Abstract
The shortage of nursing practitioners in the USA is one of the burning issues that have gained momentum due to the demographic peculiarities of American society and expected trends. The proposed educational program can contribute to solving this problem in several ways. The project aims at the development of transformational leadership skills in nursing leaders as well as raising awareness about the effects this leadership style has on organizations. The project will also have a positive impact on nursing practitioners’ performance as they will receive valuable knowledge and skills as well as proper mentorship from effective nurse leaders. The intervention will last for a month, and its evaluation will be implemented in three stages. Surveys will be conducted before the start of the project, after the intervention termination, and three months after the end of the training sessions. The analysis of the data will help in improving the intervention and developing a more generalized version of the educational project that could be utilized in different healthcare settings.
The rationale for Choosing the Topic and Introduction
The lack of nursing practitioners in the healthcare setting and the peculiarities of the American demographic situation in the nearest future can make the provision of high-quality home care almost impossible. Therefore, nurses’ retention and development have gained momentum in the US healthcare system. Researchers and practitioners have acknowledged the importance of effective leadership and claim that transformational leaders can contribute to the development of viable solutions to the existing problem (Crowne et al., 2017). Therefore, it is essential to make sure that nurses have the necessary leadership skills that can ensure the provision of high-quality patient-centered care (Rokstad, Vatne, Engedal, & Selbaek, 2015). It is noteworthy that transformational leadership alone does not have a considerable positive effect on nursing professionals’ retention (Brewer et al., 2016). However, Brewer et al. (2016) stress that this type of leadership is instrumental in facilitating nurses’ commitment to the organizational goals. This study aims at identifying the exact impact of the use of transformational style on nursing practitioners’ professionalism and behaviors.
Problem Statement, Goals, and Behavioral Objectives
Regarding the focus of the research, it is possible to formulate the problem statement in the following way: the lack of understanding on how transformational leadership style can improve or influence nurses’ behaviors and professionalism in the work climate. In order to address the issue, it is important to establish clear goals and objectives. As far as the goals are concerned, it is pivotal to:
- learn how to use the principles of transformational leadership to have a positive impact on the overall performance of the organization by improving quality care and patient outcomes.
- have the ability to impact followers’ commitment to the organization and exhibit behaviors that benefit the organization.
It is also necessary to address the following behavioral objectives:
- Demonstrating patient safety outcomes by lower errors in medication administration, infection, use of restraint, and patient mortality and finding implications for improving patient satisfaction.
- Providing education and training in transformational leadership style for nurses and case managers to have higher quality care and retention of nurses in the home care environment.
- Inspiring, engaging, building, cultivating the feeling of empowerment and self-confidence to change nursing attitudes, behaviors and feel passionate about their work and realize their career aspiration.
Action Plan
The proposed educational intervention for nurses involved in the field of home care will focus on several dimensions. Orabi (2016) claims that such domains as individualized consideration, intellectual stimulation, inspirational motivation, and idealized influence are central to transformational leadership. Sanner-Stiehr and Reynolds Kueny (2017) also focus on these dimensions and identify specific areas to address when training nurses. These spheres include personality traits, self-efficacy, interpersonal skills, workplace relationships, and organizational demands. The training sessions will aim at developing certain skills transformational leaders use to motivate, provide mentorship, and inspire their followers.
For instance, the participants will learn about different personality traits (such as extraversion, agreeableness, humility, and neuroticism) and their effects on transformational leadership. It is also essential to improve self-evaluation and self-efficacy through training (Sanner-Stiehr & Reynolds Kueny, 2017). The provided training will increase nurses’ emotional intelligence and perspective-taking. Finally, nurses will learn about collective identity, methods to develop effective working relationships, developmental challenges, and control-elated issues. It is noteworthy that home care is associated with additional challenges that are closely related to communication. Therefore, this aspect will be addressed in relation to transformational leadership and home care provision. Three training sessions will be necessary, and the nurses will have one session a week. The sessions will include lectures, workshops, and discussions that will play the most important part in the process.
Evaluation Tool Methods
Pre-Test
In order to ensure the effectiveness of the proposed training, it is critical to utilize appropriate evaluation tools and methods. Several instruments will be used prior to the beginning of the intervention, after its termination, and three months after the training program implementation. A brief survey examining the participants’ background knowledge on the topics mentioned above will be held in order to identify nurses’ awareness of theoretical and practical information. Specific attention will be paid to leadership skills and the relationship between leadership styles and organizational (as well as patient) outcomes.
