Incivility and Communication

Introduction

Studies show that emotional intelligence is positively correlated to transformational leadership for nursing managers (Spano-Szekely et al., 2016).  For leadership to be effective there must be positive influence on the followers who willingly commit to performance and enhanced outcomes for the patients. In the case scenario supplied, Stacey lacks a lot of leadership qualities that has led to the problems that will be highlighted herein. In this paper, leadership and communication techniques will be discussed in the context of effective nursing management.

Transformational leadership yields commitment among nursing managers because those who are led feel satisfied and therefore are willing to put in extra effort. The incident where Stacey picks on Marie who is rather quiet and withdrawn betrays a lack of emotional intelligence. When communicating unpleasant views or even corrections, it is more prudent for managers to call aside the subordinate in question instead of openly castigating grown people in front of colleagues. The fact that there were wrong prescriptions in Marie’s department does not justify the humiliating experience propagated by Stacey.

Indeed, hospital environments are known to cause anxiety even among seasoned employees because at times cases deal with matters of life and death. During such instances, leadership should promote calmness and rational resolution of problems rather than create panic through aggressive communication and behavior. Health care environments should foster learning from experience rather than promote fear and intimidation through threats of consequences and punishment.

Spano-Szekely and colleagues advocate for positive relationships between the managers and subordinate staff based on education and awareness that aligns with organizational goals to be achieved by effective nurse managers (Spano-Szekely et al., 2016).  Nursing administrators have been advised to consider the education levels of Nurse Managers/NMs because it is needed for effective leadership. Theoretical knowledge from academia equips the nurse managers with knowledge of handling situations that may arise in the course of duty. Experiential knowledge on the other hand, equips nurse managers with tools to act during actual crisis. Both classroom learning and situational experiences contribute to the effectiveness of nurses and their managers.

Incivility refers to behavior that is discourteous and that disregards the respectful treatment of others. Stacey’s behavior exhibits incivility because despite Marie having the admiration and respect of those in her department, she takes the opportunity to call her and everyone else incompetent.Effective communication does not comprise of shouting and humiliating others but rather on building mutual respect and consensus even when things go wrong.

That being said, studies also indicate that the laissez faire type of leadership is negatively correlated to extra effort and effectiveness (Spano-Szekely et al, 2016). This is because such leaders do not inspire others and they let things happen on their own. In the absence of direction provided by good leaders, recklessness and neglect may result and no one is there to be held accountable.

Conclusion

In conclusion, good leadership of nurse managers should be characterized by emotional intelligence which promotes respect and cooperation. Communication should be respectful and courteous rather than managers exhibiting incivility during tough situations.