Nurse Leaders Lead Us to Henry Street

Nurse Leaders Lead Us to Henry Street

In the United States, nursing has a rich history of care and healthcare provision to the humanity. However, over the past decades, the learning institutions have diluted the role of caregivers. In addition, the demographic changes and new technologies have diminished the significance of nursing profession in medical facilities and public settings. A development such as this prompted for the dean’s call for action to remind the nursing students about the importance of public health nursing.

Literature Review

            Ideally, Henry Street is a location where Lillian Wald introduced public health nursing. Siegel (2013) concedes that while Lillian Wald acknowledged that nurses should care for sick people, but she encouraged the expansion of their role to incorporate the treatment of economic and social problems. In the modern times, her vision has not been realized due to the high specialization of nursing roles. Therefore, the “call to action” advises that public health nurse should not only be concerned about the health in the neighborhood but also partner with social and non-governmental agencies to boost the living conditions.

            In 1895, Lillian Wald set up the Henry Street Nurses’ settlement. According to Cook (2014), the institution enrolled numerous nurses, social reformers, and lawyers to care for the marginalized American communities. They visited immigrants in the Lower East Side and treated dozens of people a day. Given their devotion to service, a modern nurse ought to emulate their compassionate activity to meet the profession’s objectives.

Training of future caregivers is one of the greatest challenges that nursing profession faces. I agree with the Deans that all nurses need powerful leadership skills, particularly if they provide direct care to individuals holding managerial positions. Most importantly, they should be aware that patients look to them as an authority, hence should act responsibly when giving assistance. Through the call to action, it should dawn on nursing leaders that their role is not merely a task or skill, but an attitude which informs behavior. Notably, public and clinical nursing leaders participate in direct patient care. In addition, they improve healthcare provision by influencing the provision of treatment as delivered by peers. Moreover, an excellent leadership behavior must demonstrate a consistently superior performance for the benefit of the patients. Similar to other professions, visionary individuals such as Lillian Wald should assume nurse leadership to help others in the organization and planning of their activities.

During the 1950s, nursing evolved due to the advancement of healthcare technology and medical treatment. Resultantly, other nursing specialties evolved, thus restricting the professionals to handling a particular task. In essence, most graduates cannot comfortably deliver healthcare services beyond their area of specialization. Notwithstanding, the evolution affected both new and traditional areas such as emergency care, midwifery, and primary care.

Further, the profession cannot continue unless nurses are imparted with historical information regarding the humble beginnings of medicine in the United States. Additionally, the instructors should and physicians should organize nursing services appropriately for a continued expansion of nursing know-how. Besides, the deans ought to develop and adopt the policies in all the schools. Initiatives like these are critical in the preparation of the registered caregivers as per their specialties. Of keen to note is that some of the listed specializations reflect an intersection between other professions and nursing. Hence, the nursing leaders can direct a return to Henry Streets by encouraging the specialty caregivers to consult and collaborate with others to bridge the existing gap. Through the liaison, they delineate their role in the society.

Interestingly, registered healthcare workers in specialty practice have advanced graduate education in specialties like education, public health, and informatics but fail to provide direct care to patients like was done a century ago in Henry Street.  Ironically, their skills are essential to the advancement of public health in the United States. To reverse the trend, I concur with the Deans that the modern nurse leaders have to review their strategies to focus on reverting to the old health care techniques that enabled the American and European societies to emerge from World War rubbles.

Role of Nurse in Care Coordination

The American healthcare system is undergoing a rapid transformation. Today, hospitals highlight care coordination, health insurance, and medical systems as fundamental tools to improve patient’s satisfaction and health condition. Darkins et al. (2012) argues that the move will drastically minimize the healthcare costs. Nurses are major contributors to the success of the implementation of these tools. In fact, a caregiver’s contributions to care coordination are unmatched by other medical professionals. They participate in the development of care plans (according to the patient’s guidance, preferences, and needs). Furthermore, nurses educate the ailing individuals and their family members at discharge. Additionally, they act as an important resource for the family and the patient, thus assuming a coordinating role as a focal contact point between the two parties. Due to the nurse’s need to adhere to work ethics, they work hard to facilitate continuity of coordinated care for the sick across settings.

Nurses provide multiple services to customers in numerous healthcare settings. On a daily basis, they provide a distinct contribution to the system, whereas other health team members can execute the remaining tasks. Caregivers are professionals that should serve the community members indiscriminately. They employ a broader approach to guarantee a holistic health to the patients they serve.  Specifically, the nurse coordinator’s role forms an important part of a multidisciplinary care group for a better patient outcome.

