Running head: NURSING LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY

Nursing Leadership Philosophy Paper

Rodricka D. Richardson

Delaware Technical Community College

Nursing Leadership Philosophy Paper

Advocacy is one of the many factors that drew me to nursing. Fighting for things that you

know will benefit others, is something I want to emulate as a leader. When I think about

leadership, I think of individuals throughout history who, despite all negativity, fought against

the status quo and inspired, encouraged and uplifted others to work towards a common goal that

would benefit vulnerable groups, as well as society at large. Currently, healthcare systems are

experiencing many changes and challenges. Nurses at all levels of practice will play a vital role

in combating these challenges to preserve and improve the health of the population (Huber,

2016). As the healthcare system changes, these changes directly impact nurses and how we

practice. Nurse workloads increase while inadequate staff ratios, cost cutting, nurse burnout and

high turnover worsen, further exacerbating an existing nursing shortage that ultimately impacts

the quality of care patients receive (Martin, 2015). As nurses make up the largest group of

healthcare professionals, improving the current state of healthcare must involve nurse leaders.

While I have been in practice for just under two years, as a registered nurse I function as

a nurse leader. By serving as a resource, care collaborator, guide, advocate and supporter to

patients, peers and preceptees as part of my day to day role, I lead. In order to practice

competently, nurses at all levels must practice as leaders (Huber, 2016). With substantial passion

for the nursing profession and nursing practice, being critical of the profession as well as fighting

for advancement of the profession is an integral part of being a nurse leader. I believe that

advocating for changes and improvement in working conditions is directly correlated with

advocating for patients. Improved work conditions and staffing ratios have been correlated with

improved nurse and patient outcomes (Martin, 2015). As I advance in practice and education, my

goal is to become a leader for change and advancement in the nursing profession and its current
NURSING LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY 3

working conditions. I want to be able to encourage, inspire and champion the voices of all nurses

to be advocates for change, starting within my own organization and eventually progressing

statewide and nationally. I feel that the best way for me to become this type of leader is to utilize

transformational leadership as model to assist in guiding my own leadership philosophy.

With the challenges facing healthcare today, new leadership styles are necessary. While

many leadership styles exist, transformational leadership has been identified as positively

impacting staff outlook (Krepia, Katsaragakis, Kaitelidou, & Prezerakos, 2018). There is no

specific definition of transformational leadership, but it involves staff appreciation and

recognition, collaboration with staff, adaptability to change, willingness to go against the norm,

working towards a positive work environment, and helping motivating staff to work towards a

common vision that can also benefit the organization (Finkelman, 2016). As a practicing nurse at

the bedside, I often feel upper management and administration would be able to better improve

the organization by utilizing many of the methods used in transformational leadership. For

example, collaboration is integral to patient care, and I believe it is also integral to developing

policies for hospitals that are not only cost saving, but also do not negatively impact nursing

practice and the care that patients receive. Transformational leadership values teamwork,

collaboration and empowers employees to fight not only for a common goal but for the right

thing. It embodies the values that I want to emulate as a leader.

Nursing Leadership Development Plan

At times viewing oneself as a leader, especially while new to practice, can be daunting.

Developing the skills to perform as a confident and competent leader is something that occurs

over time and requires constant openness and willingness to learn and improve. Setting step by

step short and long-term goals throughout my career can assist me in attaining the skills I need to
NURSING LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY 4

become an effective leader in nursing. Implementing small practices and values in day to day

practice and becoming involved with initiatives and practice councils on my unit can also assist

in leadership development. My plan to develop as a nurse leader will be built around the goals of

improving skills such as communication and teamwork and collaboration, leading by example

and continuing lifelong learning by utilizing evidence, research and best practice.

Communication

Being proficient in communication is integral to leading. Effective communication allows

a message to be accurately delivered, but also involves active listening as well. Development of

confident communication skills in nursing takes a level of confidence that comes with time and

knowledge (Martin, 2015). In practice day to day, I communicate with other disciplines, patients

and providers allowing for learning opportunities and self-reflection on what I can improve on in

those instances. My weak points in communication occur with disagreements and difficult

discussions. Often, I am worried about miscommunication occurring and the message I am

attempting to deliver being misconstrued. Miscommunication is serious as it can create a hostile

and negative work environment and have negative impacts on trust and teamwork (Leader,

2019).

Leader states that avoiding negative outcomes from miscommunications and difficult

discussions can be assisted by using five principles of the mnemonic TALKS; these principles

are being timely, accurate, letting go of ego, staying focused, and seeking to understand before

being understood (Leader, 2019). These skills can be used with patients as well as in day to day

life. In short, being timely means not waiting to address issues to avoid a larger issue later and

fostering open communication with staff as well as between staff (Leader, 2019). It is easy for

conversations that are difficult to become derailed due to heightened emotions or negative
NURSING LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY 5

perceptions of the message being delivered. Letting go of ego, keeping focused and seeking to

understand before being understood help to hone the focus on the issue at hand. Respectively,

this means not looking to win or be right, focusing on the topic while remaining empathetic, as

well as practicing empathic listening (Leader, 2019). These are skills that I can utilize and

practice implementing with family, patients and peers day to day. Development of

communication skills can also be effective helping develop confidence to professionally express

concerns about issues and polices within practice to upper management teams. Effective

communication builds trust and respect between individuals and is essential for nurse leaders.

