Strategies of Improving Quality and Competency Development in Nursing Faculty Using Leadership Skills - Dissertation Example

?A Research Proposal on Strategies of Improving Quality and Competency Development in Nursing Faculty Using Leadership skills Leadership is the interpersonal process that involves motivating and guiding others to achieve goals. Leadership involves the use of interpersonal skills to influence others in the accomplishment accomplish a specific goal. A common theme that seems to run through many definitions is that leadership involves influencing the attitudes, beliefs, behaviours and feelings of other people towards attainment of the various learning obligations. The quality of nursing leadership as the degree to which the leadership services upholds the probability of producing the desired outcome while maintaining the standards of the modern professional dispensation. The proposed research aims to explore the strategies that can be applied in improving nursing teaching using the leadership skills. The objectives of the study include identifying the leadership strategies that can be applied in improving teaching, assessing the teaching needs of the nursing faculty, evaluating the effective approaches applicable in improving these needs and developing a practical strategy capable of improving the teaching environment. The primary method of data collection will involve questionnaires. Journals and books will be used to provide secondary information source related to the topic of study. Table of Contents A Research Proposal on Strategies of Improving Quality and Competency Development in Nursing Faculty Using Leadership skills 1 Abstract 1 Leadership is the interpersonal process that involves motivating and guiding others to achieve goals. Leadership involves the use of interpersonal skills to influence others in the accomplishment accomplish a specific goal. A common theme that seems to run through many definitions is that leadership involves influencing the attitudes, beliefs, behaviours and feelings of other people towards attainment of the various learning obligations. The quality of nursing leadership as the degree to which the leadership services upholds the probability of producing the desired outcome while maintaining the standards of the modern professional dispensation. The proposed research aims to explore the strategies that can be applied in improving nursing teaching using the leadership skills. The objectives of the study include identifying the leadership strategies that can be applied in improving teaching, assessing the teaching needs of the nursing faculty, evaluating the effective approaches applicable in improving these needs and developing a practical strategy capable of improving the teaching environment. The primary method of data collection will involve questionnaires. Journals and books will be used to provide secondary information source related to the topic of study. 1 Table of Contents 2 PURPOSE OF STUDY 3 REVIEW OF LITERATURE 3 AIM 8 OBJECTIVES 8 RESEARCH QUESTION 8 Pre-Observation Interview Questions 10 Post-Observation Interview Questions 10 DATA ANALYSIS 12 Statistical figures such as charts and graphs will be used in the analysis of quantitative data. Descriptive statistics will also be used to ascertain the demographic characteristics of the sample. Qualitative data will be analysed through content analysis. 12 CONCLUSION 12 RATIONAL Improving nursing teaching requires exceptional leadership with the will to promote change, ambition to set high-level goals and commitment in implementation. Application of leadership skills involves being clear about the goals to be applied in the improvement of the organisational goals, agreeing on an effective approach for implementation and focusing on the implementation and monitoring progress. Global nursing faculties are looking for the most cost-effective and quality means of delivering efficient nursing education, with the main focus being improving the employee competence. PURPOSE OF STUDY The purpose of the study is to identify the strategies of improving teaching in faculties through application of the leadership skills. Once identified, improvement strategies can be applied in promoting faculty development as well as the educational development. The recommendations of the proposal will be applicable in all teaching faculties. REVIEW OF LITERATURE Leadership is the interpersonal process that involves motivating and guiding others to achieve goals. Every nursing professional regardless, of title or position, has the potential to be a leader. The leader must be knowledgeable, passionate on leadership, and able to apply leadership skills in all aspects of the teaching profession. Heller et al (2004) suggest that overall; nursing students are not adequately prepared for leadership roles during their nursing education programmes in various learning institutions. This gap between adequate educational preparation and the demands of the clinical setting can result in ineffective leadership in nursing. Leadership becomes a big part of the nurse job. Nursing teachers should apply leadership skills in teaching nursing procedures, techniques and policies. The fact that they possess leadership skills is affirmed by the leadership roles they play in caring for the patients and leading their colleagues in the nursing associations. These skills should be applied tin the classrooms to improve learning. The teachers should also understand that excellent future leadership in nursing could only be successful if the students are early. The influences of leadership