Leadership in Nursing

Running head: LEADERSHIP IN NURSING 1
LEADERSHIP IN NURSING
Name of Student
Institution Affiliation

LEADERSHIP IN NURSING 2
LEADERSHIP IN NURSING
This paper discusses the importance of leadership in nursing. The paper analyzes
ways in which a nurse can contribute to the success of the organization by leading the
other staff towards working to achieve short terms and long-term objectives (Tomey,
2009). Mediheal has decided to create a new nursing unit, which specializes in caring
for children. Mediheal is a massive hospital in Melbourne, and it receives more than
500 patients daily. The board of management of the hospital, therefore, decided to
form a special children`s department which will have eight nurses and one manager.
The report therefore discusses and illustrates the organizational structure of the new
nursing unit. The paper also discusses the characteristics that I will need to develop as
the manager of the children`s group. The methods that I will use to develop the skills
and attributes will also be discussed in this document. The strategies used to empower
staff members are discussed in this report. The teams within the unit are addressed the
rationale for forming the group is also discussed. The final section of the report
presents the methods I will use to solve conflicts between staff members.
Description of the new unit
The Mediheal hospital has been experiencing congestion over the past few years.
The hospital did not have enough capacity to meet the demand for health services.
Additionally, the hospital saw the need to establish a special children`s unit which
would solely focus on offering medical services to children below the age of 12 years.
This was informed by the fact that children require special medical attention and
hence the need to establish a nursing unit which focuses on children`s health needs.
The mission statement of Mediheal
The mission of Mediheal hospital is to offer the population we serve affordable,
high quality healthcare services to improve their health outcomes. The goal of

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Mediheal is to provide services that set international standards, and which exceed
customer expectations. This will be done by focusing on a patient-centered approach
to healthcare.
Our Values
Integrity
We are committed to honesty being trustworthy to our customer
Caring
Mediheal values its customers and recognizes the importance of high quality care in
healthcare
Safety
The safety of the patient and staff is core to Mediheal achieving its mission.
Respect
This is in regards to the way we interact with our patients, communities and with each
other.
Organizational structure
My role at Mediheal Hospital will be to lead a group of children nurses at the
newly established children`s wing. Children`s nurses work as part of a large
Manager (myself)
Supervisor
Nurses
Carers

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multidisciplinary team of professional and medical staff. The team includes doctors,
nurses, carers, psychologists, medical consultants as well as social workers. This,
therefore, means there is close inter-dependency between the children`s departments
and the rest of the hospital. In my new role as the head of the children`s nursing
department, I have a task of coordinating activities within the department to achieve
better health outcomes for children in need of medical care at the hospital. To achieve
this, I am working with a group of eight nurses, and it is critical that we work as a
group to make the set objectives. The nurses will be working in shifts to ensure that
children get adequate care at any time whether during the day or night (Curtis, Vries
& Sheerin, 2011). As the leader of the new children`s unit, I will act as both a leader
and a manager. I will be tasked with assigning roles to the team members and leading
them towards achieving their objectives. I am also responsible for managing other
resources within the unit as well as making plans for the future.
Characteristics I need to develop
As a leader of the team in the new children`s wing at Mediheal hospital, there are
a set of characteristics and skills that I need to build to achieve the objectives of the
unit. These characteristics are meant to help me lead the rest of the team towards a
coordinated effort to offer the highest quality care to the children who visit the unit.
While some leadership skills can be developed naturally, there are those that nurses
can only be develop through training (Stanley, 2010). Other skills can be acquired
through job practice as a person gains experience. The following are some leadership
skills and characteristics that I need to develop in my new role;
Emotional Intelligence
In the clinical setting, as a leader of nurses in the children`s unit, I will need to
work closely with trainees and other practitioners who are new to the organization.