Teamwork & Collaboration

Collaboration with group members involves valuing and empowering their input,

opinions and voices. This is active and emphatic listening at work. As a leader, an important

aspect of empowering and inspiring members to perform to expectations is being willing and

able to rise to the same expectation. Clavelle and Prado-Inzerillo note leading by example as one

of the important components of motivating others through leadership (2018). For example, at

times, nurses who move into management positions and have been away from bedside practice

for some time may be ignorant to the challenges being faced by staff nurses. Having leaders who

not only listen, but attempt to understand by being more present on the unit, following up with

staff concerns and matching the same behaviors and expectations they ask for of their staff

supports trust and collaboration between staff and leadership (Clavelle & Prado-Inzerillo, 2018).

Leading by example and empowering others can be done at any level of nursing.

As a nurse, I empower my patients to take charge of their care and health and I empower

my preceptees to take charge of their learning. I collaborate patient care with the patients, peers

and interdisciplinary team members with respect for everyone’s professional input. When
NURSING LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY 6

delegating tasks to patient care technicians, I ensure that I do not ask them to do anything I

myself will not do. In this way I lead by example, making them aware I am not above any patient

care and when they see that I perform the same care tasks they are more willing to assist, and

trust is established. Effective teamwork and collaboration in healthcare leads to improved patient

outcomes and as these skills continue to develop throughout my career, it will assist me in

becoming a more effective leader.

Communication and teamwork go hand in hand. People cannot work together as a team

without knowing how to communicate effectively and leaders cannot lead without the ability to

get the message of their vision across clearly. If staff are not being invited to provide their

professional insight and input, two-way communication is failing. Staff members at all levels are

experts in what they do, and they should be part of making decisions that affect their day to day

work. Involving staff members in decisions and policy making as well as encouraging them use

their voices to be agents of change, to challenge the status quo makes them feel empowered and

provides a sense of pride and purpose (Clavelle & Prado-Inzerillo, 2018). This can also help to

foster positive change within an organization. In my current experience level, I can begin

empowering others as a preceptor and peer, to utilize their voices when it comes to advocating

for patients and changes that help to improve patient outcomes. Additionally, becoming involved

in a practice council within the organization or on the unit can help me foster the organizational

skills necessary to facilitate team involvement in decision making and collaboration.

Lifelong Learning, Education

Being active in a leadership role to fight for the advancement of the profession and

improvement of working conditions will require me to be proficient in research and effective

scrutinization and interpretation data. I believe that becoming proficient in this may take many
NURSING LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY 7

years, but I intend to continue my education and obtain an advanced degree in nursing research.

Prior to obtaining my degree, it will also be important for me to keep up with the most recent and

relevant data concerning things that impact practice at the bedside such as national policies,

barriers to provision of optimal nursing care, nursing ratios, hospital budget matters and patient

outcomes as they relate to current practice. Nursing is a career where education is life long no

matter what the area of focus may be. Being up to date and using most recent evidence-based

practice and data is utilized to provide support for changes that benefit patient outcomes.

In the future, as I gain experience in the field of nursing, I want to lead in advancing and

improving nursing practice and work conditions at the bedside. Being active in statewide and

national discussions about improving bedside working conditions for nurses, staffing ratios, the

fight for adequate staffing and nurse representation on boards that make decisions affecting

bedside nursing practice. I do not believe that nothing can be done to improve, and I know that

the current state of nursing practice at the bedside does nothing for the benefit of nurse, patient or

organization outcomes. Utilizing communication, teamwork and collaboration, and evidence, all

members of the healthcare system can come together to improve the state of healthcare and

bedside nursing. The healthcare system can do better for the vulnerable populations we serve as

well as the people who sacrifice so much to be servants to these populations.

References

Clavelle, J. T., & Prado-Inzerillo, M. (2018). Inspire others through transformational leadership.

American Nurse Today, 13(11), 39–41.

Finkelman, A. (2016). Leadership and management for nurses: Core competencies for quality

care. United States of America: Pearson Education

Huber, T. H. (2016). Leadership in Nursing. Kentucky Nurse, 64(3), 1.

Krepia, V., Katsaragakis, S., Kaitelidou, D., & Prezerakos, P. (2018). Transformational

leadership and its evolution in nursing. Progress in Health Sciences, 8(1), 189–194.

https://doi-org.libproxy.dtcc.edu/10.5604/01.3001.0012.1114

Leader, C. (2019). Communicating effectively using the TALKS mnemonic. British Journal of

Nursing, 28(12), 762–763. https://doi-

org.libproxy.dtcc.edu/10.12968/bjon.2019.28.12.762

Martin, C. J. (2015). The Effects of Nurse Staffing on Quality of Care. MEDSURG Nursing,

24(2), 4–6.