As far as leadership types are concerned, the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire will be employed to identify nursing professionals’ leadership styles. This tool is widely used in organizational research and is effective in identifying employees’ leadership types, traits, and skills (Orabi, 2016). The instrument addresses such areas as an idealized influence, intellectual stimulation, individual considerations, and inspirational motivation. The training sessions will start after the analysis of the obtained data, and certain aspects of training can be slightly shaped in accordance with the prevalent leadership styles and existing knowledge gaps.
Return Demonstration
In order to identify the effectiveness of the training nurses will receive, it is essential to use a similar survey used at the beginning of the intervention. The wording of the surveys and some of their minor aspects will be different so that the obtained data validity could be ensured. It is important to evaluate the participants’ knowledge in order to identify whether the learning objectives of the interventions have been achieved.
Post-Test
As mentioned above, three months after the termination of the intervention, the participants’ leadership styles will be analyzed. A multifactor Leadership Questionnaire will be employed as the use of the same instrument can enhance results validity and reliability. Apart from this, it can also be valuable to collect some qualitative data to identify the participants’ views on the provided training. It is also necessary to collect some statistical data concerning medical errors and infection. Finally, the nursing staff will complete questionnaires addressing their views regarding their leaders’ leadership styles and skills. Several nurses will be interviewed after the completion of the questionnaire. The interview will be one hour long, and it will address nursing practitioners’ views on the relevance and effectiveness of the training intervention. This information can help to explore nurses’ commitment to the goals and their motivation. The data can be used to improve training sessions making them more engaging and effective.
Implication for Nursing Practice
The proposed educational intervention can have several implications for nursing practice. First, the influence of transformational leadership on healthcare organizations’ performance and patient outcomes will be analyzed. Although certain attention has been paid to the matter in academia, the effectiveness of specific training interventions should be well researched. It is essential to examine whether transformational leadership skills can be trained. It is also important to identify the most effective educational strategies. Apart from the development of nursing personnel, the project may have an impact on hiring and retention. Human resources professionals will be able to identify employees who can potentially become nurse leaders.
Furthermore, the relevance and validity of certain data collection tools will be assessed. The methodology utilized for the purpose of this project can be analyzed and employed in other settings. It is critical to identify the most effective instruments aimed at leadership style identification in the clinical setting. The questionnaires related to nurses’ knowledge concerning leadership and its effect on organizational outcomes can be used to monitor the knowledge of novice nursing practitioners. The dissemination of the results of this project may also have a positive influence on the development of nursing practice. The proposed program can facilitate the discussion of the effectiveness of different educational interventions as well as ways to ensure nurses’ proper development and retention.
Conclusion
On balance, the proposed educational intervention aims at equipping the nursing personnel with the knowledge and skills necessary for the use of transformational leadership. The effectiveness of the program will be measured with the help of relevant instruments including surveys, statistical data (medical error and infection rate), and interviews. The project is expected to improve the nursing staff morale and commitment to organizational goals through the incorporation of transformational leadership into the organizational culture. Nurse leaders will create a favorable working atmosphere where nursing practitioners will be more motivated and less overwhelmed with tasks. The project can have a positive impact on nursing practice as it can contribute to solving the shortage of nurses in the US. Finally, this study can have certain implications for nursing research since specific methods can be employed in different healthcare settings.
References
Brewer, C. S., Kovner, C. T., Djukic, M., Fatehi, F., Greene, W., Chacko, T. P., & Yang, Y. (2016). Impact of transformational leadership on nurse work outcomes. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 72(11), 2879-2893. Web.
Crowne, K. A., Young, T. M., Goldman, B., Patterson, B., Krouse, A. M., & Proenca, J. (2017). Leading nurses: Emotional intelligence and leadership development effectiveness. Leadership in Health Services, 30(3), 217-232. Web.
Orabi, T. (2016). The impact of transformational leadership style on organizational performance: Evidence from Jordan. International Journal of Human Resource Studies, 6(2), 89-102. Web.
Rokstad, A. M. M., Vatne, S., Engedal, K., & Selbaek, G. (2015). The role of leadership in the implementation of person-centred care using Dementia Care Mapping: A study in three nursing homes. Journal of Nursing Management, 23(1), 15-26. Web.
Sanner-Stiehr, E., & Reynolds Kueny, C. (2017). From the top-down: Transformational leadership considerations for health care organizations. Journal of Hospital Administration, 6(4), 1-9. Web.