Nurse Leader Interview

The goal of this interview is to analyze and evaluate the leadership perspective and the aftermath on the side of patients by taking a holistic approach to the situation. A nurse in a managerial position will be interviewed thoroughly, and an analysis will be developed based on the American Organization of Nurse Executives in connection to the competences possessed by Nurse Managers. The Nurse Manager Competencies will be examined in relation to how they guide the leadership function among nurses (Martin & Meadows, 2017). The interviewee is the Pediatrics department’s Nurse Manager. He attended college and transitioned to a nurse after a couple of years. He has been in charge of a twenty-bed in-patient pediatric unit for six years. This is formal leadership position the interviewee occupies.

Job Duties

Nurse Managers embrace different functions since it is an overall position. It enshrines the daily activities that transpire in the health facility and the determination of the decisions that influence the result of the patients. According to the research conducted by Spectrum Health, the Nurse Manager has full responsibility of being accountable for an entire day on a 24/7 basis. He supervises and coordinates the operation of the facilities and the handling of financial services in an effective and efficient manner. The quality of the services accorded to the patients is the mandate of the Nursing Manager. The interviewee was trained within the organization he works to perform the following functions: setting goals within the medical facility, management of fiscal provisions, allocating resources to particular departments for specific functions, determination of standard of care accorded to the patients, the development of policies and procedures employed in the given medical facility and the respective interpretation, development of human resource, boosting of performance index within the particular facility, and the maintenance of the interdisciplinary measures through effective collaboration in conjunction with other stakeholders (Thompson, 2017).

Preparation for Leadership

The interviewee had to overtax his energy by going an extra mile apart from his normal schedule. He had to take more roles than usual with a view to test and try his capacity to withstand the tissues of issues that relate to the nursing managerial role. Exercising his brain and muscles not to back down under pressure became the order of the day. The various duties that cropped up were directly delegated to him. He was taken to different workshops and seminars that harbored brains and bigwigs who served in various managerial positions. This was meant to allow him to interact with the variety of personalities and figures who shared the same position as he, so that he could borrow and emulate some character traits that such individuals portrayed (Swick, 2017).

Leadership Style

The interviewee assumed a liberal type of leadership whereby he allows any say from every stakeholder in the health sector. He offers a listening ear to all and he tries to reason with anyone, and then tries to draw deductions and conclusions from the available information. He democratically embraced diplomacy through dialogue whenever a misunderstanding arose in the medical facility. He is keen to details and proactive such that he acts in the nick of time in order to arrest any appalling situation before things get out of hand. He organized the regular meeting with both the office and subordinate staff so as to exchange views on how to better deliver services to the patients. This encompasses the mitigation measures that could be imposed in order to ensure that the clients get the best treatment. It also underscores the improvements that need to be put in place to foster a faster healing atmosphere for the patients. The aspects can be social or mechanical. He then implements those policies at the right time in line with the laid down statutes. The subordinate staff embraces that opportunity to air their grievances in connection to their working environment. This offers an opportunity for him to have an intimate discussion with them so that they can iron out the differences and then get to address their concerns enabling working atmosphere. He normally delegates roles to his assistant whenever he is absent (Thompson et al., 2017).

Important Features of a Nurse Leader

The significant character traits of a nurse leader take different forms. It can be visual or virtual. There are those traits of a nurse leader that can be physically seen through the dressing code and gesticulation when addressing people. The physical ones are easy to notice and detect but the innate characters are hard to figure out. The perfect blend of these characters makes a prolific Nurse Leader which then translates to exquisite services to the patients. A good nurse leader should be in a position to listen to the colleagues and the subordinate staff and respond to their queries. He should lay an effective and adequate communication framework that would facilitate faster and efficient communication among all the stakeholders. The vertical and horizontal communication within a system empowers every party so that the responsibilities allocated to each individual can be executed and discharged on time (Thrall, 2014). This fosters and boosts harmonious relations among the workers and the staff. A good nurse leader should be able to empathize and sympathize with the situation that prevails in the lives of his fellows.

Empowering Employees

The employees are empowered by providing them with a free and friendly atmosphere so that they can work undeterred. They should be given the benefit of doubt and the pride of place whenever they mess since erring is human. This gives them the morale and motivation to execute their roles in an enabling environment in such a way they do not feel compelled to act. That excites their moral fiber in their operation and that makes them give their best at work. The employees should be given enough facilitation in term of finance, social, and moral support from the management. The management should organize for some kitty that helps to take care of the welfare of the employees so that that can give them the encouragement. This is because they will feel the weight of the care and concern that the management has for them. The employees should be given room to exercise their rights to organize themselves into groups and organizations that present their views to the system. The depth of the democratic space translates into the magnitude of the potential the workers unleash in their work. The freedom to independently operate their roles makes them release their potential to the fullest.

Change of the Year

The chief change that has occurred in the year is that both office and subordinate staff have had the opportunity to be covered by the medical unit. This is because it had been noted that many workers and staff have encountered with tough financial moments. This has posed them with the challenge of catering for their medical attention. The measures were crafted to help prevent or minimize the number victims who succumb in such unfortunate circumstances. The case was discovered when number workers started dwindling due to unprecedented absenteeism. It was realized after deep research that many workers opted to stay home idle for fear they could not afford the cost of treatment.

Advice to Novice Nurse Leaders

The amateurs nurse leaders have a lot to learn while they serve in their various capacities. They got to study the environment where the medical unit is situated, learn the nature of the people in the area, the kind of patients one has in connection to their temperament, and the type of disease in the locality. All these allow the one to offer the best services to the people and then avoid conflicts that may crop up due to poor work delivery. The novice Nurse Leaders should pay close attention to the plight of the workers and colleagues so that negative environmental situations can be prevented on time. Novice Nurse Leaders should be well versed with the corporate laws to be in a position to operate smoothly without infringing or bypassing the laws of the land (Thrall, 2014).

Parting Shot

It was an auspicious and precious experience to have an interview with the Nurse Leader. He was very grateful to have the opportunity to share the career he pursues with a passion and vision. The interview was a real success.

References

Martin, E., & Meadows, M. (2017). Impact of the American Organization of Nurse Executives’ Development Programs. Nurse Leader, 15(2), 131-136. Retrieved on November 1, 2017 from http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.mnl.2016.11.015

Thompson, P. (2017). The American Organization of Nurse Executives and Global Citizenship. Nurse Leader, 15(2), 104-109. Retrieved on November 1, 2017 from http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.mnl.2016.11.010

Swick, M. (2017). The American Organization of Nurse Executives 2067: Where Will We Be?. Nurse Leader, 15(2), 117-119. Retrieved on November 1, 2017 from http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.mnl.2016.11.008

Thompson, P., Anderson, R., Bradley, C., & Herrin-Griffith, D. (2017). Leaders of the American Organization of Nurse Executives: The First 50 Years. Nurse Leader, 15(2), 110-116. Retrieved on November 1, 2017 from http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.mnl.2016.11.011

Thrall, T. (2014). American Organization of Nurse Executives Nurse Leader Survey. JONA: The Journal Of Nursing Administration, 44(5), 250-253. Retrieved on November 1, 2017 from http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/nna.0000000000000062.