Effective Approaches in Leadership and Management - Essay Example

Effective Approaches in Leadership and Management Introduction There is a significant shortage in the number of nurses around the globe. Many countries including the United States strive to deal with this problem since it’s the mandate of the respective governments to safeguard the health of its citizens. According to recent studies, the shortage is likely to worsen if responsible authorities do not take the appropriate corrective action. By 2020, estimates point that there will be a 36 % deficit in the number of nurses available to care for patients in the U.S if there are no corrective measures. The current deficit impedes the ability of the nation to handle all its medical cases and presents a cause for worry in the event of a disastrous health event. Therefore, nursing leadership and management has roles to play in correcting the current situation while also taking the future of nursing into consideration. It necessitates retaining current nurses and recruiting qualified ones to fill the gap. This paper examines the leadership approaches and management styles in nursing for handling nurses’ turnover and shortage. Vital components are the theories, skills, roles and principles of nurse leaders versus those of a nurse manager. There is a host of factors that cause the shortage of nurses. Some of these influences include high levels of nurse turnovers and poor nurse retention strategies, an ageing workforce, overworking of nurses poor working conditions, inadequate remuneration, shortage in the nursing faculty outputs and other better career options for women. Strained relationship between hospital administrators, poor hospital staffing and organization and personal reasons are the major influences causing increases in the rates of nurse turnover (Kleinman, 2004). Inadequate funding and support of the nursing profession from the federal government also affect nurses’ shortage and high turnover. Leadership and management come in handy in tackling these impacts and making conditions better for an increased and capable workforce. Leadership and management are differentiated and each of them plays a significant role either individually or in combination. Comparing and contrasting leadership and management in nursing There are significant considerations that set leadership and management apart. However, the two become linked at some point. It is probable to find a nurse in an administrative position with skill sets entailed in both. Leaders concentrate on achieving the tasks at hand by keeping the workforce inspired and motivated to achieve (Gosling, Sutherland, Jones, & Dijkstra, 2012). The leader hopes that each staff member toils to their level best with the aim of attaining the set objective. An effective nurse leader is likely to have characteristics such being a good listener, promote teamwork, create healthy relationships, inspire and motivate, coach and mentor, and be visionary. On the other hand, managers focus their efforts on the direct details that enable work to be done. These essentials of focus on work and time are money, time, and equipment and any other asset that facilitate the completion tasks. Effective managers are good at planning, coordinating, controlling, time management, budgeting, problem-solving and decision-making. In the nursing profession, managers will pursue authoritative and transformational styles, have subordinates, seek control rather than generate trust, demand results and look at the short run and long run (Kleinman, 2004). Leaders in the nursing profession will have followers rather than subordinates, be proactive, inspire trust, focus on achievements, eye the horizon rather than the bottom line and concentrate on the long run. Nursing leadership in relation to tackling the nursing shortage and turnover entails focusing on the long term. Nursing leaders are likely to pursue a solution that will last and become sustainable for a long time. They would utilize their interaction and interpersonal skills to persuade nurses to chase higher education, encourage and increase the number of youths embracing the nursing profession. They would also advocate more attention on nursing and enhance the number of educators of the same. In dealing with retention and turnover issues, nurse leaders are likely to collect data about the causes of the turnover, propose corrective measures and assist in the implementation (Kleinman, 2004). They would take a personal approach to inspire the nurses, listen to their grievances, motivate them for high performance and ultimately seek long-term solutions to their problems. These leadership activities point to the leaders qualities of listening mentoring, coaching and teaching. The behavioral theory dictates that successful leadership can be coined from learnable behavior (Cherry, 2013). Therefore, the nurse leader aims to lead by example. The other nurses are likely to emulate his or her behavior for the overall benefit of the institution. A hospital full of nurses with qualities of a leader can be successful. Others are likely to learn and be successful leaders. This is not the same goal that management seeks. The authoritarian perspective only serves to control and get things done as planned. Nursing management is likely to envision the nurses as expenses and focus on immediate remedies to the problems and short–term first. Contrary to investing in the grieving nurse, the management is likely to hire another one without putting effort to retain the employee. The management is likely to devise recruitment strategies that attract more nurses. The plans could be based on better incentives. Management in itself proves deficient is addressing the shortage and turnover problems. The actions of the nurse manager only last for a short time before the problem reemerges. Nurse leaders and managers should work harmoniously to handle the nurse shortage and turnover problem. Best approach based on personal Philosophy Though management and leadership in nursing are critical, I prefer the leadership approach because of the outcomes. The leadership approach emphasizes on lasting solution not only facilitates continuity but also ensures that a content workforce exists. It handles the problem from the cause rather that after replacing the nurses who have left. It is vital to inspire and motivate nurses to work independently at work and beyond rather than only fulfilling the status quo. The output of the nurses is likely to increase as a result of effective leadership and avoid further turnover. It occurs that management does not do enough to guarantees that no further turnover will happen. In an administrative position, I would prefer a situation whereby the present nurses are motivated and inspired to work even as more nurses are recruited. This would remedy the problem entirely. The desire to stand out as a transformation leader, inspire and motivate influence my approach option. In the end, the personal desire to grow professionally in a particular way overwhelms the perception of which approach has more merits than the other. In conclusion, it is evident that medical institutions need both nurse leaders and managers to tackle the nurse turnover and shortage effectively. Their approaches are instrumental to an all-rounded solution. References Cherry, K. (2013). Leadership Theories. Retrieved from http://psychology.about.com/od/leadership/p/leadtheories.htm Gosling, J., Sutherland, I., Jones, S., & Dijkstra, J. (2012). Key concepts in leadership. Los Angeles: SAGE. Kleinman, S. (2004). Leadership: A Key Strategy in Staff Nurse Retention. Retrieved from tools.hhr-rhs.ca/index.php?option=com_mtree&task=att_download&link_id=5677&cf_id=68&lang=en Read More