Nursing Leadership

Nursing Leadership

Introduction

Leaders have been mandatory in any organization for the purpose of ensuring the work flow remains intact and the subordinates and performing their responsibilities with utmost care and attention. It is because of the presence of leaders that subordinates learn how to effectively perform and ensure that their work is according to the pre established standards.

With the rapid progressions in technological advancements and complicated health care demands, and technical competences there is a need to establish a more effective system which helps the nurses deal with the dynamism of their work. Based on these reasons leadership is gradually making its way into nursing as well, and nurse leaders are becoming essential in order to ensure a healthy working environment. According to the American Association of Colleges of nursing (AACN) nursing leadership needs to be present at all times in order to be able to guide and aid the nurses deal with their daily challenges effectively. Leaders can help create a satisfying organizational culture, however there is a need to change the present scenario of leadership in the health care system and shift from a command and control leadership style towards a more transformational approach will helps motivate the nurses and boosts the subordinates confidence in their work (AACN, 2012).

According to the annual report of the Institute of Medicine (2010) failure to establishing proper leadership in nursing proper health care cannot be provided. Strong leadership needs to replace the existing scenario of the healthcare system.

Discussion

CAN (n.d) defines nursing leadership as nurses who effectively understand the necessity of nursing leadership which must begin at the very beginning of nursing education and must continue throughout the career of nurses. Educators must instill be expectation that nurses can become and must become leaders. When we consider nursing management we are implying towards nurses who help other nurses see beyond their practices and understand the importance of their job requirements, and make them understand that nursing is a lifelong commitment to change the existing system.

Background

The need for effective leadership was realized once there was an increase in the complex nursing practices and the modernized techniques that are increasingly becoming a part of nursing. Moral distress which nurses feel is another very serious issue that requires proper management. Moral distresses tend to arise when a nurse is aware of the morally correct war to act but organizational constraints refrain them from acting in a particular way, and are made to act in a particular way with a patient instead of the proper methods (Edmonson, 2010). Since nurses are the moral agents of the health care system and failure to deal with moral distresses can lead to greater issues and conflicts. Conflicts directly affect the care being provided and how the nurses react towards patients. Frustrated, burnt out nurses lack focus and are most likely to make erroneous treatment calls which can have serious adverse affects since there is a person life at stake. In such situations having effective leaders became mandatory, leaders who effectively demonstrate ...