NRSG375 Relevance of Clinical Leadership Assessment 3 Answer

NRSG375 CLINICAL LEADERSHIP

Relevance of Clinical Leadership

Introduction: This post is focused on clinical leadership that is a way in which the nurses influence point-of-care innovation leading to improvement in the organisational policies/procedures and also enhances the individual care practices. Here I will talk about my characteristics related with this particular skill as it is essential to deliver high-quality service and ensure the safety of the patients (Joseph & Huber, 2015). My point of discussion moves from identifying most important skills of clinical leadership towards linking theories and models of leadership with my traits and focus on my future learning in this area. 

As I am a final year grad, hardly anytime is left for me to start training myself mentally and physically to take up the traits of a good nurse. The nursing profession sometimes becomes uncertain. There might be times when I will have to take care of the patient independently; there will be times when I will have to guide the student nurses also; these incidents will be the times I need to portray me as a leader. Being a clinical leader, I must possess specific characteristics like having firm values, being approachable, being supportive, inspire others, being optimistic and others.

However, I should also know that some characteristics are least expected in clinical leadership, such as being conservative, being rigid and controlling in nature. I must refrain from attaining any such characteristics. Clinical leadership has been clubbed with innovation in recent years due to the changing times. It is a way of coping up with everyday challenges and also, to perform better in future, as per the needs of the environment around us. Innovation begins with us, being the nurses, we must follow the steps that lead us towards innovation, such as resistance, coping, responding, choosing, bringing forth and finally attaining mastery. Generally, innovation in clinical leadership happens due to congruent leadership as the leaders try to learn things, and that occurs continuously. It is also essential for a nurse to learn about various theories of leadership that have evolved. Unlike The Great Man Theory, which says that only great men are meant to lead, the Trait Theory pitches that individual characteristics make one a good leader. Various theories support clinical leadership. Transformation Leadership; it has main components of Vision, Communication, Trust or Integrity and Self-knowledge. The Servant Leadership is also relatable as it has elements like listening, empathy, healing, awareness, persuasion and a lot more; however, the theory is not supported much as it is seen as being patriarchal. As discussed already that innovation leads to Congruent Leadership, this theory appropriately suits the nursing profession as it has the key elements that must be present in a nurse, such as motivating, inspiring, being approachable, good communication skills, actions based on values and others. This study has clearly shown that Congruent Leadership is vital in nursing practice, and I should start developing the traits of a good nurse, in order to commit myself to the practice, as soon as I become a grad. 

Autonomy in Nursing

Introduction: When we discuss autonomy, it can be said that in nursing practice, it is an essence to high-quality service delivery to the patients. It allows them to use the best of their knowledge into the clinical practice. (Skar, 2010) As clinical leadership holds significant importance to the nurses, it is evident that nurses being leaders do enjoy autonomy over certain areas in their practice. However, here I will discuss the feature of autonomy that brings in a lot of responsibilities that the nurses have to adhere to, such as acting as a good leader, empowering others, being emotionally intelligent, conflict management, putting values to action and being accountable. 

The responsibilities that the nurses hold as clinical leaders provide them with autonomy that must be used appropriately and efficiently.  Empowering leaders fit in the Congruent Leadership Theory that holds the abilities to be motivating, inspiring, being approachable, having good communication skills, etc. Empowerment in clinical leadership comes at the rescue to the nursing and healthcare professionals who are being oppressed. If empowerment is conceptualised significantly to resolve the issue of oppression, then it can bring positive outcomes. To empower others, the clinical leaders must empower themselves within the circumstances that surround them or based on the lessons that they learned due to the barriers they faced in early years of practice. A successful empowerment strategy would result in the success of a clinical leader. (Stanley, 2017) Emotional intelligence, being one of the attributes of the congruent leadership in nursing, allows the leaders to ensure compassionate care along with serving the high standards of care. (Carragher & Gormley, 2016) Conflict management is another task that the clinical leaders need to deal with, effectively. The nature of the conflict, the understanding of it and learning about possible solutions, helps the clinical leaders deal with such problems. (Almost et al., 2016) To effectively deal with the conflicts that arise, emotional intelligence can play a crucial role in resolving them. So, it can be said that if emotional intelligence is practised, conflict management becomes easy for the leaders. (Joanna et al., 2014) While autonomy is granted, accountability naturally comes into the picture. Accountability is considered as the foundation of professional practice. Nurses are not just responsible for their professional conduct but also the knowledge that they own. (Krautscheid, 2014) Even if the nurses delegate the responsibility, they are accountable for the same, for the reason that the decision to delegate was taken by them, knowing the implications. I have learned that autonomy comes right when we become the nurses. When the patients and doctors trust us, it is our responsibility to make sure every action is taken in accordance to the standards of practice and we should be accountable for all the actions that we take.

Innovation and Change

Introduction: Innovation is open to all, irrespective of profession or level of work. The concept of Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) pitches for innovation in nursing practice. In this post I will discuss the role of EBP along with the 5 key steps involved in its efficient implementation while performing the role of a nurse. It will help in explaining the way I see my future career as a nurse practicing EBP while bringing innovation and change in the organization. 

The nurses must be adaptable to the changes and innovations and always should have a thirst for the research. (Mackey & Bassendowski, 2017) Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) comes with specific steps that the nurses must adhere to, to perform it successfully. It involves asking the question, searching for the evidence, critically appraising it, implementing it and finally evaluating it. ("Health Library: Evidence-Based Practice: 5 steps of Evidence-Based Practice - Overview", 2020) 

Figure 1: Steps of Evidence-Based Practice (EBP)

(Source: Health Library)

The steps of the EBP process may vary from region to region. However, the core elements remain the same. Along with following the EBP process, the nurses must also focus on building the leadership strategies that help them form a workplace culture that supports the practice. Patient care is the utmost objective, and that shall be kept in mind while implementing the process. The nurses must accept being the role-model of the process and also accept that they would be accountable for the implementation. These are some of the significant responsibilities that the nurses must not refrain from accepting. (Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt, 2015) The change is usually hard to accept, and innovation is certainly not the synonym of change, which many people mistakenly acknowledge. Various theories support innovation and change. Some of them are the Unfreeze-Change-Refreeze Model, Innovation Diffusion Theory and the Chaos Theory.

Figure 2: Unfreeze-Change-Refreeze Model (1951)

(Source: Visual Paradigm)

All these are either way relevant to the nursing profession. However, the nurses must also consider the common barriers that come in the form of enabling the change and innovation like, financial & technological issues, political and demographic conditions, etc. To conclude this, it would be correct to say that change is something that people usually find difficult to adapt, and that leads to lack of innovation. Talking in context of the nurses, the nursing professional is evolving and it demands innovation and change in accordance to the needs of the surroundings. So, being a grad, it would be essential for me to resort to innovation and change in my practice, making use of the Evidence-Based Practice. By learning all these aspects, there remains no doubt that nurses do need to be innovative and must be always ready for the changes.