawai, A., 2013. The leadership of healthcare professionals: where do we stand?. Oman medical journal, 28(4), p.285.

Bolden, R., 2011. Distributed leadership in organizations: A review of theory and research. International Journal of Management Reviews, 13(3), pp.251-269.

Cummings, G.G., Tate, K., Lee, S., Wong, C.A., Paananen, T., Macaroni, S.P. and Chatterjee, G.E., 2018. Leadership styles and outcome patterns for the nursing workforce and work environment: A systematic review. International journal of nursing studies, 85, pp.19-60

Curtis, E.A., de Vries, J. and Sheerin, F.K., 2011. Developing leadership in nursing: exploring core factors. British Journal of Nursing, 20(5), pp.306-309.

Day, D.V. and Antonakis, J., 2013. The future of leadership. The Wiley-Blackwell handbook of the psychology of leadership, change, and organizational development, pp.221-235.

Doody, O. and Doody, C.M., 2012. Transformational leadership in nursing practice. British Journal of Nursing, 21(20), pp.1212-1218.

Feltner, A., Mitchell, B., Norris, E., and Wolfle, C., 2008. Nurses’ views on the characteristics of an effective leader. Aorn Journal, 87(2), pp.363-372.

Ghadirian, F., Salsali, M. and Cheraghi, M.A., 2014. Nursing professionalism: An evolutionary concept analysis. Iranian journal of nursing and midwifery research, 19(1), p.1.

Giltinane, C.L., 2013. Leadership styles and theories. Nursing Standard, 27(41).

Hutchinson, M. and Jackson, D., 2013. Transformational leadership in nursing: towards a more critical interpretation. The nursing Inquiry, 20(1), pp.11-22. Leadership In Contemporary Nursing Discussion Paper