on faculty job satisfaction suggest that there is evidence that leadership in nurses can be developed through educational activities, modelling and practicing leadership. According to Yancer (2012), the nursing leaders are being challenged to enact efficient growth strategies capable of improving teaching quality, curtailing harm and promoting efficiency in the nursing faculties. Leaders portray competence in relation tot the output of the roles they play. Competence refers to the potential or the capability of a person to function effectively in a given situation i.e. nursing leadership (Wong and Zhao 38-44). Quality improvement and maintenance of competency requires effective leadership. Although leadership can be defined in various ways, the principles and practice are the same in any organisation. Moreno, Verc?ic? and Zerfass, (2010) defines leadership as the process that involves influencing people towards achievement of goals in a particular situation. He defines an organisation’s vision while promoting group work, commitment and effectiveness. Teamwork utilises the productive aspects of group cohesion whereby the leader is expected to enhance team member relationships that are collaborative and productive. The nursing faculty can be harnessed in the preparation of efficient nurse leaders. In addition to the production of efficient managers, the faculties can be involved in moulding charge nurses that assists managers in the management of institutions. Patrician et al (461) believes that efficient leadership in nursing can only be achieved through offering effective education and training, with the responsibility being shared by the nurse educators, academia and practice. One of the effective characteristics of an effective nursing leadership is the ability to be transformational. According to a study carried out by Botma, Botha, and Nel (926), Mariette, lack of transformational leadership is a contributing factor towards enhanced staff turnover rates of most organisations/faculties leading to shortage of staff, especially the qualified staff. The truth is that without effective leadership, the goals of the educational improvement will be difficult to achieve. Denying attention to this fact implies that the nursing institutions are ignoring the standards set for improving nursing teaching through application of the leadership skills. According to Vogelsmeier and Scott-Cawiezell (240), nursing leadership is the foundation for the improvement in the quality of a nursing institution. Effective leaders in faculties would play prominent roles in improving the performance of those institutions. According to Sullivan and Garland (2010), leadership involves the use of interpersonal skills to influence others in the accomplishment accomplish a specific goal. A common theme that seems to run through many definitions is that leadership involves influencing the attitudes, beliefs, behaviours and feelings of other people towards attainment of the various learning obligations. Wong and Zhao (38-44) define the quality of nursing leadership as the degree to which the leadership services upholds the probability of producing the desired outcome while maintaining the standards of the modern professional dispensation. Improving the quality of leadership involves ensuring that the services offered are more safe, effective, equitable, efficient, patient centred and timely despite any environmental challenges. For instance, the recent economic downturn may water-down the quality of teaching in the nursing institutions due to the inadequacy of the learning resources. Moreno, Dejan and Ansgar (36-41), propose that an effective nursing leader should have the necessary competency skills. Competent teachers have superior knowledge and the understanding on the methods of disseminating leadership jargons to the students. It includes the understanding of knowledge, technical, clinical and communication skills as well as the ability to apply the nursing knowledge in solving problems and encouraging learning. Continued competence is the ability of a nurse educator to apply the knowledge, skills, and personal attributes in the delivery of consistent leadership skills. Concerns on the future of the nursing profession have existed for some time. This is due to the conflicting issues emanating from lack of an agreed scope on the regulations on licensing and practice (Cook 304). This has compromised the focus on competency and knowledge dissemination that characterises the nursing education. Competencies in a nursing faculty occur in four domains: education, research, administration and clinical practice (Wong and Zhao 38-44; Ring et al 232-240). Application of competency in nursing faculties is affected by the policy development and health care reform strategies. The domains are organised into categories of skills and knowledge related to leadership. Such categories include leading self, caring, change and visioning. The institutions or faculties that offer training and education to nurses influence their ability to offer high quality and safe patient care. Brody (28-33) asserts that if the nursing students are given an opportunity to practice in a friendly and motivating environment, their future clinical outcomes would be commendable. One the advancement measures in the advancement of nursing education is the incorporation of the long-term improvement measures that focus on leadership as the core of improving quality of nursing education. According to Konetzka and Werner, (2010) nursing faculties should address integration and continuity with other educational institutions