Nursing Leadership and Patient Safety: Importance of Different Leadership Styles

This essay focuses on nursing leadership and its importance in ensuring premium health services to injured and sick patients. It discusses the relationship between leadership and patient safety, the different styles of leadership that contribute to the development of a safe and secure environment for patients, and the challenges faced by the healthcare system. The essay also highlights the importance of transformational and transactional leadership styles in nursing management and their impact on job satisfaction and patient safety outcomes.

Running head: NURSING
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Nursing leadership
Essay
Student
8/3/2019

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Nursing is a professional course, which involves the prevention and care of hospitalized
patients. For midwives, the health and safety of the patient is an ethical responsibility. However,
it can be observed that every year, 1 in 4 patients being severely injured while receiving
ambulatory and more than 2.6 million people on an annual basis due to unsafe care (World
Health Organization , Patient safety, 2019). All these statistics display that, there is a need for
responsible leadership in the health care system. Therefore, nursing leadership plays a vital role
in ensuring premium health services to injured and sick patients.
During the routine activity in the nursing department, every midwife was assigned a role
to prepare a PowerPoint presentation and thus present it. In which they have to discuss,
challenges they are facing and what are necessary steps that have to be taken to overcome those
problems. As an ICU nurse, I presented the presentation where I highlighted the important facts
that describe the relationship of leadership and patient’s safety, and what is the different style of
leadership that contributes in the development safe and secure environment for the patients.
Therefore, in the essay, the focus is on leadership style and patient’s safety and what are the
different leadership style that must be followed by solving the issues of the patients
Leadership is a method practiced by the managers to instruct and guide the effort of
employees towards the achievement of organizational goals. It is an art followed by the
managers to motivate their employees so they perform with their full potential and inspire their
peers to work with zest and enthusiasm ( Cope & Murray, 2017). Moreover, leadership is
essential for the growth of an organization as induces the energies of an individual in the right
direction and bring effective changes in an organization.

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In the health care industry, leadership act as a nervous system of the nursing department
as it directs the medical practitioners and nurses to provide quality services and treatment to the
patients. Nurse managers lead the behaviour of medical professionals to conduct their activities
ethically and maintain decorum while treating the patients. In addition to this, leadership
coordinates the efforts of the nurses and doctors so that they can practice health care services
with integrity, which is vital for the survival of the system (World Health Organization, Chapter
10: Leadership and Management, 2019).
In the Nursing department, it means avoiding any kind of harm or damage that can
adversely affect the health and safety of the patients. It involves the reduction of unforeseen
harm or threat thus minimizing the risk associated with the health of the patients. From the last
few decades, the health care system has done tremendous growth and technological
advancement, which has assisted patients to take timely medication and receive effective
treatment to cure the disease. To promote this global campaign, it is celebrated World Patient
Safety Day on 17 September. However, in spite of such development, it has been recognized that
about 134 million adverse incidents have been occurred in the past, due to the neglecting attitude
followed in the heath cares premises. Besides this, its adverse impact can be observed in
underdeveloped countries like Syria and Africa, where the reforms have been taken by the
government to solve the issue due to which there has been an increment in mortality rate.
Nevertheless, a nation like Australia has improved its health care system. As per the
report (2012-2013) published COAG, which is a reform council in healthcare Australia,
displayed that there is a rise in the average life span and the death rates have been fallen.
Addition to this, in 2014 -2015 it was analysed that every 4th citizen in 5 citizens has rated their
medical condition good with no symptom of sickness or disease and contrary to this (Australia

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Insitute of Health and Welfare , 2018). Moreover, more than 45% citizen from 16-18 years old
are suffering mental illness and, there has increment in the cases related to Tuberculosis. All
these issues have challenged the health care system of Australia (Abbott, 2014).
However, such issues can be tackled efficiently with effective leadership skills, through
the assistance of medical professionals and with involvement patients as it the responsibility of
service provider to deliver the effective treatment to the service taker.
It is a responsibility of midwife to ensure that all the ICU patients get effective care and
treatment. Moreover, nurse leaders must set the goals that will direct them to shape a positive
and safe environment in the organization so that unfavourable events can be avoided before time.
The practice of leadership in any health care organization is indicted as a sign of consistency and
sustainability. Currently, in the health care system, it has been observed an important tool like
evidence-based medicine nursing is being adopted for greater productivity/ outcomes, and for
providing a greater quality of services. The mission of every health care organization is to ensure
the safety and quality of medical services to hospitalized patients (Khalil & Lee, 2018).
Management and leadership play a significant role in the health care system, as they are
critical for strengthening the quality and coordinate the efforts of nurses and medical
practitioners towards an integrated solution (Thomas, 2016). Nursing leadership can be stated as
a relationship between the individuals who direct and give training to the nurses. Nurse leaders
conduct a training session so that nurses can understand duties and responsibilities.
As leaders, nurses who have obtained a doctorate of Nursing Practice ensures that the
nursing staff efficiently performing their duties according to the evidence-based practice
methods. As per the research conducted by the health officials, that when nurses practice

