Professional Exemplar
Nursing Leadership in Hospice
Nursing Leadership in Hospice
Hospice care involves many difficult conversations, like the one I experienced with Joy and her family. The role of a hospice nurse case manager involves collaboration with an interdisciplinary team of clinicians, as well as communication with patients and their families. When I shifted into the clinical manager role, I wanted to make sure my leadership style provided my colleagues with the guidance they needed to succeed. The transformational leadership model provides an effective approach for managing an interdisciplinary team and improving patient outcomes (Deng et al., 2023). This leadership model is composed of four concepts that are applicable to nursing in the hospice setting. The concepts of idealized influence, inspirational motivation, individualized consideration, and intellectual stimulation provide key ingredients for the composition of a successful nursing team (Goens & Giannotti, 2024).
Idealized influence is the idea that the leader inspires his or her followers by being a good role model (Haoyan et al., 2023). I have integrated this into my nursing practice by ensuring my clinical practice is thorough, using evidence-based research to guide my decisions. Inspirational motivation involves the leader sharing team goals and projecting a positive vision for the future (Blais & Hayes, 2016). In my practice, I incorporate inspirational motivation by speaking positively about clinical goals and progress, avoiding negative comments or complaints about the workload or acuity of the patients. I seek guidance from my team to navigate conflict and encourage they reach out to me when they need help as well. Individualized consideration emphasizes the importance of providing support to each team member, taking into consideration his or her individual strengths, challenges, preferences, and needs (Haoyan et al., 2023). I have found that meeting with nurses one on one helps me understand them better as people. Understanding the individual needs and learning styles of each nurse allows me to provide the right tools to help strengthen his or her clinical confidence. Intellectual stimulation encourages the leader to facilitate staff development and continued learning (Deng et al., 2023). When nurses come to me with challenges that they do not know how to solve, I try to ask questions to stimulate their critical thinking and develop their problem-solving skills.
Hospice interdisciplinary teams experience a high level of exposure to death and dying. The best support for a hospice nurse is a fellow hospice nurse. Some leadership styles that are highly effective in other settings may prove to be counterproductive in hospice nursing. For example, an authoritative leadership style may be effective in settings that require quick, definitive decision-making. Hospice care, on the other hand, requires insight and guidance from a large team of nurses, home health aides, social workers, chaplains, doctors, nurse practitioners, and bereavement specialists. Each of these clinicians provide input that is equally as important as the input of the nurse leaders. Transformational leadership provides a solid foundation for leading a team that depends on one another to navigate the challenges of working in hospice.
Idealized influence is the idea that the leader inspires his or her followers by being a good role model (Haoyan et al., 2023). I have integrated this into my nursing practice by ensuring my clinical practice is thorough, using evidence-based research to guide my decisions. Inspirational motivation involves the leader sharing team goals and projecting a positive vision for the future (Blais & Hayes, 2016). In my practice, I incorporate inspirational motivation by speaking positively about clinical goals and progress, avoiding negative comments or complaints about the workload or acuity of the patients. I seek guidance from my team to navigate conflict and encourage they reach out to me when they need help as well. Individualized consideration emphasizes the importance of providing support to each team member, taking into consideration his or her individual strengths, challenges, preferences, and needs (Haoyan et al., 2023). I have found that meeting with nurses one on one helps me understand them better as people. Understanding the individual needs and learning styles of each nurse allows me to provide the right tools to help strengthen his or her clinical confidence. Intellectual stimulation encourages the leader to facilitate staff development and continued learning (Deng et al., 2023). When nurses come to me with challenges that they do not know how to solve, I try to ask questions to stimulate their critical thinking and develop their problem-solving skills.
Hospice interdisciplinary teams experience a high level of exposure to death and dying. The best support for a hospice nurse is a fellow hospice nurse. Some leadership styles that are highly effective in other settings may prove to be counterproductive in hospice nursing. For example, an authoritative leadership style may be effective in settings that require quick, definitive decision-making. Hospice care, on the other hand, requires insight and guidance from a large team of nurses, home health aides, social workers, chaplains, doctors, nurse practitioners, and bereavement specialists. Each of these clinicians provide input that is equally as important as the input of the nurse leaders. Transformational leadership provides a solid foundation for leading a team that depends on one another to navigate the challenges of working in hospice.
References
Blais, K., & Hayes, J. (2016). Professional Nursing Practice (7th ed.). Pearson Education.
Deng, C., Gulseren, D., Isola, C., Grocutt, K., & Turner, N. (2023). Transformational leadership effectiveness: An evidence-based primer. Human Resource Development International, 26(5), 627–641. https://doi-org.regiscollege.idm.oclc.org/10.1080/13678868.2022.2135938
Goens, B., & Giannotti, N. (2024). Transformational leadership and nursing retention: An integrative review.Nursing Research and Practice, 2024(1), 3179141. https://doi-org.regiscollege.idm.oclc.org/10.1155/2024/3179141
Haoyan, X., Waters, D., Jinling, H., Qiongling, L., & Sien, L. (2023). Quantitative systematic review of the transformational leadership style as a driver of nurses' organisational commitment. Nursing Open, 10(7), 4160–4171. https://doi-org.regiscollege.idm.oclc.org/10.1002/nop2.1671
Blais, K., & Hayes, J. (2016). Professional Nursing Practice (7th ed.). Pearson Education.
Deng, C., Gulseren, D., Isola, C., Grocutt, K., & Turner, N. (2023). Transformational leadership effectiveness: An evidence-based primer. Human Resource Development International, 26(5), 627–641. https://doi-org.regiscollege.idm.oclc.org/10.1080/13678868.2022.2135938
Goens, B., & Giannotti, N. (2024). Transformational leadership and nursing retention: An integrative review.Nursing Research and Practice, 2024(1), 3179141. https://doi-org.regiscollege.idm.oclc.org/10.1155/2024/3179141
Haoyan, X., Waters, D., Jinling, H., Qiongling, L., & Sien, L. (2023). Quantitative systematic review of the transformational leadership style as a driver of nurses' organisational commitment. Nursing Open, 10(7), 4160–4171. https://doi-org.regiscollege.idm.oclc.org/10.1002/nop2.1671