in ensuring that the educational standards offered in both institutions are of impeccable standards. A phenomenological study carried out by Baer (2006) on nursing leadership found out that their ability to reflect contributed to their effectiveness as leaders as well as the success of the institutions they lead. Scanning and reflection helped leaders to identify the uniqueness, behaviour and values of their followers. Reflection enabled leaders to improve different aspects of their leadership, contributing to goal attainment. After studying the leaders involved in the provision of direct clinical, Moreno, Dejan, and Ansgar (36-41) came up with five attributes of an effective and clinical leader: creative through generating new and improved ways of working, highlighting i.e. looking for new strategies working, respectful, able to influence and supportive. According to this study, nursing leadership can affect both the nursing practice and the healthy policies in these facilities. They proposed that future nursing leaders should be strategic thinkers, possess the power to advance the nursing knowledge, be influential operators, and be flexible as well as exhibit consultancy skills. According to a study conducted by Chesteen et al (229-242), the barriers to improvement of the teaching leadership skills in nursing faculties stem from organisational, regulatory and financial. The organisational set-up of a nursing faculty may be affected by transferring the educators, lack of consistency in knowledge dissemination and the willingness of the students to be taught. Changes in the managerial structures of the nursing institutions leads to unstable changes in the educational system followed by the institution. This act as an impediment to the effective delivery of the leadership knowledge and skills. Another challenge that the leadership may face is related to inadequate staffing whereby these facilities may be plagued with labour shortages, including challenges related to worker retention and inadequate training opportunities. This discourages the staff members leading to lowering of the quality and competency of the medical services offered. The leader will be required to enact efficient strategies that would involve outsourcing of resources to frustrate these challenges. Mcsherry (7-19) purports that nursing faculties are prone to stringent regulation and oversight by various state agencies. Abiding to these rule and regulations may conflict with the policies already set by the faculty leadership. They also mentioned that most of them are prone to financial challenges Other barriers to leadership suggested by Dellefield, Kelly and Schnelle (43-51) are excessive workload, inadequate staffing, casual and part time employment, unclear roles, lack of workers and inadequate funding. Some of the facilitators to effective application of leadership in enhancing teaching in these institutions include ensuring support from the management, offering reasonable workload to the educators as well as the students, flexible work schedules, positive work environment, learning opportunities and role clarity. AIM The proposed research aims to explore the strategies that can be applied in improving nursing teaching using the leadership skills. OBJECTIVES 1. To identify the leadership strategies that can be applied in improving teaching 2. Assessing the teaching needs of the nursing faculty 3. Evaluating the effective approaches applicable in improving these needs 4. Developing a practical strategy capable of improving the teaching environment RESEARCH QUESTION What are the leadership skills required in improving teaching in the nursing institutions? METHODOLOGY The purpose of this study is to examine the leadership skills in nursing schools and analyse the relationship among demographics, experience, training work setting and leadership practices. A descriptive study design will be used. The population for this study consist of nursing faculty members and the academic leaders in nursing schools will complete questionnaires before and after the leadership skills training programme. The survey instrument is content based and develop from the literature related to leadership skills. Academic Leaders Interview Questions (Administrator) How do the educators in the faculty apply leadership skills in teaching? What tools and texts d they use? What current problems do you witness with teaching in your institution? What are your strategies for addressing them? How, and to what extent, do the teaching fraternity apply their leadership skills in contributing to the effective management of the institution? For example, to what level do they contribute in shaping the objectives, delegation and determining the learning processes? How and to what extent do the teaching members share information? What are some of the leadership skills have they received? How has learning changed in your institution over the recent past? How do you expect the future to be in terms of the quality of teaching? Pre-Observation Interview Questions 1. What is your profession history? Could you please indicate the job you have held beyond the current one? 2. What is your academic background? What training did you receive in leadership? 3. What are some of the leadership experiences that you have acquired in the course of your earlier academic experiences or the jobs? 4. How can you describe your current job? 5. What are your prominent duties and activities in the institution? 6. How do you apply leadership skills in teaching? Which tools and texts do you se? 7. How can you compare teaching practice based on the application of leadership skills and the one that does not entail application of leadership skills? 