CNA417 Exploring Nursing Leadership
Question
Reflection on leadership
Using the Gibb’s Model of Reflection you will reflect on their experiences on a previous placement with leadership or mentorship from a Registered Nurse and how they will integrate this in to their future nursing practice.
Answer
Description
During the previous placement a 35-year-old patient, known as Mrs. Powers, was admitted in the pediatric ward with her daughter one and a half-year-old who had been diagnosed with acute bronchiolitis by the RN. According to Mrs. Powers, her daughter had spent three days with a runny nose, cough, fever and a stuffy nose. She had carried out home treatment, but the condition worsened. One of the nurses Miss Helen had commented during a handover, that the child looked dehydrated and had trouble breathing, and asked if a nurse could go in and review her. Upon visiting Mrs. Powers and her child, it was clear that the child needed immediate attention. After discussing with the RN, I recommended that the child needed to be given fluids and humidified oxygen. She consented to it. Under her supervision, I inserted an NG (nasogastric) tube along the floor of the nose parallel to the nasal floor until it reached the back of the nasopharynx where resistance was met. I later inserted a tube of humidified nasal prong oxygen. The RN received an emergency call to attend to another patient, at her request I monitored the child during the period of her absence. After the prescription, I delegated to other nurses to keep on observing her randomly. The RN was happy with the decision and pleased with me for informing her. All members of the team were committed fully for good care delivery. The treatment and assessment were successful,andMrs. Powers was discharged with her child after three days of monitoring and observation.
Feelings
At first, I was overwhelmed by the whole situation seeing the dire condition the child was in and needed immediate attention. The life of the little one was now in my hands and all hopes of the mother directed towards me. I sighed with relief and assured her everything is going to be okay. Having other nurses around trust in my abilities alone made me so proud. I felt the achievement already in my nursing career. The RN is also giving me a chance to showcase my knowledge mentored me to a great leadership role ahead which I felt honored even though I was only an undergraduate my skills were never exploited.
Evaluation
The incident was a bit overwhelming for me to begin with. I was happy for the trust that was built in me by both the multidisciplinary team and the patient’s mother. I was also pleased by the RN for responding positively to my recommendation towards the patient,and I gave it the best of my knowledge. I also felt so much encouraged by the collaboration of the whole team to ensure effective healthcare to the patient. It also helped me to realize that that to be a good leader is not about control of the other but letting others that you serve feel and express their worthiness towards great potentiality.
Analysis
The RN showed good leadership skills with care and compassion. More than doing their duties associated with power, nurse leaders use their interpersonal skills to guide and help others to fully achieve their maximum potential(Arnold and Boggs, 2015). Leadership is all about impacting the behaviors, attitudes, feelings,and beliefs of other people positively(Scott, Matthews and Kirwan, 2014).
There was also quality care and satisfaction of the patient regarding treatment. This was brought about by good leadership and management skills in the facility(Cherry and Jacob, 2016). Nursing leadership is all about inspiring innovation, challenging unethical practices and empowering others(Frankel and PGCMS, 2018). It is also about the relationship- building towards the set goals. That is, it promotes good management which in turn fosters quality care and safety.
There was good teamwork that ensured smooth running and good care delivery to the patients. Good leadership in nursing ensures good participation of teamwork in problem-solving. A leader appreciates the importance of each member’s inputin the teamwork(Regan, Laschinger and Wong, 2016). Through embracing the quality of each member makes them feel valued in the process of the problem- solving(Grossman and Valiga, 2016).
There was good mentorship in promoting professional growth. A good mentor builds a supportive relationship that fosters professional growth and maximizes the potential of an individual(Regan, Laschinger and Wong, 2016). Good mentorship is about sharing skills, knowledge, behaviors,and attitudes with other nurses. It also includes words of encouragement(Foster, Ooms and Marks-Maran, 2015).
Conclusion
Focusing back on that episode, I have learned that success in the field of healthcare is all about unity and collaboration. It requires a leader who can inspire others to be united and work together to achieve a common goal of good patient care(Regan Laschinger and Wong, 2016). I also recognized the need to develop a good interpersonal relationship which fosters feelings of love, safety,and confidence in the whole process(Arnold and Boggs, 2015). Good communication in healthcare between nurses and patients plays an important role in the patient’s experience. It also provides the patient with individualized care. I also learned that mentoring is a relationship that is important for personal and professional advancement to anyone. RN mentors support and enhance the work environment for nurse practitioners(Wilson, 2014)(Scott, Matthews and Kirwan, 2014).
Action plan
I will aim to develop good nursing leadership to promote talent, knowledge, skills and leadership development in nursing. This is through mentoring and creating a supportive culture(Scott, Matthews and Kirwan, 2014). Invested interest and the involvement of others in fully developing their talent is the requirement of every nurse to contribute to the healthcare(Scully, 2015). Leadership in health professional is achieved through the integration of leadership and health. Good leadership is attributed to desire and willpower which develops as a lifelong learning process.
I will also educate my colleagues on mentorship and its relation to the practice of nursing. This will help them in the issues about the practice and the balance of work and their personal lives. This creates a community well endorsed with mentorship. It will create unified people of values and build a social world in those values and help others in change(Scully, 2015). Mentoring also increases career satisfaction, develops motivation, builds resilience to stress and creates success in professional practice(Foster, Ooms and Marks-Maran, 2015).
References
Arnold, E.C.,and Boggs, K.U., 2015. Interpersonal Relationships-E-Book: Professional Communication Skills for Nurses. Elsevier Health Sciences.
Cherry, B. and Jacob, S.R., 2016. Contemporary nursing: Issues, trends, & management. Elsevier Health Sciences.
Foster, H., Ooms, A.,and Marks-Maran, D., 2015. Nursing students’ expectations and experiences of mentorship. Nurse Education Today, 35(1), pp.18-24.
Frankel, A. and PGCMS, R., 2018. What leadership styles should senior nurses develop?. Practice, 10, p.18.
Grossman, S. and Valiga, T.M., 2016. The new leadership challenge: Creating the future of nursing. FA Davis.
Regan, S., Laschinger, H.K. and Wong, C.A., 2016. The influence of empowerment, authentic leadership, and professional practice environments on nurses’ perceived interprofessional collaboration. Journal of nursing management, 24(1), pp.E54-E61.
Scott, P.A., Matthews, A. and Kirwan, M., 2014. What is nursing in the 21st century and what does the 21st century health system require of nursing?. Nursing Philosophy, 15(1), pp.23-34.
Scully, N.J., 2015. Leadership in nursing: The importance of recognizing inherent values and attributes to secure a positive future for the profession. Collegian, 22(4), pp.439-444.
Wilson, A.M., 2014. Mentoring student nurses and the educational use of self: A hermeneutic phenomenological study. Nurse Education Today, 34(3), pp.313-318.
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