Leadership And Management Strategies Adopted In Nursing - Essay Example

Leadership and Management in Nursing Introduction Our organization’s vision is to add years of healthy life to the people of Singapore and as its mission, it now seeks to build on our tradition, reach out to the community, do our best to serve, care, and heal and to aim for excellence in cost effective healthcare, education, and research. Our values are based on compassion, collegiality, respect, integrity, social responsibility, and professionalism. As far as our nursing department is concerned, our vision is to provide the best patient experience through nursing excellence, and our mission is to deliver the best in our everyday practise and to nurture leaders within our ranks. Our nursing values are based on passion, respect, integrity, and on delivering the best healthcare services. Based on the above mission, vision, and values of our organization and of the nursing department, this paper shall now analyse such elements and discuss the extent to which these values are reflected in the nursing management and leadership of the hospital. Discussion The vision of the organization is to add years of healthy life to the people of Singapore. This vision is common to other health care organizations. This vision statement was able to capture the overall purpose of the organization. Vision statements of healthcare organizations present hopes for the future (Williamson, 1997). They are goals for the long-term and are based on general goals which the organization seeks to gradually obtain through the implementation of more specific objectives. This vision presents what the organization seeks to become as it now seeks to fulfil its mission. In the case of the hospital, it presents its larger goal and realization through its vision of seeking a longer life for the people of Singapore. It is also an inspirational and challenging statement. It presents a lofty and seemingly unobtainable goal, and it cannot stand alone without a more specific set of goals. The mission statements for the organization are closely linked to the organization’s vision. The mission statement for the organization is more specific in attaining and reaching the organization’s end goal. It specifies its nature as an organization – that of building tradition; reaching out to the community; doing best to serve, care and heal; and of aiming for excellence in cost effective healthcare education and research. Mission statements for the organization are laid out in order to specify the products and services offered by the organization (Swayne, Ginter, & Duncan, 2006). Some hospitals and organizations deliver other healthcare services. Trauma hospitals deliver trauma care and nursing homes deliver types of care for the elderly. For this organization, healthcare services are focused on delivering community healthcare services, including the conduct of healthcare education and research. The mission statement of the organization can also be interpreted as a philosophy for the organization. It has a unique philosophy and self-image which it now serves to fulfil by setting up more specific goals and objectives. In line with prolonging and gaining a longer life for the people of Singapore, the organization seeks to implement healthcare education and research. From the concept of prolonged life, the corresponding action of education and research is laid out. In order to make long and healthy lives possible, there is a need for patients and for health care providers to coordinate with each other (Kemp & Mosqueda, 2004). Through this coordination, the patients and the health care providers will be more knowledgeable about the measures which can ensure their healthy lives. The mission statement of the organization is a crucial element for the attainment of the organization’s vision and it guides the organization in the provision of values and principles which can be applied in the long-term. The values of our organization are the values which govern the behaviour of the staff and the organization. The values of compassion and respect are important because they help fulfil the mission of the organization – that of doing best to serve and to care for patients. Other values of integrity, collegiality, social responsibility and professionalism are important values which also help the organization fulfil its mission. For most organizations, values are in place in order to ensure that members of the organization interact well with each other and in order to help the organization reach goals which it would not have been able to achieve on its own (Jimenez, 2008). For the organization, these values serve as its trademark and guide in the fulfilment of its mission and vision. For the nursing department, its vision is based on the vision of the organization – on ensuring a longer life for the people. By delivering the best patient experience through nursing excellence, it is making its contribution towards prolonging people’s lives. Excellent nursing care means quality care which helps add years of healthy living for the people of Singapore. Qualify of life measures can be ensured through the delivery of the best care for the patients and ensure their long and healthy lives (King & Hinds, 2003). As for passion, respect, and integrity, these are values which are also in line with the overall goals of the organization. Passion is based on the value of professionalism within the organization. Respect within the nursing department is also in line with the respect which the organization seeks to deliver, and the same is true with integrity and social responsibility. The goals of the nursing department have been conceptualized based on what the organization itself seeks to deliver. In the organization, the values are broader and are being implemented in all departments. For the nursing department, the values are more specific to the nurses and to the delivery of nursing care. These values are geared towards overall excellence in the organization, and are meant for the restoration of the dignity of life and of the nursing profession in general (Gallagher, 2004). Without such specific values, the nursing profession and the organization would not be able to fulfil its goals towards healthcare professionalism. The nursing management in our specific nursing unit is in line with the mission, vision, and values of the organization. Our managers in the nursing department reflect the values of our organization through the specific policies it sets forth for its employees. In order to ensure long and healthy lives for the people of Singapore, the nursing department focuses on the health education for its patients. We emphasize health education for our patients because we believe that through health education, the patients will be able to remain healthy and in the process, to prolong their lives. Through health education, the patients will be able to maintain their health on their own and to avoid being afflicted with diseases which can shorten their lives. The nursing department also participates in the researches which are being carried out in the hospital. These researches help to establish evidence base from which the best practices can be adapted and implemented in the actual health care delivery. These researches also help to establish trends and patterns in diseases which eventually help to determine the conditions which precipitate the occurrence of a disease (Zerwekh & Claborn, 2006). When these trends and patterns are established, the nurses then teach the patients healthy behaviour