Introduction
Even though there are a number of different definitions of leadership, the notion in question presupposes essentially the same – one’s ability to encourage people to act in one way or another, without having to use any coercive force, in this respect: “In essence leadership is an act of motivating people to act by non-coercive means (Franco and Almeida 784).
Leadership is developed through learning – as time goes on, nurses become increasingly aware of the theoretical models of leadership, on one hand, and of what account for the best ways for such their awareness to be implemented in the professional settings, on the other. In its turn, this presupposes that in the field of healthcare, the notions of ‘leadership’ and ‘learning’ are strongly interconnected.
One of the main reasons why leadership development is important for nursing is that nowadays, more and more healthcare professionals realize that the actual purpose of medicinal therapies is to heal rather than to eliminate any unpleasant symptoms in patients. In its turn, this suggests that, in order to prove themselves highly professional, nurses must be able to think holistically of their workplace duties – the psychological trait of a leader in healthcare.
Leadership theories
As of today, there are four major theoretical approaches to developing leadership: Behavioral theory – it is concerned with the assumption that the proficient leaders are necessarily task-oriented. Contingency theory – its proponents argue that the main indication of a particular person being a good leader is his or her ability to react promptly to the externally applied stimuli. Transactional theory – this theory’s main provisions are based upon the assumption that one’s ability to function as a well-respected leader positively relates to the concerned individual’s ability to provide followers with the circumstantially adequate performance-boosting incentives. Transformational theory – the advocates of this theory promote the idea that, in order for a person to qualify as an utterly efficient leader, he or she must be capable of convincing followers that they will be able to attain the state of self-actualization – something that this theory’s adherents believe accounts for the most effective motivational incentive. Out of the mentioned theories, it is specifically the latter one that emphasizes the importance of referring to leadership development in terms of a collaborative process, made possible by the willingness of leaders and followers to share the same corporate vision.
Leadership and generalist nurses
The fact that leadership can indeed be considered an integral component of the advanced generalist masters prepared nurse, derives out of the very premise of what being a generalist nurse is all about: “The generalist is usually the broad-based manager whereas the specialist may be a practitioner or manager, but with a depth of experience and knowledge in a core specialty” (Rosser 122). Apparently, managing others, as well as taking accountability for the actions of its subordinates, represents one of the most important professional responsibilities, on the part of just about any generalist nurse. In its turn, this presupposes that it would prove impossible for a person to act as a valuable generalist nursing-practitioner, without possessing some basic leadership-skills. The rationale behind this suggestion is quite obvious – generalist nurses are often required to manage teams, which cannot be done effectively unless the former do not only understand the theoretical provisions of leadership but are also able to make a practical use of such their understanding. Thus, the suggestion that generalist nurses must be capable of leading others is indeed thoroughly appropriate.
Empowerment
Empowerment does directly relate to the development of nursing leaders. The validity of this statement can be illustrated, in regards to the fact that one of the indications that a particular nurse leader is fully qualified has traditionally been considered his or her ability to apply a continual effort into ensuring that, while on the line of addressing their professional duties, nurse followers have access to just about all the necessary means. As MacPhee pointed out: “Nurse leaders create empowering work environments for nurses by removing barriers to organizational empowerment structures such as information and resources” (161). There is even more to it. Nursing leaders themselves are expected to work on increasing the rate of their workplace adequacy by the mean of acquiring ever more professional skills and competencies, as they go through life – something that can be referred to in terms of empowerment. This state of affairs is predetermined by the conceptual essence of nursing, as a profession that presupposes its affiliates’ emotional comfortableness with the requirement to indulge in experiential learning on a constant basis. Apparently, within the methodological framework of nursing leadership, empowerment should be regarded as not merely the sophistically sounding buzzword, but as the practical tool of helping nurses to increase their professional value.
