PROFESSIONAL NURSING PRACTICE

Leadership and Management in Professional Nursing Practice

Leadership and Management in Professional Nursing Practice

1. Discuss the pros and cons of the presence of unions in the profession of nursing.

In nursing, the presence of unions has various pros and cons that are mentioned below.

Pros

Money and Time - Unions in nursing enable the nurses to work in better conditions and a better pay. The reason why the working condition for the nurses is not feasible is mainly because of the shortage of nurses. Since the number, of patients is high, nurses are assigned too many tasks, and they are also made to work overtime. Therefore, the unions enable the nurses to get their rights by negotiating for contracts that clearly determine the duties and the working hours. Moreover, the nurses can also negotiate the pay scales and benefits according to the work they do (Carmichael & Ratzan, 1991).

Laws - The unions have also enabled the nurses to pass laws that helped them to get jobs. Moreover, protection from harassment and overtime at work is also provided.

Collective Bargaining - This enables the nurses to work with the employer sin terms of working hours, pay scales and benefit packages.

Cons

Union Fees - Although unions increase the rate of pay that the nurses receive, there is also a fee that is charged by the unions. This fee is called “dues” and is applicable for nurses who want to be a part of the union. Depending on the associations, negotiation with reference to pay can be made through the unions. In Dallas Morning News, it was revealed that nurses who had joined unions were earning $42.60 per hour in 2007 while those who did not join any unions earned $28.71 per hour.

Relations - It is believed that nursing unions are destructive for working relations of the nurses with the managers of the hospitals.

Collective Bargaining- Although it is an advantage, it can also reduce pay in the long run. This is because once the contract is signed on a certain pay scale; it will remain the same until the contract ends ((Hawkins & McEntyr, 2000).

2. Explain the goals of staff development.

In nursing, staff development is very important. In staff development, the goal is to develop the nurses. Also to recognize and respond to the supplementary demands. Since the healthcare system is changing, the nurses are expected to develop accordingly. Another goal of staff development is also to make ...