Task: Practicum Professional Development Objectives Progress.
Task: Practicum Professional Development Objectives Progress.
CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY 3
Personal professional development is an integral portion of the practicum experience. In this post, I will discuss my professional development objectives, my progress towards achieving them, how my practicum activities are contributing to my professional growth, and the means I will utilize to ensure I am achieving my objectives. I will also discuss the challenges I have experienced in meeting my objectives, two unexpected opportunities that have arisen, and the knowledge I have acquired during this experience.
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Practicum Professional Development Objectives
I developed three professional development objectives for this portion of the practicum. During the eleven-week practicum, I will observe and discuss senior leadership involvement in executive level meetings, be able to compare and discuss how three nursing leaders adjust their leadership styles situationally, and evaluate the effectiveness of my leadership skills in a variety of situations. I have chosen to observe our Chief Nursing Officer (CNO), Chief Operating Officer (COO), and Director of Professional Development (DPD) in a variety of settings to determine how and when each adjusts their leadership style situationally. Cope and Murray (2017) indicated that nurses can develop new leadership styles through modeling and observing other leaders. My practicum activities thus far have supported my development.
Practicum Activities Contributing to Professional Development
Several opportunities have been arranged which have allowed direct observation of the CNO, COO, and DPD. The most enlightening was a mandatory educational session on colleague relations following the positive union vote at the closest tertiary hospital to our organization. The educator is new to our corporation; she was previously a union representative who was difficult to negotiate with when we reopened a bankrupt critical access hospital as a freestanding emergency department. Our Director of Human Resources introduced the educator as a previous adversary who is now an ally.
The DPD initially was engaged in the education, asked clarifying questions, and provided examples which supported the ongoing education. Her coaching leadership style provided two-way communication and increased the participation of other team members (Cardosos, Ramos, & D’Innocenzo, 2011). However, at one point during the discussion, the educator indicated unionized organizations could not gain Magnet status. She also stated Magnet status would not be renewed if the organization became unionized. Our DPD became defensive, moved from her coaching leadership style, and moved into a transactional leader. She provided evidence from the Magnet organization manual that differed from the education being provided. Manning (2016) indicated transactional leaders focus on regulations and facts.
Our COO was the CEO of the bankrupt critical care hospital; she had previously attempted to negotiate contract changes with the educator to keep the hospital open. Our COO is self-aware and emotionally intelligent; she chose to interact minimally with the educator in this situation (Delmatoff & Lazarus, 2014).
Our CNO routinely demonstrates transformational leadership. She is inspiring, champions change, and motivates others to follow (Arnold, Connelly, Walsh, Martin-Ginis, & Ginis, 2015). She engaged her leaders and identified improving colleague engagement as the outcome of the session. The CNO redirected challenging portions of the conversation, supported the DPDM in the Magnet/union discussion, and provided positive examples of how her team promoted positive colleague relations.
Temperature regulation can be challenging in the room chosen for the education. The educator and several colleagues were altering the temperature. The educator wanted the room cooler; local leaders were visibly cold and wanted the room warmer. Two colleagues excused themselves and came back with jackets. The educator told one colleague loudly enough for others to hear “we need to compromise; if you are cold, you need to move.” The CNO demonstrated her transactional leadership ability by regulating the thermostat herself; no one moved it after that point (Manning, 2016).
Achieving Objectives
The above is one example of how I am compare how three nursing officers can flex their leadership styles situationally. The research and observations made have encouraged me to reflect and compare my leadership style. I have had opportunities to flex my leadership style situationally. I have been transactional with the architects designing a family friendly viewing room outside our morgue. I have educated and coached a team leader who delayed the transfer of a critically ill patient from a referring critical access hospital. I have demonstrated transformational leadership with human resources planning a patient care technician recruitment blitz. Delmatoff and Lazarus (2014) indicated emotionally intelligent leaders are both self and socially aware. My practicum experiences have thus far strengthened both.
Challenges Experienced and Anticipated
I have experienced some challenges and anticipate others during my practicum. Our inpatient census has been significantly higher than average. Average daily census for this time of year is 122; we have been experiencing census between 150 and 175. During a high census, resources are reallocated and meetings are cancelled. Several of the meetings I had planned to observe have been postponed. My preceptor and I are seeking other learning opportunities. I anticipate ongoing challenges while the census remains well above average.
Unexpected Opportunities
I have had two unexpected opportunities arise this far in my practicum. I was one of three colleagues chosen to participate in a four hour 5-Why Cause Mapping in-service. Similar to Root Cause Analysis, 5-Why Cause Mapping exposes the underlying system and process issues rather than place blame on individuals working within the existing processes. This type of cause mapping will be utilized in the Transfer Peer Review Process being developed. The second opportunity is to attend the corporate design event for our new electronic staffing and scheduling solution. This event will develop key design and functionality metrics for the solution.
Acquired Knowledge
Thus far I have learned ways nursing leaders can flex their leadership style to meet the current situation. This has created introspection and the realization the I also flex my leadership style situationally. The external and internal views have altered my perspectives regarding my interactions with colleagues. As the manager of the internal float pool, it can be challenging to connect frequently with my colleagues as their assignments are throughout the organization. Manning (2016) indicated transformational leaders need to connect and communicate frequently with their colleagues to inspire and support them. I am developing a colleague rounding plan with protected time on my calendar to strengthen these connections.
Summary
During the first five weeks of the practicum, my experiences have supported my professional development and are meeting my objectives. Two unexpected opportunities have been offered to support my professional development and practicum project. There have been some challenges with high census and meeting cancellations. My preceptor and I have discussed ways to overcome these challenges.
References
Arnold, K. A., Connelly, C. E., Walsh, M. M., Martin Ginis, K. A., & Ginis, K. M. (2015). Leadership styles, emotion regulation, and burnout. Journal Of Occupational Health Psychology, 20(4), 481-490. doi:10.1037/a0039045
Cardosos, M. L., Ramos, L. H., & D’Innocenzo, M. (2011). Coaching: a reference model for the practice of nurse-leaders in the hospital context. Revista Da Escola De Enfermagem Da USP, 45(3), 730-737. doi:S0080-62342011000300026
Cope, V., & Murray, M. (2017). Leadership styles in nursing. Nursing Standard, 31(43), 61-69. doi:10.7748/ns.2017.e10836
Delmatoff, J., & Lazarus, I. R. (2014). The Most Effective Leadership Style for the New Landscape of Healthcare. Journal Of Healthcare Management, 59(4), 245-249.
Manning, J. (2016). The Influence of Nurse Manager Leadership Style on Staff Nurse Work Engagement. Journal Of Nursing Administration, 46(9), 438-443. doi:10.1097/NNA.0000000000000372
Task: Practicum Professional Development Objectives Progress.
Task: Practicum Professional Development Objectives Progress..