Mentoring
Probably the main characteristic of a highly qualified nurse is his or her ability to grasp the essence of professional challenges and to come up with the proper assessment of the most appropriate strategies for addressing them. One’s competence, in this respect, is essentially experiential – something that explains why it is specifically the most experienced nurses who are being commonly regarded to be the most professionally valuable ones. In its turn, this naturally calls for mentoring to be an integral part of the nursing paradigm: “Mentoring… enables mentees to develop their professional identity through more than just completing tasks or attaining professional competency” (Harrington 171). The process of mentoring is closely related to the notion of leadership – by entering into the mentoring relationship with mentees, experienced nurses can help the latter to learn how to address different work-related situations in the spontaneous and yet thoroughly justified manner. In its turn, this naturally prompts mentees to perceive mentor-nurses as leaders, and to expect that they would be able to live up to this title. Therefore, it will be thoroughly appropriate to suggest that in the field of nursing, the processes of mentoring and leading are not solely interrelated, but that they derive out of each other.
Effective communication strategies/Jean Watson’s theory
Among the main communication and collaboration strategies that lead to healthy and safe interdisciplinary teams can be named: specificalness, supportiveness, well-reasonableness, confidence, and expressiveness. The rationale behind this suggestion has to do with the fact that that the mentioned strategies correlate rather well with what happened to be one’s socialization-related expectations/anxieties.
According to Jean Watson, caring is the quintessential part of being human. Given the fact that nurses are there to provide patients with care, there can be only a few doubts that Watson’s theory is indeed fully consistent with the conceptual premise of what nursing is all about, on one hand, and with the realities of modern living, on the other. Specifically, Watson’s theory calls for the adoption of a holistic outlook on caring by nurses: “In Watson’s theory, nursing is centered around helping the patient achieve a higher degree of harmony within mind, body, and soul, and this harmony is achieved through caring transactions” (Suliman 294). The practical implication of this call is that, while providing patients with care, nurses may never cease being observant of the notions of stewardship, advocacy, and confidentiality. Moreover, when assessed through the conceptual lenses of Watson’s theory, the main indication of a particular nurse being fully qualified would be the concerned individual’s awareness that the actual purpose of medicinal therapies is to heal both: body and mind.
My personal definition of nursing leadership
In light of the above-suggested, it will be fully appropriate to assume that, in order for the definition of nursing leadership to be considered conceptually sound, it must adhere to the provisions of the Transformational theory of leadership, as such that obscures the line between leaders and followers, on one hand, and requires nurse leaders to adapt to the values of corporate solidarity, on the other. Hence, my definition of the notion in question – nursing leadership is about guiding healthcare workers towards the achievement of a particular professional goal in the ethically sound and highly holistic manner (Graber and Kilpatrick 185). That is, to be considered an effective leader in the field of nursing, one must be capable of providing followers with the emotive vision of the discursive significance of nursing, as a profession that is crucial for ensuring the well-being of humanity. He or she must also be perceived by followers as an inspirational figure – the main prerequisite for a nurse leader to able to exercise its authority with ease.
References
Franco, Má, and Joana Almeida. “Organizational Learning and Leadership Styles in Healthcare Organizations.” Leadership & Organization Development Journal 32.8 (2011): 782-806. Print.
Graber, David, and Anne Kilpatrick. “Establishing Values-Based Leadership and Value Systems in Healthcare Organizations.” Journal of Health & Human Services Administration 31.2 (2008): 179-197. Print.
Harrington, Susan. “Mentoring New Nurse Practitioners to Accelerate their Development as Primary Care Providers: A Literature Review.” Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners 23.4 (2011): 168-174. Print.
MacPhee, Maura. “An Empowerment Framework for Nursing Leadership Development: Supporting Evidence.” Journal of Advanced Nursing 68.1 (2012): 159-169. Print.
Rosser, Elizabeth. “Generalist or Specialist in Nurse Education?.” British Journal of Nursing 24.2 (2015): 120-127. Print.
Suliman, Wafika. “Applying Watson’s Nursing Theory to Assess Patient Perceptions of Being Cared for in a Multicultural Environment.” Journal of Nursing Research 17.4 (2009): 293-300. Print.