which they can apply, together with the unhealthy risks they should avoid in their lives. The nurse managers in the organization also seek to deliver quality nursing services in compliance with the organization’s goal on the delivery of excellent care. During the hiring process alone, the screening for potential employees is strict and rigid. The hospital only recruits the top graduates from the accredited nursing schools. Nurses who have had adequate training and experience in contemporary nursing practice are filtered out from applicants in order to ensure that the nurses hired are equipped with the skills to deliver quality nursing care to the patients. Quality health care services are crucial in the overall goal of any healthcare organization – that of alleviating the impact of diseases, of adding to the healthy years of patients, and of filling gaps in healthcare services. The quality of nursing services is also continually updated by the organization by sending the staff to trainings and continuing education exercises. The delivery of healthcare services is constantly updated with each year. As research advances the knowledge we have of diseases and of applicable interventions, many new interventions also come into being. Therefore, in order for nurses to be updated with these new interventions and innovations in healthcare delivery, they have to undergo trainings, seminars, and continuing education units (Bowman, 1986). Through these trainings, new skills can be gained by the nurses and consequently, better patient outcomes can also be achieved. The nurse manager also ensures that the members of the organization, especially of the nursing unit, respect each other through the implementation of standards of courtesy and professional nursing practice. At the start of each nurse’s tenure in the hospital, the nurse manager reviews the different standards set by the code of professional conduct of nurses. The nurse manager reminds the new nurse that all the health professionals should respect and extend common courtesies to each other. This respect also calls for support, cooperation, and staying within the bounds of one’s responsibility. Proper respect for authority and for each other’s roles and opinions are also called for within the unit. These standards are also required when dealing with patients. We are always reminded that we should treat our patients with care, empathy and respect. These patients deserve to be treated with dignity, no matter their station in life, race, age, gender, or creed (Holland, Jenkins, & Solomon, 2008). Our nurse manager also reminds us constantly of these standards and we are actively encouraged to attend gender and culture sensitivity trainings in order to ensure that we are knowledgeable of the possible repercussions of our actions. The extent to which the above values are reflected in the nursing management and leadership in our nursing unit is quite extensive. The nursing management in our unit has implemented various measures, as discussed above, in order to guarantee that the overall mission and vision of the organization is achieved. Since the hospital’s inception, these standards have not faltered; the hospital with its managerial staff has implemented strict and high standards of service which have managed to safeguard better patient outcomes and to ensure longer healthy lives for patients. Together with the state-imposed health standards and policies and regulations, the hospital and its health professional staff has also managed to comply with state standards. It has successfully passed all state accreditation procedures since it was established as a hospital. It has also been continually accredited by other healthcare organizations as one of the best medical centres in Singapore through its delivery of quality, evidence-based, and innovative health care services. Through the hospital’s coordination with the local communities, the health outcome for patients has also been improved. The hospital is very much aware that once the patient is discharged, that it would have little control in the patient’s lifestyle and health habits. However, by coordinating with local leaders, the hospital has been able to monitor patients and their health and to partner with local communities in order to educate the patients and the community. Through these efforts, the health practices are not cut-off during discharge; they are continued in the community. Consequently, the people are reminded of healthy habits, which in turn improve their health outcomes. The mission, vision, and values of the organization have been enhanced throughout the years, and they have been specifically implemented in the different departments of the hospital. Hospital management depends largely on the close coordination of the different departments of the hospital. So far, the management has succeeded in setting-up an organization which has complied with the values of compassion, collegiality, respect, integrity, social responsibility, and professionalism. The nursing staff has also assigned its nursing care based on the same values of the organization and of the nursing department. Conclusion The mission, values, and vision of any healthcare organization are rendered ineffectual and of no use when the organization itself does not set forth specific practices which help implement these principles. So far, our organization has managed to implement among its nursing and healthcare staff, specific activities which are very much in line with such principles and values. The staff are highly competent and are made to undergo trainings and to attend seminars in order to update their knowledge and enhance their skills. So far, through such training, the organization has managed to deliver quality health care services and consequently to contribute to a prolonged and healthy life for the people of Singapore. It has also managed to incorporate the core principles of the nursing practice into its healthcare delivery, thereby ensuring that the nurses apply the standards of practice into their nursing care. By upholding the principles of respect and courtesy, the hospital and the nursing department have also ensured that the mission of the organization for professional conduct and social responsibility are being implemented. These are core values and principles which the organization and the nursing department have aligned in order to match their principles with their actions and their actual practice. Works Cited Bowman, M. (1986) Nursing management and education: a conceptual approach to change. London: Routledge Publishing Gallagher, A. (2004) Dignity and Respect for Dignity - Two Key Health Professional Values: implications for nursing Practice. Nursing Ethics, volume 11, number 6, pp. 587-599 Holland, K., Jenkins, J., & Solomon, J. (2008) Applying the Roper-Logan-Tierney model in practice. London: Elsevier Health Sciences Kemp, B. & Mosqueda, L. (2004) Aging with a disability: what the clinician needs to know. Maryland: Johns Hopkins Publishing King, C. & Hinds, P. (2003) Quality of life: from nursing and patient perspectives. London: Jones & Bartlett Jimenez, J. (2008) The Significance of Values in an Organization. Venezuela: Cograf Communications Swayne, L., Duncan, W. & Ginter, P. (2006) Strategic management of health care organizations. UK: Blackwell Publishing Williamson, S. (1997) Fundamentals of strategic planning for healthcare organizations. London: Haworth Press Zerwekh, J. & Claborn, J. (2006) Nursing today: transition and trends. London: Elsevier Health Sciences Read More