A Reflection On The Trauma Nurse

This reflective essay is based on my strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities (SWOT) analysis (Appendix 1) in order to examine my leadership skills. Leadership is one of the essential component in nursing since all nurses are expected to demonstrate effective leadership skills to ensure patient’s well-being is protected and improve their experiences while receiving the care (Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) (2015). Firstly, leadership will be defined within the context of the NHS and particularly nursing. Furthermore, some of the current health issues and challenges faced by health care practice that are related to poor leadership will be discussed. The essay will be continued by exploring various relevant leadership theories in relation to nursing practice and working within the Multi-Disciplinary Teams (MDTs). Lastly, as mentioned earlier, I will also be reflecting on my strengths and weaknesses from practice, then develop a SMART (Specific, measureable, achievable, realistic and time-bound) action plan to improve my leadership skills which will be followed by a brief conclusion.

Leaders are the ones we turn to when life gets to be too much. Good leaders set examples and provide guidance through education (Huber, 2014). As a new nurse I can understand how important it is to have a leader you turn to when you are unsure. Furthermore, in the business of health care we are managing people 's lives and one wrong move can be deadly. Therefore, it is important to collaborate with other health care professionals to ensure a safe competent method of delivery. Ideally, the role of a leader in health care is one that is knowledgable, firm, and confident, with the ability to deviate from the plan to assist with an emergency. Consequently, the purpose of this paper is to reveal three key behaviors successful leaders exhibit, assess my personal leadership style, referencing theories, while determining an optimal work environment based upon the aforementioned.

One of the challenges facing nurses today is learning how to be an effective leader. Assessing and analyzing the style of leadership the nurse possesses is the first step in facing the challenge. The purpose of this paper is to analyze and understand the characteristics of my style of leadership from an assessment performed by Gallup Strength Finders and DiSC and compare the strengths I have in common with Eleanor Roosevelt.

No matter how great a nurse leader may be, every nurse leader has their strengths and weaknesses. My strengths include being compassionate, humble, and resilient. Whereas my biggest weakness as a leader is not having the appropriate skills to influence others to see things my way.

Nurse leaders are the background to the nursing care. Effective nurse leaders can promote a positive workforce and a healthy work place for other nurses. Workplace dynamics is an essential part of how each nurse functions. Nurses, being mentally and physically stressed, need to have support and guidance from a nurse leader to feel confident about performance. The impact of nursing leaders can be a positive and guiding force for the younger or more inexperienced nurse. Having strong relationships with solid leaders can instill values in the beginning stages of a newer nurses’ career. Gaining insight and core concepts from a more experienced leader can make a world of difference in the way a new nurse performs, provides patient care, and sets future goals for themselves. A newer nurse with a positive role model and nurse leader can model themselves to become a leader for future nurses.

From the Strength Finder website questionnaire, my individualized leadership strengths are as follows: achiever, command, context, focus, and significance. In this essay I will elaborate on these in detail and the ways they explicitly relate to my personality and the different experiences and activities of my life. I have also researched several articles that discuss transformational leadership and how this pertains to the literature on the subject. I will discuss transformational leadership in comparison to my own strengths, and explain how my leadership style may progress as I advance through this nurse practitioners program.

Leadership at times can be a complex topic to delve into and may appear to be a simple and graspable concept for a certain few. Leadership skills are not simply acquired through position, seniority, pay scale, or the amount of titles an individual holds but is a characteristic acquired or is an innate trait for the fortunate few who possess it. Leadership can be misconstrued with management; a manager “manages” the daily operations of a company’s work while a leader envisions, influences, and empowers the individuals around them.

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

Once these qualities are achieved that organization’s outcomes are superior. The intended audience is for nurse managers and those in leadership positions to help them identify their particular skill set and enhance their management qualities for most effective outcomes. This article is relevant because it allows for accurate public perceptions of people’s skill sets as leaders in nursing. The strength of the article is the clear and concise language used as well as the incorporation of figure 1 chart. The chart allows the reader to differentiate between the styles of leading and it’s effect on organizational outcomes.

Not all nurses go into the profession with leadership ideas. The nursing profession must produce leaders throughout the health care system. Leaders must function as workers, and administrators with leadership qualities, while still meeting their budgets and running effective units with high functioning and happy staff members. They need to trouble shoot necessary and work with the medical faculty while pleasing their staff and the administers.

Leadership does not always come with a title or prestige. Every nurse has within themselves qualities that make them a great leader. Leadership by definition, “is a combination of intrinsic personality traits, learned leadership skills, and characteristics of the situation (Cherry& Jacob (2013 p. 335). A leader is one who has the capacity and skills to direct or encourage others in efforts to achieve an outcome. I recently completed a self-assessment on my perceived leadership abilities. The survey was called the Nurse Manager Skills Inventory (Nurse Manager Leadership Partnership, 2008). It consists of four content areas of which I will address and identify my strengths and weaknesses.

Bass, B. M. (1990, Winter). From transactional to transformational leadership: Learning to share the vision. Organizational Dynamics, pp. 19-31.

According to Hersey and Blanchard (1998), there are three areas required for effective leadership. Technical skills, which includes clinical expertise and knowledge as it pertains to nursing. Secondly, human skills, which is the ability and judgment to work with people in leadership roles. And lastly, conceptual skills which is the ability to understand the complexities of overall organization and figure out how and where one’s own strengths of management fits into the overall organization (Cherry, Jacob 2011). Leadership is unique compared to any other role because of its responsibility for people. Good leaders are followed merely because they have gained people’s trust and respect.

Over the past twenty years, an abundant body of researches have been done to review transformational leadership and transactional leadership. Burn (1978) was the first person to introduce and conceptualize the concept of transformational leadership and transactional leadership. Bass (1985) based on Burn’s concept and deepened his notion with modifications, which stated that one of the best frameworks of leadership is transformational or transactional. Following Bass and Avolio (1994, p. 4) provided the idea of these two leaderships and generalized them into the development of global economic world. Bass and Avolio (1997) also suggested that there was no need to view transformational and transactional leadership as

“If you actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader” (John Quincy Adams, as cited in Forbes, 2014, p. 1). A leader is mentor, guiding others to their best. In this paper, I will reflect on my personal values and beliefs regarding leadership. Next, I will discuss a leader in my life that personally resonates with me. I will then discuss the attributes of my chosen leader and relate them to theory on leadership, emotional intelligence, self-awareness, group dynamics and peace and power concepts and identify the leadership style that my chosen leader embodies. Finally, I will discuss how my leadership philosophy and the newly acquired theory will impact my future career as a nurse.