Discuss common characteristics of nurse change agents.
Respond to these three discussions Separately with three citations and three references. Meaning, Discussion one should have its own response with one citation and one reference and Discussion Two has its own response with one citation and one reference and discussion three has one citation and one reference. DO NOT USE FIRST PERSON IN YOUR RESPONSE
Discussion 1
COMMON CHARACTERISTICS OF NURSE CHANGE AGENTS.
Like all areas of our society, health care is being significantly impacted by rapid technological and social change. If nursing is to take a leadership role in managing this change so as to optimize health care in the emerging system, nurses need to possess the necessary characteristics and skills to be successful change agents, or leaders of change.
The primary purpose of this qualitative study was to identify common characteristics of nurse change agents, thereby developing the foundation for an operational definition of a change agent. This information could be used by nursing education to plan appropriate learning experiences to facilitate preparation of change agents, by nursing service in the selection of people to fill change agent roles, and by individuals aspiring to be change agents to prepare themselves for this role.
The study sample consisted of fifty non-managerial nurses from seven hospitals who, through a nomination process, had been identified as change agents within their work settings. Data were collected through structured interviews.
The sample contained thirty-three baccalaureate graduates, eight associate degree graduates, and nine diploma graduates. Data showed the typical nurse change agent to be a baccalaureate graduate with six-to-fifteen years of experience, who works on day shift. The person is actively involved in continuing education and has a history of work experience prior to nursing, organizational involvement and leadership experiences beginning in childhood years, and committee involvement in the workplace. In addition, a list of thirty-six frequently cited characteristics was developed. Heading this list were the abilities to assess and plan; anticipate consequences; make decisions in a timely manner; take risks appropriately; prioritize; delegate; be articulate, influential, and persuasive; get others involved; develop and maintain networks; use formal and informal systems; and demonstrate effective conflict and confrontation skills. An attempt to compare associate degree nurses and baccalaureate degree nurses on these characteristics was not feasible due to the disparate numbers in the two groups. Finally, information was gained about environmental factors which facilitate or hinder change attempts.
Reference;
https://openlibrary.org/books/OL17871616M/COMMON_CHARACTERISTICS_OF_NURSE_CHANGE_AGENTS.
Discussion 2
Situational and Change Agent
I don’t know of any current changes in the facility I work. However, I do recall a major change a few years back. The hospital transitioned from paper charting to complete computerized charting. The computerizing charting change took a lot of work from managers, leaders and other members of the healthcare team to make the transition as smooth as possible and avoid major barriers or obstacles.
Many change models can be used to help with changes in an organization. The change model I tough to be appropriate for the type of change in the facility I worked is the “Eight steps to successful change” by John Kotter. This model covers all aspect that aids a successful change. The eight steps are as follow: 1. Inspire people to move, make objective real and relevant. 2. Get the right people in place with the right emotional commitment and the right mixes of skills and levels. 3. Get the team to establish a simple and strategy focus on emotional and creative aspects necessary to drive service and efficiency. 4. Involve as many people as possible, communicate the essentials, simplify, and responds to people’s needs. Declarer communication- makes technology work for you, not against you. 5. Remove obstacles, enable positive feedback, reward and recognized progress and achievement. 6. Set aims that easy to achieve, finish current stages before starting a new one. 7. Foster and encourage determination and persistence. Encourage ongoing progress reporting. 8. Reinforce the value of successful change via recruitment, promotion, and new change leaders. Weave change into culture (Kotter International, 2015)
We had many agents in our facilities such as unit manager and charge nurses. The managers were very skilled and helpful. Our unit manager, in particular, I though she was very skilled in promoting change. She knew the organization’s culture and helped us to understand our culture. According to Crowell, D. M. (2011) before changes can occur. The agent needs to be aware of the culture in his/her organization and be able for the members to identify their values and beliefs. The agent also needs to have broad knowledge be able to understand the methodology for the change. The agent should be able to listen, trust and form relationships. He/she must be able to deal with different types of relationships and behavior. These attributes describe by Crowell, fits the qualities of my unit manager.
We had resistance to change thru the transition. Many of the older nurses did not like the idea of new technology. However, my unit manager uses different strategies for persuasion. She focused on the benefits of the change, not just for the patients but also for the health care team as well. Some of the advantages of computerized charting were decreasing medication errors, fast communication between healthcare team, fast way of getting out, the more the resistant started to drop. In the beginning, the transition was challenging but after a few months it got easier. We had a lot of support from our unit manager and charge nurses as well as other members of health care team who help assist the rest of us step by step.
Reference:
Crowell, D. M. (2011). Complexity Leadership: Nursing’s role in health care delivery. Philadelphia, PA: F. A. Davis. ISBN 978-0803622333.
Kotter International (2015) Accelerates 8- step process for leading change. Retrieved from http://www.kotterinternational.com/the-8-step-process-for-leading-change
Discussion 3
ince I work as a travel nurse, I am not privy to much of change that occurs within the facility in which I work. I recently quit working at a local hospital as a PRN ICU nurse and do have some information about change that is taking place there. Many of the hospital nursing administrators and nurse managers have been fired from the facility very recently. The CEO gave press releases stating that those personnel were not moving in the direction that the hospital wishes to go and that they themselves were inhibiting change.
The change model that I chose to include for this discussion was Kurt Lewin’s Change Model. Mr. Lewin describes behavior as a “dynamic balance of forces working in opposing directions” (Alice, 2015). In this particular case, the hospital and past administrators were working in opposition of one another. The change theory consists of three stages. Unfreezing, change and refreezing (Alice, 2015).
Unfreezing occurs when “finding a method of making it possible for people to let go of an old pattern that was somehow counterproductive” occurs(Alice, 2015). In this case, unfreezing has taken place when past administrators were removed from their position of authority. Change is defined as “moving to a new level” (Alice, 2015). This takes place when new administrators and managers are hired and are prepared to take the facility in a new direction that is better for the facility as a whole. This “involves a process of change in thoughts, feeling, and behavior that is more liberating and more productive” (Alice, 2015).
The last stage of this change theory is refreezing. According to Lewin, refreezing occurs when “change has become a new habit” and is now the “Standard operating procedure” within a facility (Alice, 2015). At this point, since new administrators and managers have not been hired, this has not yet occurred.
Some resistance to this change could be older staff members who have worked at the facility for a long time and are upset that their long time managers and leaders have lost their positions. A way that this can be combated would be to have either house wide or floor wide discussions about the change that the hospital would like to make, how it benefits staff and patients, and how front line staff members can get involved. This also harkens back to last week’s discussion regarding transformational vs transactional leadership. Transformational leaders should be hired to rebuild the rapport that has been lost.
Alice, P. (2015, March 20). Lewin’s Change Theory. Retrieved November 1, 2015, from http://nursing-theory.org/theories-and-models/Lewin-Change-Theory.php
