FAQs
In this section, you will find some relevant frequently asked questions and some foundations to my responses. I hope this further enlightens you on my leadership style and how I envision myself in this leadership position.
How will I bridge division amongst staff?
I believe that every staff member posses a skillset. Promoting this concept amongst staff is vital to bridge divisions. Staff members might not realize or recognize the value each member brings to the team. In this role, I will be able to showcase this and help staff recognize the value in relying on each other as unique resources.
Inherently this requires a proactive approach and listening and understanding. Seeking feedback and continuous improvement is integrative to this. This is particularly important when conflicts arise. I will foster open communication and promote team building. In this, I will focus on building trust amongst each other, improve communication, and foster a sense of camaraderie among the team.
Overall, I believe that bridging division requires persistent collaboration encouragement and this begins with leading by example. It is also of note that current research illustrates that it takes approximately three years to achieve change, particularly relating to nursing culture. This further emphasizes that persistence and consistency is crucial.
How will I ensure compliance with regulatory standards and quality measures within our unit?
Fundamentally, this speaks to the "foot work" necessary in this leadership position. As a leader, I can ensure this daily on the unit simply by walking around and addressing issues. Key to this is approach. Ensuring compliance and standards does not have to be punitive, rather, I would take opportunities to learn together with the team on how to prevent them in the future.
For instance, if walking around and I notice the bedside is not appropriately and properly ready, I will engage the staff responsible in a way to understand why it is not ready. In doing so, I will also be a resource to ensure compliance and work together on how to improve this moving forward.
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On a larger scale, I will employ a systematic approach that focuses on proactive monitoring, education, and continuous improvement. This includes understanding the regulations and staying up to date on regulatory requirements. This includes individual work as well as attending relevant training workshops to ensure a current knowledge base. I will also in this role collaborate with other team members to translate regulatory requirements into actionable policies, procedures, and guidelines. Perhaps key to success is staff education. This will require working with other team members to help ensure that staff is educated on the importance of compliance and standards for patient care and outcomes. Also key to this is audits and monitoring. This could include chart reviews and mock survey preparation efforts to ensure standards are upheld. To successfully maintain this approach, I will open communication channels with all staff members and promote a culture of transparency and accountability in maintaining regulatory compliance.
What strategies will I use to motivate and inspire team members?
Collaboration is key to motivating and inspiring team members. This relates to the concept that when something comes from one person it's not as effective as when it comes from multiple people. Utilizing shared governance and UPC will be key to this. However, being open to feedback is foundational to being successful in the longterm. This requires open communication on why things work and are not working and what changes individuals want to see. Motivating and inspiring others requires allowing others to see the importance of their input and feedback.
How would I handle an issue clinical or non clinical with staff or patient concern?
By approaching issues with empathy, communication, collaboration, and a commitment to improvement, I aim to foster a supportive environment where concerns are addressed promptly and effectively, promoting a culture of trust and professionalism within the team. This will require active listening and gathering appropriate information with appropriate follow up questions and clarifications for details. As things come up I will have to prioritize matters, evaluating the seriousness and potential impact of the issue on patient care, staff morale, or operational efficiency. Key to handling situations will also be follow up and taking appropriate actions. Additionally appropriate documentation is important for future reference and learning points. Key to carrying this out is the art of the pause, and listening to understand rather than respond. This also relates to the concept that you must understand your audience to appropriately engage and adapt to the needs at hand during any situation.
How will I effectively communicate changes to the team? ​
This first requires collaboration with the educator to ensure that staff is educated on any policy or procedure changes. To effectively communicate any changes, team members should be updated via e-mail, in person staff meetings, and visibility on the unit to disseminate information and answer questions.
This requires planning ahead of time and thoroughly understanding the changes myself and clarifying as appropriate. It is also important to provide context and rationale for the changes. Specifically, highlighting how the changes improve patient care goals, fit within larger organizational goals, and best practice.
How does my leadership philosophy align with my leadership style?
I aim to carry out a leadership style that is a balance of transformational and transactional leadership and authentic-servant leadership. This is important to me because I want to motivate and inspire others around me yet also value structure and organization in doing so. This allows for vision with a structure, or to articulate visions with clear goals and expectations. This also allows for motivating others while also holding individuals accountable. Overall, the balance of transformational and transactional leadership allows me to support the team in a unique way and remain flexible and adaptable to the ever changing work environment. This is inherently aligned with my leadership philosophy and approach.
My leadership strategy also relies on acknowledgement that the unit is a team. Largely, staff is the head while leadership is the neck offering support and guidance. Leadership engages staff in unique ways and ensures that nursing has a place at the table.