My Experience, Essay Example

“Every organizations has a hierarchy of people and functions” (Griffin). For it “to operate efficiently and systematically, it needs a planned structure that fits the style, size, and operations of the organizations” (ibid.); and that include hospitals, which are organizations. Organizational charts show the various departments and the names of incumbents and their positions.  This provides a clear guideline as to whom employees report, and “going over someone’s head,” is viewed negatively unless an urgent and important reason for so doing exists. The Director of Nursing of the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit and the Medical/Surgical Unit, whom I shadowed, is in charge and responsible for these units and nobody in those units should go to her superiors; and to the best of my knowledge, nobody did.  However, not everyone in those units went directly to their Director of Nursing.  PAs usually went to their LPNs, who in turn went to the RNs responsible for their section, and so forth.

Although leadership and management are often used interchangeably, they are not the same.  Although there are similarities between the two, there are also differences. Ricketts says that “leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal,” whereas “the definition of management is to exercise executive, administrative, and supervisory direction of a group or organization” (ibid.).  The skills and characteristics required for each do, however, overlap to the extent that many people say that it is possible to be both a good leader and a good manager, whereas others disagree with that.  In most organizations, including the hospital in which I did my shadowing, there are both formal and informal leaders.  The former are appointed, whereas the latter just arise during the course of time and are often more powerful than the appointed ones.  G.A., the nurse that I shadowed, had sufficient management skills and leadership traits to be able to be an effective nurse leader/nurse manager.  As a manager, she had to do the budgets for both her wards; and that was no easy task considering the normal patient ratio of 1:3 could be anywhere from 1:1 to 1:5, depending upon the type of patients.  As a leader, she empowered subordinates by their communication input and encouraging them to better themselves through education and various courses.

While some worthwhile management theories exist, I never got the impression that G.A. managed according to any particular one.  She was organized, consistent, and always “three steps ahead” to try and avoid problems.  Communication that flows upwards, downwards and horizontally is used by most successful leaders and managers, and was the style used by G.A.

1. A. is an RN, an MSN, and an OCN and is the Director of Nursing on the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit and the Medical/Surgical Unit Alkek 8 at the Methodist Hospital in Texas. She has been the director of nursing for 17 years.  She is on the Peer Review Board for the hospital and also teaches the new hires the chemotherapy course and checks them off annually for certification at the hospital.
2. A. used the participative leadership style. She was a great motivator and team builder through valuing the staff’s upward communication, their input at the monthly shift meetings, and her encouragement for them to better themselves through further education and other professional development activities.  She was also a capable manager.  I admired her being able to execute a budget where the patient nurse ratio varies from 1:1 to 1:5.  She also delegates well.

Yes, I would like the position because I am ambitious, capable, and possess some of the essential skills and traits of a nurse leader/nurse manager.  I would further my education in areas where I might be somewhat weak, such as in G. A.’s large and complex budget making.

References

Griffin, D., Demand Media.  Organizational structure and its functions. Retrieved on August 27, 2012, from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/organizationalstructure-its-functions.

Ricketts, K. G., Community and Leadership Development.  Leadership vs management. Retrieved on August 27, 2012 from http://www.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/elk1/elk1105.