“Nurse leaders are made not born” (Grossman, 2007, p.580. The complexities of today’s working environment require that nurses exhibit leadership skills at various levels in the field of health care. As a staff nurse at the emergency room (ER) of a university hospital, years of experience and training along with the personal commitment to provide excellent service have developed me to become a transformational leader. Burns (1978) describes transformational leadership as “a process in which leaders and followers raise one another to higher levels of motivation and morality” (cited in Grossman & Valga, 2013, p. 73). This process is one that I am going through and have developed competencies that exhibit my strengths as a leader. Three of these competencies are in the areas of communication, collaboration and networking, and personal and unit specialty skill; and I have identified an action plan to become a more effective leader.
Communication
Nurses are expected to be effective in both oral and written communication. As an ER nurse, I can educate a patient effectively, both through verbal interaction and in writing. It is also necessary that I listen to the non-verbal messages of the patient especially since their conditions may require a competent observer and an effective communicator. Communication also refers to my interaction with my colleagues and I make sure that I remain polite, enthusiastic, and respectful to them both in written and verbal communication. In doing so, I would be able to motivate my subordinates to follow my example because “transformational leaders transfer their enthusiasm and high power to their subordinates by the way of modeling” (Hayati, Charkhabi & Naami, 2014, Abstract).
Collaboration and networking
Nurses connect patients to physicians. Collaboration with other health care personnel is a basic task. I refer patients to an interdisciplinary team in a timely manner. My skill and competence in this aspect is important to ensure that patients in the ER receive the required treatment in the least amount of waiting time. To enhance my efficiency I maintain a good rapport with my co-workers . I also support activities that would develop our individual capacities, such as trainings or team-building sessions. These would enhance self-confidence and when people are more satisfied as individuals, they are more collaborative, contributing to a healthier working environment which becomes more efficient (Grossman & Valga, 2013).
Personal and unit specialty skill development
Enhancing one’s capacities to improve leadership is necessary because the working environment is faced with various challenges. Change is a constant in the health field thus at all levels of the organization, there is a need for leadership support and development to take place (Govier & Nash, 2009). As a nurse in the ER, I consider my membership in nurses’ associations as an opportunity to further develop my leadership skills. Interacting with nurses from other organizations and learning from the issues that they deal with are educational opportunities. The discussion during meetings about strategies to address the issues develop my knowledge as a nurse leader.
Conclusions
I consider myself a transformational leader. As an ER nurse I strive to develop my competencies in the areas of communication, collaboration and networking, and personal and unit specialty skill development. I believe that the enhancement of these competencies enables me to be an effective leader and motivates positive changes with the other members in my organization.
References
Grossman, (2007). Assisting critical nurses in acquiring leadership skills: Development of a leadership and management competency checklist. Dimensions of Critical Care Nursing, 26(2), 57-65.
Grossman, S. C. & Valga, T. M. (2013). The new leadership challenge: Creating the future of nursing, (4th ed.) Philadelphia: FA Davis
Govier, I. & Nash, S. (2009). Examining transformational approaches to effective leadership in healthcare settings. Nursing Times, 105(18). Retrieved from http://www.nursingtimes.net/nursing-practice/clinical-zones/prescribing/examining-transformational-approaches-to-effective-leadership-in-healthcare-settings/5001102.article.
Hayati, D., Charkhabi, M. & Naami, A. (2014). The relationship between transformational leadership and work engagement in government hospitals nurses: A survey study. SpringerPlus, 3(25). Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3895439/pdf/40064_2013_Article_773.pdf.
