Nursing supervisor Kate Dyer was finally forced to admit, at least to herself, t
ID: 383641 • Letter: N
Question
Nursing supervisor Kate Dyer was finally forced to admit, at least to herself, that she was going nowhere in her attempt to get nurse manager Susan Foster to behave as a manager ought to behave. Summarizing the recent occasions on which Susan and her performance had come to Kate’s attention, Kate had assembled the following:
Whenever Kate went through Susan’s unit she found Susan’s desk in disarray and invariably found Susan herself behind in her work.
Susan seemed to experience a great deal of difficulty in making important meetings; she had missed three of the last four nursing management meetings, and at the one she did attend she did not show up until it was half over.
Kate’s specific suggestions as to tasks that Susan might consider delegating to some of her subordinates have apparently been ignored.
Some weeks earlier Kate had asked Susan for a detailed written list showing how the various nursing duties on her floor might be divided among the unit’s staff members. Susan did not comply with the request.
In general, Susan seemed to have but two answers for many of the questions put to her by peers and supervisors alike. To questions that were general and nonthreatening, such as “How is everything going?” she would simply answer, “Just fine.” However, if a question seemed intended to determine why something had not been done, Susan could be counted on to answer, with a pained expression on her face, “I simply haven’t been able to get to it.”
Please answer the followinng questions:
1-Kate might best begin by examining some elements of her own performance and her own leadership style. Cite to two management style qualities that Kate exhibits that might be having an impact on Susan's behavior. Be sure to state why you think that.
2- What appear to be the weakest elements in Kate’s style? Why are they weak?
3- List two or three steps Kate can take to assess whether Susan has the potential to become a truly effective nurse manager?
Explanation / Answer
1. Kate does not seem to exhibit two of the most important qualities required to be exhibited by a manager - Communication and Team Building. Kate should engage with Susan at a much more personal and deeper level. Rather than trying to bring out the negatives of Susan, Kate should try to talk to her to understand the problems she is facing. The problem can be anything like something related to susan's personal life, her health or her general likeness for working or too much of work load.
Susan does not seem to be involved with her team members either. This does not demonstrate good team building skills by Kate because the team lacks Cohesion. She only seems to avoid conversation with her colleagues, by being very brief in her answers to the questions asked.
2. The style of work adopted by Kate does not seem Wholesome but is very superficial. She is trying to judge Susan by parameters like she missed the meetings and is not very organised with her surroundings. She should also consider the contribution by Susan in the one meeting which she did attend, although she was late. Kate seems to have arrived at conclusion about Susan and is only trying to fix the pieces so that Susan is culpable for her wrongs. Kate does not seem to try and understand the background and history of Susan as a person and her Association so far with the organisation.
3. The three steps which Kate should take are-
Have a Frank and honest conversation with Susan to try and understand the problem.
Take feedback from susan's colleagues to better understand her convenience and comfort at her work place.
Have a clear plan of action discussed with Susan to help her become more organised.
Kate should also talk to other team members so that they can go up an extra mile to help Susan and also assign key deliverables to different people. Kate should demonstrate to Susan the benefits of having a rich career as a nurse manager.Kate should exhibit more passion and commitment to her staff and their professional and personal growth.
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