Conflict in Nursing - Research Paper Example

? Conflict in Nursing Introduction Every field of work is normally faced with its own problems depending on the setting of the workplace. This is because in the process of working together, employees are always faced with different challenges that dictate the way in which they perform their duties. This can also be explained by the fact that the environment in which employees work could be having a number of challenges, which limit the way in which employees work with one another. In the nursing field, a key challenge facing the nurses is conflict among themselves, and conflicts with the patients. Nursing is a field that involves dealing with a large number of people and thus, communication is a key factor at work. However, it is through communication that the nurses get into conflicts with one another and with the patients (Morrell-Stinson, Abraham, & Bolliger, 2012). Statement of the Problem The clinical problem here is conflict among the nurses and with the patients. While working, nurses tend to disagree about many things concerning work. In my environment nurses engage in issues such as stubbornness, failure to adhere to the right clinical ethics, and failure to follow the set rules and regulations. Therefore, this raises conflicts since the head officers will not agree to some of the behaviors displayed (Morrell-Stinson et al., 2012). The work environment also contributes to conflicts among nurses. For instance, in an environment where the laboratory equipment is few, nurses may get into a conflict over the use of such instruments. However, this will also depend to the way in which the environment is organized. In an environment where duties are not well allocated to the nurses, the conflicts are bound to increase (Bjork, 1995). Since nurses are always working together, differences in personalities also contribute to conflicts. Each nurse has his or her own personality, which may be different from that of another nurse. This way, disagreements may be on the increase if two different personalities cross paths. In my environment, the issue of poor qualifications also contributes to conflicts both among the nurses and with the patients (Bjork, 1995). Conflicts with the patients occur when patients feel that the nurse does possess efficient skills in the field. On the other hand, conflicts with other nurses arise when a nurse performs a particular duty in the wrong manner. Therefore, the problem of conflicts in the nursing field can be faced in different ways. This is a clinical problem in my environment because many nurses have performed poorly at work due to the issue of conflicts with their colleagues and patients. In addition, conflicts with patients have also caused loss of lives of many patients. This can be mainly explained by the fact that conflict resolution methods in my environment are very poor (Stanton, 2012). The reason why I chose to investigate this problem is because the issue has become a key subject of discussion since it is causing many losses among nurses and patients. For instance, conflicts have caused many nurses to lose their jobs and even their licenses. On the other hand, patients have also died due to chaos among the nurses in clinics. Therefore, this is an issue that needs immediate attention before it causes more losses. Increasing conflicts can also be attributed to the increasing diversity among people. For example, in the United States, clinical facilities are composed of nurses from different races and cultures. Therefore, the workplace consists of people with different cultural values and thus, they have to learn how to tolerate one another’s values in order to stay in harmony. Current Clinical Practice In the current clinical setting, diversity is the key cause of conflicts and thus, nurses have to find a way of accepting and appreciating one another. The key mechanisms used in the current clinical setting include application of policies and regulations that should be followed at the workplace. However, in most cases these regulations do not address the issue of relations among nurses or with the patients (Stanton, 2012). Therefore, though the formal mechanisms may ensure that nurses perform their work efficiently, they do not help to solve conflicts at work. In addition, formal mechanisms have become very bureaucratic and thus, most of the nurses might even fail to follow them. For instance, the defined standard of practice is normally long and complicated and thus, it fails to address the issue of conflicts efficiently. However, formal mechanisms are useful in reducing conflicts between nurses and patients. This is because they ensure that nurses are well qualified and experienced and thus, they can handle patients in the right manner (Bjork, 1995). Informal mechanisms used include procuring good organization at the workplace to ensure that conflicts do not arise due to poor allocation of work. Efficient communication is also an informal mechanism that can be used to reduce conflicts. This is because when there is effective communication, solutions to different issues can be easily found and resolved. In addition, clinical facilities also hold seminars and conferences that aim at training nurses on effective conflict resolution methods. In addition, nurses also get to learn how to exercise patience while dealing with patients. Therefore, informal methods have succeeded in reducing conflicts both among the nurses and with the patients (Kupperschmidt, 2006). Discrepancies between formal and informal mechanisms mainly arise from the fact that formal mechanisms tend to have a lot of customs and regulations that do not solve the issue of conflicts. Conflicts cannot be adequately resolved if communication is poor and inefficient (Redman & Fry, 2000). In addition, while formal mechanisms leave out facts that will strengthen the relationship between the nurses, informal mechanisms are essential in bringing the nurses together. For instance, a tea party held for the nurses after work might seem as informal and a waste of time but it will greatly help in mending and building broken relationships. Still, the