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leadership and have an abundance of, medical facilities for the patients, there will be an
improvement in the productivity level which will result into patient satisfaction, reduces the
probability of any kind of harm and improve patient safety result. Nursing Leadership is the
essence of every type of organization irrespective of the fact, where it is practiced (e.g., clinics or
inpatient units, long-term care units or home care facilities) especially by the people who are in
direct contact with the patient.
There are many types of leadership styles, which are followed in the organization.
Transformational, Transactional, Autocratic, laissez-fair, Tasks oriented, and Relationship-
oriented are some of the leadership styles, practiced by the manager to direct their employees. In
all the above styles 3 major styles have been explained (McFadden, Stock, & Gowen II, 2014).
Transformational leadership; It can be stated as a motivational leadership style as
transformational leaders direct, motivate its staff to perform with their full capacity.
Transactional leadership; they are managers who focus on supervision, organization, and
performance of the employees, promote leaders and followers culture by reward, and punish
system follow this leadership style. Autocratic Leadership style; this style is adopted by the
managers in case of urgency when leaders take urgent decisions without taking consideration
from the employees. This is a rigid style as the neglecting attitude or any kind of mistake is not
accepted in such style (Health Managemnt Oragnization , 2019).
In the organization, the nurse leaders act as an inspiration to the followers, which can be
positive or negative? To become an effective leader to the employees, it is essential to acquire
knowledge and traits form different styles of leadership.
Two leadership styles that are widely by the leaders are:

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Transformational style is recognized as a relational leadership style where the leaders
and followers share a cordial relationship with each other. A transformational leader is positive
and dynamic who induces employees to strive hard for the achievement of the goals. In the
health organization, it is of the most preferred style, it promotes a safe environment for the
patient, provides opportunities of growth to the nurses and assists them to eliminate the problem
that is becoming obstacles in the treatment of patients ( Auer, Schwendimann, MCommH, Geest,
& Ausserhofer, 2014). This style ensures improvement in health care days reduces nurses’
turnover and has increased the study highlights that transformational leadership drives self-
dedication towards patient’s safety, which results in the achievement of personal as well as a
professional goal ( Boamah, Spence Laschinger, Wong, & Clarke, 2018). Motivating the nurses
is one of the basic features of transformational leadership, which direct nurse leaders to form a
significant impact on the working environment of the hospital, thus creating great health care
outcomes ( Cope & Murray, 2017).
Transactional leadership style is a task-focused leadership style, which is adopted for
the achievement of short-term goals. During this, leadership style, the reward system is followed
in an organization, where on the completion of every target, employees will receive the reward in
a form of incentive. However, in nursing, it is an unreliable approach as the entire focus is put
on the completion of the task rather than on the safety of the patients. Such leadership is
followed during the emergencies, wherein limited time, clear direction like ‘Do this now!’
becomes essential for the quick decisions (World Health Organization, Chapter 10: Leadership
and Management, 2019).
Medicines are an important part of treatment, as it serves as an antidote to cure the major
illness of the patients. It is always advised to take medicines from the authorized medical

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professional, as medication safety is the primary responsibility of surgeons and nurses as they
both collaborate to provide effective treatment (Asamani, Naab, & Ansah Ofei, 2016).
However, during the practice, nurse leaders have determined several hindrances that have
threatened the safety of patients. Diversity, communication gap, the difference in perceptions,
corruption in the health care system, unclear targets and roles, ineffective system, and lack
patient involvement of are some of the issues that have become a roadblock in providing
efficient medication safety. One of the major reasons for such an event is the lack of knowledge
and expertise in dealing with patient illness. This neglecting attitude in the nursing department
has become a major concern for the government official as wrong medication has adversely
affected the health of the community, reflected a negative on the body of the patient, and
increased mortality rate (Sawai, 2013). Besides this, medicine blunders can be identified among
the old generation where the probability of consuming multiple medicines is much higher than
the young generation. With the effective practice of Transformational and transactional, such a
situation can be avoided. Nurse leaders must ensure that midwives should receive educational
training so that they can efficiently fulfil their duties and responsibility ( Willis , Reynolds , &
Keleher, 2016).
It can be concluded that the safety of the patients is an integral part of the nursing
department and leadership is vital for the maintenance of efficient services to the patients. It is
practiced by the nurses to lead nurses towards the accomplishment of personal and professional
goals along with patients’ satisfaction.

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