Nursing
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As nurses are experiencing continuous expansion in their practicing roles, advocacy constitutes one of the crucial pillars of their nursing profession. Because of the expansion of nurses’ roles, the nurses are not only influencing the well-being of their patients, but they are also involved in creating a positive change in their workplaces. Therefore, it is crucial to describe some advocacy strategies that a nurse leader can use to create positive change in the workplace as well as the instance that I provided leadership and its outcome.
According to Walker et al. (2015), using advocacy strategies to develop a positive change in a workplace begins with identifying the need and then finding a way to address that need. For instance, a time when I provided leadership as a charge nurse is when I reassigned patients based on acuity. Some of the nurses were unhappy with my decision, and they disagreed. However, I was glad that there was a positive outcome on the patient side as patient care was provided, and the plan of care was completed for the shift. As I investigated about what might have brought about the disagreement, I was able think about new advocacy strategies that can eliminate such instances.
I was able to recognize that recognize that there is a need for proper channels of communications to be developed. Therefore, my advocacy strategy to address this need as a leader involves supporting open communication channels among the staff (Benton & Shaffer, 2016). This can create an environment that will enable staff to autonomously address concerns more effectively for themselves and for colleagues. I also realized that there were unresolved conflicts that kept for tthe hemselves, hence need for conflict resolution skills to be developed. And my other advocacy strategy involves fostering the development of conflict resolution skills as well as addressing unprofessional behaviors such as incivility that contributes to conflicts (Dyess et al., 2015). Besides, In order to ensure that their concerns are properly addressed, my other strategy will involve acting as coach and providing guidance to the staff (Phillips et al., 2017). This will help them navigate through the organization and remove any barriers for them.
References
Benton, D., & Shaffer, F. (2016). How the nursing profession can contribute to sustainable development goals. Nursing Management, 23(7), 29-34. https://doi.org/10.7748/nm.2016.e1534
Dyess, S. M., Prestia, A. S., & Smith, M. C. (2015). Support for caring and resiliency among successful nurse leaders. Nursing Administration Quarterly, 39(2), 104-116. https://doi.org/10.1097/naq.0000000000000101
Phillips, T., Evans, J. L., Tooley, S., & Shirey, M. R. (2017). Nurse manager succession planning: A cost-benefit analysis. Journal of Nursing Management, 26(2), 238-243. https://doi.org/10.1111/jonm.12512
Walker, D. K., Barton-Burke, M., Saria, M. G., Gosselin, T., Ireland, A., Norton, V., & Newton, S. (2015). Everyday advocates: nursing advocacy is a full-time job. AJN, American Journal of Nursing, 115(8), 66-70. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.naj.0000470409.04919.0f