Particularly, the core functions of a nurse leader center on care coordination, psychological and physical examination of patients, referring sick people to specialized physicians. Moreover, they assist the patients to access and navigate the hospital system. Most importantly, healthcare practitioners coordinate the execution of diagnostic workup tests.

Care coordination is an advanced role that demands devotion, expertise, and cooperation. While some of the nurse leaders understand this commitment, others have lost track, hence the evident chaos and inefficiencies in the public healthcare institutions. The adoption of Henry Street strategies allows the nurse coordinator to maintain clinical competencies and to participate in constructive activities that boost the development of junior healthcare professionals and self.

In nursing practice, collaboration is a fundamental element, given the diversity of professionals in the work area. The patient outcomes improve significantly if the multidisciplinary teams work collaboratively. Therefore, nurses are both team leaders and group members. Caregivers fulfill their collaborative role through the assumption of increased authority and accountability in practice settings. It is imperative for them to appreciate and understand the roles of others in their workplace. Otherwise, the patients and their families will barely receive essential services in a healthcare setting. In the first place, nurses should cooperate willingly and enthusiastically with the family members in drafting healthcare plan for a better patient outcome.

It is advisable for nurses to appraise their preferences, weaknesses, and strengths. Ideally, each healthcare practitioner should ensure that the employer’s expectations match with their abilities. In addition, they should receive adequate theoretical knowledge in medical schools to competently make a conscious clinical judgment and to provide basic patient care. It is the employer’s expectation that a graduate nurse can detect symptoms and early signs of ailments. For instance, they should coordinate with the specialists to detect an allergic reaction to blood transfusion or to particular food types. Indeed, experienced nurses should be knowledgeable of the potential problems triggered by certain patient conditions.

Notably, customer-centered care coordination is an elementary skill and for all practicing nurses. Caregivers are integral to effective utilization of healthcare resources, patient care quality, and customer satisfaction. In the United States, nurses cannot receive a practicing license unless they have adequate education and have demonstrated the necessary qualification for care coordination among the vulnerable and high-risk demographics. They partner with the doctors to demonstrate innovation and leadership in the evaluation, implementation, and design of care coordination models and processes. However, the authorities need to define, report, and measure the contributions of nursing professionals to care coordination for appropriate systemic and financial incentives.

Today, nurses advance their roles into different healthcare spheres. The expansion will continue in the foreseeable future as medicine evolves to suit the patient’s needs. Regardless, the central aim of nurses should be safe care delivery to all the sick persons in coordination with multi-disciplinary teams to ensure high quality of patient care. Each nurse must make sure that their engagements complement their jobs and areas of competency. Through proper coordination, nurses protect themselves from lawsuits and litigation arising from work ethics violation. Although it is obligatory for all caregivers to coordinate their activities with the team members, each healthcare practitioner is answerable for her actions. In light of this, nurses must be aware of the legal implications of their activities as the healthcare professional practice advances.

Proposal of Skills for a Nurse of the Future

            The future nurses should learn continuously to update themselves on the latest medical developments and the evolution in the sector. Failure to do so will result in poor service delivery and an eventual loss of competence. Therefore, I propose that the caregiver of the future should be an effective communicator and a critical thinker. In addition, they should be attentive to details and flexible since healthcare is dynamic (Bellack et al., 2011).

            The nurse of the future will be at the frontline of care. They will be middlemen that rely on critical information from a doctor to an ailing individual. As the society embrace dialogue, a nurse should adopt the skill as well to converse directly and openly with the patient and their families. In this way, they will understand the medication and diagnosis for improved cooperation. Effective communication between a nurse and her colleagues or a physician will be necessary, especially in sharing the mounting responsibilities. Probably, the future patients will be uncooperative since they will bestow their trust on technological gadgets rather than human professionals. In this case, a strong communication skill will be necessary to diffuse the tension.

Secondly, mental flexibility is a crucial skill for easier understanding of the latest medical advancement. Dealing with a larger patient population rather than one ailing person at a time means that the nurse must adapt to a busy schedule. The nurse will deal with different types of personalities, hence the importance of flexibility in understanding their individual needs and delivering services accordingly.

Third, a critical sharp mind guarantees excellence in an evolving nursing field. Critical thinking skills will be useful in the future too because the nurse will need to innovate ways to handle larger populations of patients. Besides, they will analyze the new situation to determine the best solution. In a high-pressure situation such as this, nurses ought to find quick but confident solutions. Fourth, Caregivers of the future must desire to learn. After earning their degrees, they should keep on questioning the new population-focused health care. Lastly, they must pay attention to the details to avoid errors, given that the number of clients will be larger.