intervention of the problem should involve both formal and informal mechanisms in order to ensure that high results are achieved. Nursing Interventions Stunton (2013) asserts that a key intervention that should be employed in conflict resolution is possession of the right negotiation skills. Nurses should be trained on how to communicate and listen to one another in times of conflicts. This intervention will require time and effort since, during conflicts, individuals cannot communicate or negotiate effectively. Therefore, negotiation should be mainly carried out when the conflict has stopped. The nurses involved in the conflict should each explain their situations and make the right decisions. In this case, each party should consider the other party while resolving the conflicts. Cooperation is also essential since when the party does not cooperate, the resolution is unlikely to succeed (Kupperschmidt, 2006). A key intervention that mainly arises from the formal mechanisms is effective training of nurses (Redman & Fry, 2000). Nurses should be trained on their core duty at work to avoid cases of self-interest or conflicts arising from neglecting of duties at work. This is because some of the conflicts arise from poor performance of duties at work. In addition, nurses should also understand their goals and objectives at work. They should understand that the key objectives should be patients’ health. This way, they will not let personal matters come in between their work (Stinson et al., 2012). This will also help to demonstrate interest in one another’s concerns. In addition, conflicts among nurses can be reduced by ensuring that the employees have a good relationship with one another. This will significantly help to ensure that cases of disagreement are reduced. An intervention given by many authors involves exercising of patience (Kupperschmidt, 2006). This intervention mainly works when dealing with patients. Nurses should ensure that they are tolerant with all the patients in the clinic. They need to understand that patients might be frustrated by their illness and thus, they might decide to take out their anger on the nurse. Therefore, dealing with patient according to his or her character and listening to their cries keenly will help to reduce conflicts. Authors assert that conflicts among nurses also occur when a large number of duties overwhelm the nurses (Kupperschmidt, 2006). Therefore, nurses should exercise patience in handling their tasks in order to ensure that they do not get frustrated. According to the articles, it is mainly the duty of the nurses and the management to ensure that conflicts in the workplace are reduced. In addition, the articles also assert that reduction of conflicts with patients is entirely the duty of the nurses. On the other hand, the research showed that the clinical environment significantly affects the extent of conflicts. Therefore, both the research and articles provide significant modes of solving the clinical problem of conflicts. Hypothesis 1. How do nurses relate with one another at the workplace? 2. How does the workload in the clinic affect occurrence of conflicts? 3. What is the rate of conflicts between nurses and patients in the clinic? 4. How are formal and informal mechanisms applied to solve conflicts? 5. How do the nurses take the intervention of negotiation? 6. To what extent do conflicts reduce when negotiations are applied? References Bjork, I. T. (1995). Neglected conflicts in the discipline of nursing: Perceptions of the importance and value of practical skill. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 22(1), 6–12. Hipwell, A. E., Tyler, P. A., & Wilson, C. M. (1989). Sources of stress and dissatisfaction among nurses in four hospital environments. British Journal of Medical Psychology, 62(1), 71–79. Kupperschmidt, B. R. (2006). Addressing multigenerational conflict: Mutual respect and carefronting as strategy. Journal of Issues in Nursing, 11(2). Morrell-Stinson, G., Abraham, M., & Bolliger, A. (2012). Nursing management. Journal of Excellency in Nursing Leadership, 43(6), 8–9. Redman, B. K., & Fry, S. T. (2000). Nurses' ethical conflicts: What is really known about them? Nursing Ethics, 7(4), 360–366. Stanton, K. (2012). Conflict interferes with successful clinical outcomes, as well as with personal and professional satisfaction. Advance for Nurses, 1(1). Appendix The research in the article used four samples from four different hospitals to test for the intervention. One of the samples used included eighteen nurses from a hospital that had been rated as being busy most of the time due to a large number of patients. The second sample composed of eighteen nurses from a local hospital with very few patients per day. The third sample consisted of sixty-five nurses from all the four hospitals (Hipwell, Tyler, & Wilson, 1989). The research mainly used the interviewing method to obtain information from the nurses. In addition, the research mainly used the quantitative method to test the results obtained. Therefore, the key item checked was the number obtained. It was found that fifteen of the nurses in the busy hospital had a ninety percent probability of engaging in conflicts. On the other hand, it was found that only five of the nurses in the local hospital were likely to engage in conflicts. In addition, their probability of engaging in conflicts was found to be twenty percent. These findings proved that the probability of nurses in a busy hospital to engage in conflicts is remarkably high. This can be explained by the fact that nurses in a busy hospital tend to be depressed and stressed due to the large load of work (Hipwell, Tyler, & Wilson, 1989). In addition, such busy hospitals do not get the chance to train their employees on conflict resolution methods. Therefore, employees have not mastered good negotiation skills and thus, they get into conflicts often. The findings in the article also assert that employees were likely to be stressed by the large workload in the busy hospital. Therefore, it is indeed clear that nurses in a hospital need to be trained on clear negotiation skills to avoid conflicts. Read More