Leadership Journal: Provision

Leadership Journal: Provision

Grand Canyon University

NUR 670

Leadership Journal: Provision

Nurse leaders have the ability to influence followers in the work environment both positively and in some cases, negatively. Followers positively inspired by their leaders are often involved in a culture of providing a higher quality care and positive outcomes (Doody & Doody, 2012). Negative influences can leave followers with resentment towards others including the leader. Negative influences can also impact patient satisfaction, staff turnover, moral and may sometimes motivate nurses to become better providers (de Veer, Francke, Struijs & Willems, 2013). The experience my preceptor brings to her work environment is valued by her staff as she has been successful at her previous facilities. Her presence brings positivity to the room when she enters and the knowledge she expresses regarding all areas of the perioperative services is welcomed by the staff. Having little to no experience at this level of nursing, I am honored to learn all aspects of managing a department as successful as hers.

During this week’s activities, I spent the day with my preceptor putting out fires throughout the department. Initially, the challenges began with staffing for the preop department and half as many nurses were scheduled to start the cases then were needed to safely intake each patient. The staffing shortage was resolved by transferring the few with experience from the operating room to the preop area which then left the operating room with a thin staffing census in the OR. As a principle of servant leadership to serve others first, I volunteered to assist in the OR to fill the void where the additional staffing was needed. Aside from patient care, as a preceptee and not an employee of this institution, I was able to assist with getting many rooms ready by helping the nurses and techs with setting up various equipment and other surgical ancillary needs. This task filled the greater part of the morning hours and eventually all rooms were running with their scheduled surgical procedures. The rest of the day was spent following my preceptor to various leadership meetings with other perioperative managers in their departments.

In other activities, this week I could participate in a meeting which included every department my preceptor oversaw. As the clinical director of perioperative services, every department dealing with inpatient as well as outpatient surgical procedures was involved with this meeting. The meeting planned for the following three days of scheduled surgical cases involving special requests and or necessities to accomplish the procedure. Other department leads or managers involved in this meeting included the ambulatory surgical unit, preadmission testing, post anesthesia care unit and materials management. The goal of this meeting was to identify any unusual procedures requiring additional staff, special instruments or implants from vendors. I could understand how at the room level items may be missing or equipment unavailable if a lack of communication was conducted at a meeting like this. Attention to detail is important as every department is involved with every case that chooses this hospital for their elective surgical needs.

My preceptor has a challenging task with a department filled with specialties lacking management and some leadership. The current staff are motivated by the comfortable culture they have created to cruise through the motions and afraid of change as to not leave for employment elsewhere. As the leader of the entire department, she has the responsibility to ensure the prosperity of the perioperative services within the hospital. This responsibility also ties into the viability of the organization. Both the viability as well as the prosperity of the unit, the department, hospital and the organization are reliant upon the influence my preceptor has on the staff within each of the departments she manages. Having previous experience as a staff nurse, as a manager, an educational and clinical leader in the operating room, my preceptor utilizes the experience from these roles as her foundation to her leadership. This experience give her credibility and receives respect from her staff (Fowler, 2016). She gives direction and with direction she provides the staff with a focus on the goal of organizational prosperity and the security of providing the best possible care with her strong background for clinical education and expertise.

Reflecting on concept of headship and the message given in the video, I have learned the role of the leader should convey safety and pride into those they are leading. Those that are following should have a sense of feeling safe or protected from the leader as well as being honored to work in a surrounding where a great leader displays their leadership. Also, in previous generations dating back many years before Christ, the term headship was traditionally given to a male or to the father of a family. In modern or recent accounts, headship has been trending toward females working in the leadership positions where a male counterpart would traditionally hold. My preceptor is the current leader of a large department with many subspecialties or units. She is the leader of the perioperative department in the highest position of power as a nurse who only takes direction from executives of the organization. This responsibility demonstrates a modern concept of headship and should be something for her to be proud of.

References

de Veer, A. E., Francke, A. L., Struijs, A., & Willems, D. L. (2013). Determinants of moral distress in daily nursing practice: A cross sectional correlational questionnaire survey. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 50(1), 100-108. doi:10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2012.08.017

Doody, O., & Doody, C. M. (2012). Transformational leadership in nursing practice. British Journal of Nursing (Mark Allen Publishing), 21(20), 1212.

Fowler, J. (2016). From staff nurse to nurse consultant. British Journal of Nursing, 25(13), 772.

Torres, A. (2017). People of Color and White Women in Headship. Independent School, 76(3), 16-18.