Respect for People in Healthcare Management

Running Head: Leadership in Healthcare
Leadership in Health
Management
Essay
System04104
8/29/2019

Leadership in Healthcare 1
‘Respect for People’ in Healthcare Management
Introduction
Most of the modern organisations are practicing ‘respect for people’ in the healthcare
services. It is one of the core concepts philosophies in healthcare services. Giving respect to
other people shows the leadership culture of the people and it also shows that the healthcare
organisation cares for the people’s dignity. Respect is a two-way street and it has been said
by many scholars, if a person does not know to show respect to people then the person does
not deserve to lead (Walshe and Smith, 2011). Showing respect in healthcare is crucial and it
not applies only for patient rather it applies on staffs as well. A healthcare practitioner must
give respect to other staff member despite being the position in organisational chart. Giving
respect to the patient is included as an essential code of conduct in nursing practice. This
essay is based on the importance of the term “respect for people” in healthcare organisations
and its importance in patient care.
Leadership and its roles in a healthcare organisation
A leader is a person who not only influences the people rather also understands the
feelings and emotions of other people and easily understands the problems of other. A leader
always shows respect to the cultural differences and understands the rights of patient (Al-
Sawai, 2013). A leader is a person who guides and motivates people or group of people in a
right direction where people can achieve their target or proceed towards their goals with full
commitment and dedication (Chadwick, 2012). Leader is also responsible to change the
behaviour and wrong acts of people by show them a right direction in the life. Therefore, a
leader is influencer, motivator, and also act as a guide for the people and shows them right
direction for the attainment of goals and objectives (Aij & Rapsaniotis, 2017). Normally,
there are various types of leadership and leadership theories. However, based on the power
factor there are three type of leaders; autocratic leadership, democratic or participative
leadership, and delegate or laissez faire leadership. The autocratic leader takes their own
decision and never care about their team members or followers need or suggestions while the
democratic leader take the suggestion of others but makes the decision by their own mind and
heart. However, the delegative leadership offers the participation and decision-making
powers to the followers to whom he/she led. Being an effective and successful leader in the
healthcare organisation, a leader must be empathetic and realistic. Leader should set the

Leadership in Healthcare 2
standards for others and encourage the people to follow their footprints for getting success in
life. These types of leaders are also very effective and accountable for bringing change in the
organisation (Al-Sawai, 2013).
Responsibilities of a leader in a healthcare organisation
As a leader of the healthcare organisation, it is the responsibility to ensure that
everyone acts and behave in responsible and respectful way with patients (Weberg, 2012).
Most of the organisations follow the ethical code of conducts, in which it is mentioned that
every person in the organisation is responsible for sympathetic and dignified care. For
example, in the top healthcare organisations of Australia, respect and dignity is one of the
important factors in treatment of patient. The NHS (National Health Service) of UK
mentioned that every patient and individual has right to be treated with compassion, respect,
kindness, dignity, courtesy, and honesty (Adib-Hajbaghery & Aghajani, 2015).
Respect for People in Healthcare Context
As a leader in the healthcare organisation, it is the responsibility to understand the
cultural values and show respect to the cultural differences. It is considerable that in a
healthcare organisation, patients come from different places having different culture,
language, and living style (Hanse, Harlin, Jarebrant, Ulin, & Winkel, 2016). This term does
not apply on patients only rather it also applies on the workforce because there many people
working together in a healthcare setup and they all have some cultural differences. Therefore,
it is really important for the leader to show respect to the values, beliefs, and morals of
people. According the servant leadership theory, a leader must care about their followers
(Baillie & Ilott, 2010). The servant leadership based on the character that a leader should
have capabilities to understand the problem of others and service the people to resolve issue.
In healthcare services, a leader must follow the norms and characteristics of servant
leadership because it has been found that servant leadership always tries to bring out the best
possible performance in their employees, staff, and nurses. A successful leader in the
healthcare organisation always expects a positive outcome about the health recovery of
patient. A leader is assumed to be a successful leader when he/she creates a place in the heart
of its followers (Dahlgaard, Pettersen & Dahlgaard-Park, 2011). This concept also applies on
the leaders in the healthcare organisations. As a leader in the healthcare organisation,
everyone expects to approach to the leader for their concerns and issues and every member in
the organisation expects to the leader to be on their side. However, it is really impossible for
a leader to talk with both sides so the leader stays on firm and fair approach to deal with such