8. How has leadership application of leadership skills transformed your faculty? Post-Observation Interview Questions 1. We noticed that some of your activities in the faculty involved (the list from the research observations), how did you learn how to apply the leadership skills in ensuring effectiveness of the teaching roles you have been adjudicated to conduct? 2. Would you rate the performance as the best, in relation to your earlier performance record? Tell me the plans you have for improving teaching standards in the faculty? 3. I noticed that (observation on the way they apply leadership skills in teaching) could you tell us a bit about the ways that you communicate your leadership experiences to the students and your colleagues in the faculty? 4. The application leadership skills to enhance class are a difficult and complex process due to the coordination of a wide range of information for incorporation of leadership skills. We noticed that you (information on their performance in class). Could you explain how you management your time and prepare for the teaching lessons to ensure that the learning scope is inclusive? 5. We also observed that (the research observation on the teamwork capabilities). To make the application of the leadership skills successful, are you required to understand the earlier performance of the students? If so, how do you learn about their earlier performance? 6. We notified that (observation on the willingness to apply the leadership skills in class). What is motivation behind your decision? Would you choose a different teaching strategy? 7. Where do you see the standards of learning for this institution in the next five years? What are your goals? Do you see strategies like this enhancing the long-term goals? Proposed Outcome of the Study. The research will culminate into a report that will clearly outline the procedures applied for data collection and analysis will be prepared at the end of the study. A clear explanation of the results and findings will also be provided after the research is carried out. The research anticipates that the results of the study will provide the strategies required for leadership skills required in improving teaching in the nursing institutions. This will also provide teachers with an opportunity to identify the leadership strategies necessary for improving their individual performance in class. DATA ANALYSIS Statistical figures such as charts and graphs will be used in the analysis of quantitative data. Descriptive statistics will also be used to ascertain the demographic characteristics of the sample. Qualitative data will be analysed through content analysis. CONCLUSION Leadership is the interpersonal process that involves motivating and guiding others to achieve goals. Leadership involves the use of interpersonal skills to influence others in the accomplishment accomplish a specific goal. Improving nursing teaching requires exceptional leadership with the will to promote change, ambition to set high-level goals and commitment in implementation. The research will serve a milestone in the application of the leadership skills in the enhancing the standards of nursing teaching. Works Cited Botma, Yvonne., Botha, Hanlie and Nel, Mariette. "Transformation: Are Nurse Leaders in Critical Care Ready?" Journal of Nursing Management. 20.7 (2012): 921-927. Brody, A.A, K Barnes, C Ruble, and J Sakowski. "Evidence-based Practice Councils: Potential Path to Staff Nurse Empowerment and Leadership Growth." Journal of Nursing Administration. 42.1 (2012): 28-33. Chesteen, Susan., Helgheim, Berit., Randall, Taylor and Wardell, Don. "Comparing Quality of Care in Non-Profit and For-Profit Nursing Homes: a Process Perspective." Journal of Operations Management. 23.2 (2005): 229-242. Cook, Sarah S, Fintan Sheerin, Suzanne Bancel, and Gomes J. C. Rodrigues. "Curriculum Meeting Points: a Transcultural and Transformative Initiative in Nursing Education." Nurse Education in Practice. 12.6 (2012): 304-309. Konetzka RT & Werner RM. Applying market-based reforms to long-term care Health Affairs, 29(1) (2010):74–80. Mcsherry, Robert., Paddy, Pearce., Karen, Grimwood, and Wilfred, Mcsherry. "The Pivotal Role of Nurse Managers, Leaders and Educators in Enabling Excellence in Nursing Care." Journal of Nursing Management. 20.1 (2012): 7-19. Moreno, A?ngeles., Dejan, Verc?ic?, and Ansgar, Zerfass. "The Power of Leadership." Communication Director. (2010): 36-41. Patrician, PA, D Oliver, RS Miltner, M Dawson, and KA Ladner. "Nurturing Charge Nurses for Future Leadership Roles." The Journal of Nursing Administration. 42.10 (2012): 461-6. Ring, Nicola, Coull, Alison., Howie, Catherine., Murphy-Black, Tricia, and Watterson, Andrew. "Analysis of the Impact of a National Initiative to Promote Evidence-Based Nursing Practice." International Journal of Nursing Practice. 12.4 (2006): 232-240. Sullivan, Eleanor J, Gayle Garland, and Eleanor J. Sullivan. Practical Leadership and Management in Nursing. Harlow, England: Pearson, 2010. Vogelsmeier, A, and J Scott-Cawiezell. "Achieving Quality Improvement in the Nursing Home: Influence of Nursing Leadership on Communication and Teamwork." Journal of Nursing Care Quality. 26.3 (2011): 236-242. Wong, Frances K, and Zhao, Yue. "Nursing Education in China: Past, Present and Future." Journal of Nursing Management. 20.1 (2012): 38-44. Yancer, DA. "Betrayed Trust: Healing a Broken Hospital through Servant Leadership." Nursing Administration Quarterly. 36.1 (2012). Read More