The nurse manager on an orthopedic unit is known as being supportive of the staf
ID: 448773 • Letter: T
Question
The nurse manager on an orthopedic unit is known as being supportive of the staff and very approachable. However, over the past year, two RNs have transferred to other units because of their dissatisfaction with the performance of some of the staff on the unit. More recently, one RN approached this nurse manager regarding two of the unlicensed assistive personnel (UAPs) on the evening shift who have not recorded their vital signs until the end of the shift or answered call lights promptly because they were busy on their cell phones checking Facebook. The nurse manager’s response has been a hands off approach telling this RN that as a professional, it is important to deal with the situation directly especially since the nurse manager does not work this shift has not witnessed this behavior. Unfortunately, the problem persists and patient outcomes have been impacted.
Initial Discussion Post:
Address the following:
Identify the style of leadership this nurse manager is using. Support your choice evidence from the scenario and the assigned readings.
Is the identified style of leadership appropriate in this situation?
If yes, explain why.
If no, identify anther leadership style more appropriate to address the problem and explain why it is more appropriate.
MINIMUM 250 WORDS PLUS REFERENCES
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Explanation / Answer
This nurse manager has a Laissez-faire leadership style, as laissez-faire leaders offer a lot of autonomy to their team, by not interfering in their decisions, and motivating them in making their decisions, by providing the necessary support, advices and resources when required. the case says " The nurse manager on an orthopedic unit is known as being supportive of the staff and very approachable." that shows that the leadership style of the nurse manager is supportive, also in another instance, when the problem with the assistants rose, the nurse manager's reaction is given as "The nurse manager’s response has been a hands off approach telling this RN that as a professional, it is important to deal with the situation directly especially since the nurse manager does not work this shift has not witnessed this behavior." This shows a high level of autonomy the nurse manager is expecting from his team, and he's motivating them to take action independently. He is giving them the right to make the decision. Though this style promotes autonomy , which can be very satisfying for the team, but in this case the team members, specially the RNs, are not motivated enough to take the situation in their hands, as the case states " Unfortunately, the problem persists and patient outcomes have been impacted.". Hence, specially in the case of this decision, i.e. taking the appropriate action action on the unlicensed assistive personnel (UAPs) who failed to show the effeciency their job demanded, and also caused two RNs taking transfer due to dissatisfaction in the staff.
The leadership style more appropriate to address this problem will be Autocratic leadership style, because, in autocratic eadership, the leader takes the decision on his own, fast and strong, without worrying much about the inpouts from his/her team. In this case he has already got the input from his team he needs to correct the dissatifaction caused by these staff members as soon as possible. Hence, autocratic style will be the most appropriate, where he takes the decision of the approprate action on the staff members affecting the pateint outcomes and work environment negatively.