There is an increasing need for nurse leaders; as they, as a whole, are growing in age. This means that there should be active recruitment and retention strategies in place for shortages of nurse educators and leaders, which are also referred to as succession plans (Kim, 2012). Succession plans in nursing are where leaders in organizations need to be training the next generation of nurses to take their place when they can no longer teach and guide. There is a critical need for succession planning for nurses, different methods can be utilized for nurses to establish succession plans in nursing, and the best way to learn how to establish one is to look over a successful one that is already in place.
Nursing Succession Plans
There is a critical
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14). This program will help clinical nurses develop the leadership skills and confidence to adopt a new role in the organization. When the nurse already has an idea of their responsibilities and are properly trained for the role of leadership, they will find themselves more likely to maintain the leadership position.
A key component of establishing a succession plan is learning how to measure its effectiveness. Knowing whether the established plan is working at its best in the organization, or if there need to be changes made. Self-assessment is a method utilized to measure how nurses are transitioning into their new roles of leadership. Also, it can be used to assess how well they are being mentored and if they are improving in their position (Fitzpatrick, 2014).
Succession planning requires that the leaders who are being replaced participate in the training of their successors. Otherwise, productivity can decrease when the new individual takes their role in leadership and only understands part of their responsibilities. Measuring the effectiveness of their mentoring by assessing what exactly they are teaching the new nurses will be beneficial in the productivity of their organization. The mentors should already have a plan ready to ensure that they are teaching their trainees to the best of their
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The National Center for Healthcare Leadership published an overview on succession plans and their best practices, as well as, a couple of examples of successful implementation in hospitals (Seymour, 2015). New York City’s North-Shore Long Island Jewish Health System (North Shore LIJ), took hold of this idea of succession planning (Seymour, 2015). They decided to make talent management every leader’s number one priority, they made sure that the board of directors and senior leadership involved themselves with their plans, assessed which employees had high potential for leadership, the performed continuous evaluation of future positions to fill and talent requirements, and put an emphasis in on-the-job training (Seymour,
The nursing shortage and turnover are an issue that continually, constantly and bedevils the nursing leaders and managers. Without sufficient numbers in nursing, patient care and safety is considerably compromised, with lapses in service delivery, overworked and overwhelmed nurses more prone to making mistakes and across board dissatisfaction. Nursing shortage leads to nurse turnover because of the ones carrying our nursing duties are finding it hard to meet the demand, and they eventually burn out. This paper critically examines the issues of the nursing shortage and turnover and how the nurse leaders and managers can tackle the situation, easing the outcomes (The Truth About Nursing, 2012).
Roussel, L., & Swansburg, R.C. (2009). Management and leadership for nurse administrators. Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett Publishers.
Lorber, M., Treven, S., & Mumel, D. (2016). The Examination of Factors Relating to the Leadership Style of Nursing Leaders in Hospitals. Our Economy (Nase Gospodarstvo), 62(1), 27-36. doi:10.1515/ngoe-2016-0003
Whitehead, D. K., Weiss, S. A., & Tappen, R. M. (2010). Essentials of nursing leadership and
“Effective leadership behaviors require preparation, professional leadership attitudes and behavior” (Arnold and Boggs, 2011, p. 228). This requires a strong and knowledgeable leader who inspire others and support professional nursing practice. Furthermore, “leaders that have access to strong interpersonal relationships, information, support, resources, and opportunities empowers employees to accomplish meaningful work” (Young – Ritchie, Laschinger, & Wong, 2009). All these qualities are also important for a practical nurse to have access to in order to empower patients to achieve their optimal well-being. Saskatchewan Association of Licensed Practical Nurses (SALPN), states that Licensed Practical Nurses standards encourage leadership through self-awareness and reflection, commitment to individual and professional growth (2013). Practical Nurses have a big part in supporting and empowering their patients as well as novice nurses. The novice Practical Nurse may feel overwhelmed with work and unsure of themselves at the beginning of their career. A gentle guidance and support form a Practical Nurse can make a transition from a student to a nurse
Clinical Nurse Leaders’ responsibility scope includes all nurse and patient management details except for administrative duties. They are important resources in United States medical intuitions. CNL candidates must have a master’s degree to fulfill this position. This knowledge gives them the needed skill set to manage the daily operation of the hospital’s entire nursing pool. They also observe and regulate the patient care setting. Ultimately, the Clinical Nurse Leaders’ role will continue to gain importance as healthcare caseloads increase in
(Become a Nurse Leader. n.d.). A nurse leader is someone who leads by example and helps their team meet goals by empowerment and healthy work environments. Continuing my education and working on my Bachelor of Science degree will help me attain my goal later in life, of being a nurse leader. Being a nurse leader involves lifelong learning and advancement. I believe treating others how you want to be treated is a good way to be successful in leadership. Everyone makes mistakes and it is how we learn from them that makes us a better person. I will be a nurse leader that is honest and encouraging. I will use personal experiences to relate to my team. I will adopt characteristics from various leadership styles to form my own. If the situation calls for a more autocratic role such as during an emergency or code, that is the style I will use. If the democratic or transformational approach is more appropriate, then that is the style I will lean towards.
