Commonwealth in Australia, Policies, Management Culture and Practices - Essay Example

Contents 1.0 Introduction 2 2.0 Understanding of the study 5 3.0 Analysis of events 8 4.0 Conclusion 8 5.0 References 10 1.0 Introduction Policies, management culture and practices common in the health care system are some of the key factors that influence the level of participation from the nurses in their work activities and have an impact on their job satisfaction. Being one of the largest health profession in Australia (AIHW, 2011 n.p), It is necessary for the nurses to feel valued and appreciated while in the line of duty so as to deliver impeccable services to the patients. In a nutshell, nurses face various problems in the profession given that it is a highly demanding job making it stressful for the nurses leading to cases of labor turnovers. The management and the governing body are responsible for some of the policies that define how the activities will be carried out. In order for these policies to be implemented, they need to be addressing the nurses’ issues and not undermining them. The aim of this report is to highlight some of these problems that are common in the everyday life of a nurse in Australia and the possible solutions that could salvage the situation before it moves from bad to worse. Critique of the literature As a nurse, the job has in the recent past become a nightmare for us in Australia. The nursing environment has been frustrating and unfair to many nurses in the country making many of them to get shy from pursuing nursing, those experienced nurses are leaving the profession due to poor working environment. The workload in the country has increased due to high increase in chronic diseases and high rate of ageing population. It has become difficult for the government to attract and retain nurse in the profession due to the high rate of diseases in the country which makes it a difficult job to do. It is true from the statistics of the country that we as nurses are working under tough conditions which discourages many from joining us. The country has been hit by what is known as the worst shortage of nurses for a period of over 50 years. we have a problem awaiting to explode from the nursing position of this country, if the shortage is not addressed in good time we are expected to even some of us abandon the profession (Beecroft et al, 2008 p.43; Hegney et al, 2006 p.230). The job has become unbearable to us. The environment that we have be forced to work in is unbearable and not in good for a nurse to deliver. In most cases, we are forced to go beyond our mandate and try to do our job even though it is not enough for us. Many of us have contemplated leaving the profession and some have already shifted their services to private nursing which has better working environment than the public majority. For us in Australia, the major problems for the nursing job are the rise in average age of nurses and also the change in the work leading to high workload. Most nursing schools are reportedly receiving very low enrolments due to the change in the working environment, very few young people wants to be nurses and this is a major challenge for the country. Nursing is quite a demanding job and these services need to be commensurate with the remuneration offered. The government has done very little to increase the salary remuneration for the nurses, as a result many new graduates have abandoned their jobs as soon as they started (Johnson, 2009 p.35; Farrell et al, 2006 p. 781). The attraction has been low, the increase in the workload has not been in line with salaries, the rate at which salaries are increasing is low to us be motivated to work extra hours. Moreso, the situation has been worsened by lack of intrinsic motivation especially from the government of Australia (Doiron et al, 2008 n.p). The low remuneration and long working hours has made the profession difficult and less attractive. As nurses, we are very much stressed and unhappy with the work, no one is willing to extend any time in the hospital to give extra hours of working. We are all tired of the bad image the profession has and the hash working conditions (MacIntosh et al, 2011 p.61; Moayed, et al, 2006 p. 316). Nursing which makes part of the wider health care system in Australia needs to continually evolve and adapt if quality health care is to be provided for the patients so to keep abreast with the emerging technologies, increasing demand and constrained resources (Commonwealth of Australia, 2014 p.13). Given the demanding nature of nursing, it would be expected that the management team would be able to adequately deal with aspects in their jurisdiction such as an adequately staffed team and evenly distributed workloads (Allen & Cooper, 2012 p.8). Although these being the major issues that need to addressed, they are the most ignored. Lack of staffing and the workload issue has led to increased stress levels among the nurses and ultimately led to the increasing turnovers. Before an individual decides to leave their profession, it is more often than not a reflection of the climate of the organization (Donna et al, 2012 n.p). It is seen as the last resort after they have not received the treatment they deserve or consider worthy of their profession. With the high number of individuals leaving the profession, a labor shortage in the near future. The remaining nurses have their workloads increased which leads to stress and eventually the exit of the more qualified nurses. The remnants are expected to sacrifice their lives and cater to the extra workload. This is tiring as it leaves one with no time for personal life activities. When taking up extra shifts for the good of the patient, it may end up being detrimental both mentally and physically for the nurse. The increase in workloads and job demands has been attributed to lead to the increase in turnover intentions(Jourdain&Chenevert, 2010; Leiter &Maslach, 2009; Schaufeli, Bakker, & van Rhenen, 2009). The patient is always at the losing end as the services offered may be compromised to meet deadlines and serve duty rosters. There is no winning in this situation. The relationship between the employer and employees is a bit strained as there is lack of trust. It is seen as a trend that the management is fond of making empty promises which makes the nurses feel undervalued with the dishonored promises. It is also frustrating for the nurses when their opinions on the issues affecting them are not addressed or simply ignored. According to (Boxall and Purcell, 2011), voicing of the opinions is not the bigger issue, it is the sincerity that comes with the management that they will honor their word and how responsive they will be in order to achieve desired results. They have low levels of influence when it comes to the decisions made by the management in relation to the satisfaction levels, remuneration and working conditions. 