Preparation of the Next Generation of Nurses

Improving the nurse practitioner’s skills in the learning institutions is fundamental to meet America’s health needs. Therefore, the authorities should provide the best nursing programs by employing practicing caregivers as instructors. Due to rapid changes in the profession, it is imperative to introduce up-to-the-minute developments at the undergraduate level to expose the young learners to the updated version of the profession’s guidelines. In addition, the undergraduate students need to be knowledgeable of the realistic opportunities and challenges in their future work area. The learning institutions should partner with clinical sites and provide regular intensive programs for undergraduate learners to gather first-hand information regarding nursing.

            In the master’s level, the students should have a chance to lecture the undergraduate students. Not only will this sharpen the student’s skills, but will encourage them to pursue the career as a professional nursing instructor, hence minimizing the rampant shortages in the sector. Furthermore, doctoral level programs like the management and negotiations of health care delivery systems should be introduced as early as the master’s level. Other programs include coaching of patients, quality care, and nursing practitioner-patient relationship.

            In the case of doctoral level nurses, their research should focus on future healthcare and ways to improve competency in a dynamic profession. At this level, the faculty ought to prepare the students to meet the fundamental needs of the populace. For instance, it should present evidence-based knowledge on the current healthcare conditions and translate the theoretical information into a clinical practice. In addition, the institution should employ technological teaching aids to improve learning efficiency for doctoral students.

Influencing Factors on Nurse Leader Roles

Nurse associations in the United States play a vital role in influencing or implementing changes in the healthcare systems to meet the patient demands. If need be, they will introduce mandatory policies for implementation by all the medical facilities. For instance, the law mandates ANA (American Nurses Association) to protect and advance the profession of nursing. In addition to representing nurses, it establishes standards of nursing practice and advances the general and economic nurse welfare. Further, it promotes the caregiver’s rights at the workplace. It is a powerful union that can influence or decide on the issue of nurse preparation and care coordination.

            On the other hand, nurse leaders act as role models and lobbyists of change. They should apply their leadership skills in instigating for the elimination of barriers to population-focused health care. In addition, the leaders must collaborate with activist groups to push for amendments in the learning structure for adequate preparation of the future nurses. The nurse leaders should invite the contribution of the junior staff in the design of vision. Consequently, each staff will express personal sentiments and point-of-view on the future of the organization. However, the leader will make the ultimate choice after incorporation of a diverse range of ideas to improve patient care.

Metrics

Government policy makers and nursing leaders use metrics to make an informed decision for performance improvement. For example, performance indicators track the patient health status and healthcare outcomes. The decision-makers can use the gathered data to reduce the wait times for consultation, and to improve interaction between nurses, patients, and family members.

The condition of the work environment influences the execution of nursing roles. Therefore, it is important for policy makers to collect information from the employees, patients, and the management to determine the cause of concern and how to address the rising challenges. First, they should survey the ailing individuals for their opinions and proposals. Next, the management should incorporate the information gathered from nurse interviews in developing a quality improvement plan (Berkow et al., 2013).

Healthcare organizations incur significant costs due to the unhealthy work environment and nurse incompetency. Medical facilities can track these costs through turnover, agency utilization, absenteeism, and job dissatisfaction. However, the policymakers can solve the issues easily by addressing the workload issue as highlighted in staff surveys.

In summary, the modern medical facilities struggle operationally and financially. The reasons for these difficulties are multifaceted and complex. Considering this, it is recommendable that the training institution should impart knowledge effectively to eliminate such challenges in the future. The instructors should encourage nursing students to identify their weaknesses and apply the theoretical knowledge to improve their competency. At all levels, lecturers should train students on leadership skills for process improvement.

References

Bellack, J. P., Morjikian, R., Barger, S., Strachota, E., Fitzmaurice, J., Lee, A., ... & O'Neil, E. H. (2011). Developing BSN Leaders for the Future: The Fuld Leadership Initiative for Nursing Education (LINE). Journal of Professional Nursing, 17(1), 23-32.

Berkow, S., Virkstis, K., Stewart, J., & Conway, L. (2013). Assessing New Graduate Nurse Performance. Journal of Nursing Administration, 38(11), 468-474.

Cook, B. W. (2014). Female Support Networks and Political Activism: Lillian Wald, Crystal Eastman, Emma Goldman. London: Rutledge.

Darkins, A., Ryan, P., Kobb, R., Foster, L., Edmonson, E., Wakefield, B., & Lancaster, A. E. (2012). Care Coordination/Home Telehealth: The Systematic Implementation of Health Informatics, Home Telehealth, and Disease Management to Support the Care of Veteran Patients with Chronic Conditions. Telemedicine and e-Health, 14(10), 1118-1126.

Siegel, B. (2013). Lillian Wald of Henry Street. London: Macmillan.