One of the problems that faces most health care facilities are being able to recruit and retain their nurses. Nursing shortage and turnover are a complex issue that is affecting healthcare delivery. Nurses form the majority in healthcare and mostly direct caregivers, its deficit poses a dangerous effect on the care of the sick and the disabled. Curbing the nursing shortage and turnover is important for facilities to hire and train their leaders and managers. A good leader or manager should be creative, effective, committed, initiative, motivated, and can handle stress (Huber,
Spinks, N., & Moore, C. (2007). Nursing Leadership. The Changing Workforce, Workplace and Nature of Work: Implications for Health Human Resource Management, 20(3), 26-41.
...elly, P., & Crawford, H. (2013). Nursing leadership & management. In Nursing leadership & management(2nd ed., pp. 168-177). Canada: Nelson Education.
In healthcare it is very important to have strong leaders, especially in the nursing profession. A nurse leader typically uses several styles of leadership depending on the situation presented; this is known as situational leadership. It is important that the professional nurse choose the right style of leadership for any given situation to ensure their employees are performing at their highest potential. Depending on which leadership style a nurse leader uses, it can affect staff retention and the morale of the employees as well as nurse job satisfaction (Azaare & Gross, 2011.) “Nursing leaders have the responsibility to create and maintain a work environment which not only promotes positive patient outcomes but also positively influences teams and individual nurses” (Malloy & Penprase, 2010.) Let’s explore two different leadership styles and discuss how they can enhance or diminish the nursing process.
Sherman, R. & Pross, E. (2010). Growing future nurse leaders to build and sustain healthy work
Nurses are uniquely qualified to fill a demand for change through leadership. Unlike business minded individuals whose primary outcome concern is monetary, a nurses’ primary concern is organic: a living, breathing, tangible being. In a leadership role, a nurse might consider an organization as if it were a grouping of patients, or perhaps an individual patient, each limb with its own characteristics and distinct concerns. They can effectively categorize and prioritize important personal and professional matters and are therefore ideally positioned to lead change efforts. Perhaps most importantly, effective nurse leaders can provide clarity to the common goal and empower others to see their self-interests served by a better common good (Yancer, 2012).
In today’s society, leadership is a common yet useful trait used in every aspect of life and how we use this trait depends on our role. What defines leadership is when someone has the capability to lead an organization or a group of people. There are many examples that display a great sense of leadership such being an educator in health, a parent to their child, or even a nurse. In the medical field, leadership is highly used among nurses, doctors, nurse managers, director of nursing, and even the vice president of patient care services. Among the many positions in the nursing field, one who is a nurse manager shows great leadership. The reason why nurse manager plays an important role in patient care is because it is known to be the most difficult position. As a nurse manager, one must deal with many patient care issues, relationships with medical staff, staff concerns, supplies, as well as maintaining work-life balance. Also, a nurse manager represents leadership by being accountable for the many responsibilities he or she holds. Furthermore, this position is a collaborative yet vital role because they provide the connection between nursing staff and higher level superiors, as well as giving direction and organization to accomplish tasks and goals. In addition, nurse managers provide nurse-patient ratios and the amount of workload nursing staff has. It is their responsibility to make sure that nursing staff is productive and well balanced between their work and personal lives.
The nursing profession has changed drastically over time. The roles and responsibilities that nurses take on have increased and become far more complicated. Nurses are managers, leaders, supervisors and have become experts in many areas of care. Every day nurses are faced with the task of improving and strengthening professional leadership within their work environment. Managing good quality and eliminating risk is the major challenge in health care. All members of the team must work together to accomplish outstanding patient care. Budget cuts and nursing shortage in all areas of health care leads to less licensed staff, where use of unlicensed personnel have been used widely, where delegation is not an option, but a necessity. Nurses must be aware of delegation guidelines, what tasks to delegate,when to delegate for the safety of patients, liability of nurses and the facility.