2.0 Understanding of the study From the study, it is evident that nursing is one of the field that should taken seriously yet the government fails to do this. The case study of Australia simply depicts the general poor environment that nurses go through in most parts of the world. the increases in chronic diseases has dealt a blow to the nursing fraternity meaning increase in medical care as such the work load for nurses. The government needs to increase the funding for nurses to do a good job in a good environment. I have learnt from this that there is need for communication which is important for proper understanding and cooperation. Nursing is demanding job, management therefore needs to address the issues affecting the nurse in good time to reduce on the possibility of experiencing stress during working hours which could affect the commitment of nurses to their work. Management should ensure proper staffing and provision of the needed facilities for the nurses. In the long run for Australia may not be possible to sustain the demands of the health workforce as there is a rising demand for the health care. The ageing population which is living longer comes with its own set of demands whereby they come with more complex diseases that require an improved technology which comes at a higher cost. When analyzing the health trends, the poor retention levels are more likely to create a shortage in the nursing fraternity. This is because there exists a problem when it comes to the attraction and retention of nurses (Holland, Allen & Cooper, 2011n.p). In order to salvage the situation, the bodies responsible for the nurses and policy making need to make coordinated action that will be able to narrow the gap that is created when there is a deficit in the supply of nurses and a surplus in demand. The said actions should then be implemented to the latter. The key activities that need to be done include consultation with some of the key stakeholders in the health care field. Change is needed for Australia to secure its health workforce needs. The roles of nurses are increasingly becoming more diverse and complex (ANF, 2016 n.p) The transition needs to start from the education stage as this is where all the foundational knowledge lies such that when as nurses venture into the workplace, they have the ability to retain their jobs at the start of their careers where they will face challenges in a new environment. This way they will be able to make use of their skills and develop a fighting spirit. The proposed changes need to generate sustainable action which will be able to cater for the dynamic environment incorporating new methodologies and technologies. The wide variety of the ever evolving innovations have the potential of improving the effectiveness of the workforce in Australia if properly implemented. The strategic actions need to be adopted nationally so that they can be more valued and add value to the profession which will in turn create a sense of appreciation among the nurses and they will no longer feel undervalued. The three major areas that need to be put into consideration to solve the listed problems above are centered on leadership (management), retention and productivity(Commonwealth of Australia, 2014p. 5). The executive directors and senior nurses need to develop a culture, structure and programs in the workplace that create harmony among the nurses and addressing all the issues that the nurses face. This will go a long way in establishing of the appropriate workload suitable for each staff member as well as the staffing levels. This will enable easy monitoring of activities in the workplace as each individual will be held accountable for their actions hence an improvement in the patient outcomes will be a norm and develop as a culture. Managers in the system need to encourage reward systems and recognition for the work done by the nurses. This will boost their morale even in the face of the challenging demands. In order to counter the retention issue, nurses need to be provided with a jump start in their careers with the right skills that will adequately prepare them once they graduate to fully meet the needs that are required of them by the service. This is part of the governments work to ensure that the curriculum for the nurses is well equipped to develop a pool of academic knowledge foundation as well as practical skills and the necessary experience that will prepare them for the real world environment. Once they graduate, support needs to be given to them in the workplace by clearly giving them the specifications of what is expected of them. This will create a positive environment at the same time safe guarding the role of the graduate in the organization. When it comes to productivity, an environment that allows opportunities for innovation and management that supports flexibility and positive change can help with the management issues facing the nurses. Once they feel that their voice is heard and their opinions given a platform, they are encouraged to work as a team. Improving the overall working environment conditions is seen as a strategy that leads to the improvement of health outcomes and reduces the turnover cases (Aiken et al, 2012 p. 312) 3.0 Analysis of events Nursing is one profession which is demanding and requires one to be patient and well motivated all the time. According to Australian Nursing & Midwifery Federation (2011), the work load is overwhelming due to increase in the ageing rate and withdrawal of nurses from the profession. This is not the case, the working environment for nurses is wanting, the work is a lot considering the rise of chronic diseases and ageing population. The number of experienced nurses leaving the profession is rising as the entry number reduces. The working conditions are driving the nurses from the profession. This definetly will increase considering the lack of commitment from the government side. The management lacks nursing expertise and end up making decisions that are not in line with nursing code. As a nurse, the situation is frustrating and many nurses are experiencing stress at work. The image of the profession has been badly tainted and many are shunning away from nursing. For us nurses, burnout has been a tough issue that has affected performance. The nursing profession is difficult and different as in many cases it involves direct care and contact to the patients which in most cases may be stressing and emotionally frustrating. This nature of work in most cases leads to burnout in nurses, this can be solved by increasing the staff members to reduce the work load and reduce the issue of burnout. As one of the victims of burnout, I can attest for sure that burnout negatively affects the performance of the work force. 4.0 Conclusion It is impossible to provide quality health care if as a nurse you are dissatisfied with your job or have stress. The causes of these challenges have been highlighted above and their consequences have been seen to affect the patient (Allen & Cooper 2012). It is therefore important to solve the problem right from the root cause. When nurses feel valued and appreciated in their line of work, they will put more effort in their work regardless of how demanding it is to deliver quality health care to their patients. Proper training and preparation for new graduates is also seen to be paramount as this will affect the retention and labor turnover rates. Prior preparation and support once incorporated into the system is instrumental in the life of a new graduate nurse as this will assist in adapting to the needs of the profession as well as evolving with the ever changing needs of the field. With proper management that understands the needs of the nurses, the projected problems in future can be minimized. It may not happen overnight but as a work in progress, more is set to be achieved. 5.0 References Aiken L, Sermeus W, Van den Heede K, Sloane D, et al. (2012). Patient safety, satisfaction, and quality of hospital care: Cross-sectional surveys of nurses and patients in 12 countries in Europe and the United States. British Medical Journal, 2012, 344. Allen, C.B. and Cooper, K.B. (2012). What Nurses Want:Analysis of the First National Survey on Nurses’ Attitudes toWork and Work Conditions inAustralia. Department of ManagementMonash University Australian Nursing & Midwifery Federation. (2011). Nurses Feel Undervalued by Governments. 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