About Nursing Management & Leadership

Nursing management and leadership are both key elements in the delivery of proper patient care. The nurse leader and nurse manager complement each other in their actions, responsibilities and roles. However, even though the two positions are complementary, the leader and the manager serve different functions in the health care organization and command different types of authority.

1. Definition of Nursing Leadership

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A nurse leader, according to Eleanor Sullivan and Phillip Decker in "Effective Leadership and Management in Nursing," can be anyone who uses interpersonal skills to influence others to accomplish specific goals. The leader has the capacity to earn and hold trust and can inspire others to commit to the goals of the health care organization. The leader facilitates group cohesion and performance. The authority of the leader is informal, meaning that the leader has no specific managerial role; however, the leader's ideas and actions influence the "efficiency of work flow."

Definition of Nursing Management

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The nurse manager, according to Sullivan and Decker, is employed by the health care organization and is responsible and accountable for the efficiency in accomplishing the goals of the organization. The organization defines the manager's power and authority. The manager coordinates and integrates resources, clarifies the organizational structure, delegates tasks, evaluates outcomes and provides feedback. Unlike the nurse leader, the manager's "personal skills" are reinforced by organizational mandates.

Leadership Qualities and Behaviors

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The nursing leader exhibits a set of distinctive qualities and behaviors, according to Ruth Tappen, Sally Weiss and Diane Whitehead in "Essentials of Nursing Leadership and Management." Qualities include intelligence, integrity, courage, initiative, energy, optimism, perseverance, balanced life, ability to handle stress and self-awareness. These qualities are complemented by behaviors that include thinking critically, problem solving, respecting individuals, skillful communication, setting goals, sharing a vision and developing self and others.

Management Qualities and Behaviors

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According to Tappen, Weiss and Whitehead, a nurse manager has the quality of leadership--which entails all of the qualities and behaviors of the nurse leader--as

well as clinical expertise for effective patient care and business sense for administrative duties. In addition, the manager exhibits strength in three major areas of behavior. These are: interpersonal behavior, which includes networking, conflict negotiation and resolution, and employee development; informational behavior, which includes being a spokesperson, monitoring of an area, and dissemination of data; and decisional behavior, which includes employee evaluation, resource allocation, hiring and firing, planning for the future, and job analysis and redesign.

Function
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A key difference between leaders and managers is in their organizational function, as suggested by Patricia Yoder-Wise in "Leading and Managing in Nursing." The nurse leader employs personal power and persuasion to "constructively and ethically" move patients, families and staff toward an end point or goal. The exact steps needed to accomplish the goal may not be known, but the leader evokes a sense of security to those around, enabling them to handle unanticipated details. On the other hand, the nurse manager follows set behaviors and activities that provide structure and direction in patient care. In accomplishing the goal, the manager ensures that the organizational process is carried out. Leadership is a key factor in effective nurse management. But, management skills are not needed for effective leadership.

References
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"Effective Leadership and Management in Nursing"; Eleanor Sullivan, Phillip Decker; 2005 "Essentials of Nursing Leadership and Management"; Ruth Tappen, Sally Weiss, Diane Whitehead; 1998 "Leading and Managing in Nursing"; Patricia Yoder-Wise; 2003

Read more: About Nursing Management & Leadership | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/about_6585276_nursing-management-leadership.html#ixzz1PDSs2Lj9

Nursing management is a branch of the nursing field which focuses on managing nurses and patient care standards. An effective nursing management program is critical for most facilities which use nurses, such as hospitals, clinics, and residential care facilities. People in this field

often have both nursing and management experience, and they have typically received special training to prepare them for employment as managers and supervisors. People in the field of nursing management can supervise nurses and nursing programs in a variety of ways. Some supervise entire facilities, delegating duties to individual departmental supervisors. When a manager looks after the nursing staff at an entire hospital, issues like consistency, standardized procedures, transfer protocols, and cooperation are often an important part of the job. Individual supervisors handle specific departments, such as radiology or the intensive care unit. These nursing managers are responsible for maintaining staff in their departments, assigning nurses to specific cases, and overseeing patient care to ensure that it remains at a high standard. They may also be involved in the creation of nursing plans for specific patients, coordinating the efforts of the nursing team to keep everyone abreast of developments in the patient's condition and medical care.
www.wisegeek.com/what-is-nursing-management.htm

Nursing management is performing leadership functions of governance and decision-making within organizations employing nurses. It includes processes common to all management like planning, organizing, staffing, directing and controlling. It is common for RNs to seek additional education to earn a Master of Science in Nursing or Doctorate in Nursing to prepare for leadership roles within nursing. Management positions increasingly require candidates to hold an advanced degree in nursing. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nursing_management

Nursing Management is the leading source of practical and cutting-edge information for the management of healthcare delivery across the continuum of care. Each issue offers convenient continuing-education opportunities, including special staff development offerings. Nursing Management places special emphasis on the new skills needed to succeed in today's tumultuous healthcare arena, and prides itself on being a strong, independent platform for the expression of a broad range of opinions and views.

Ref: Lippincott, Williams and wilkins