Catherine Owens

Nursing is difficult and a profession where you will drown quickly if you do not speak up about what you need. That communication and taking the initiative is part of being a leader. Rosemary did not do that in this situation. An effective leader needs to be able to adapt to different situations and communicate effectively (Yoder-Wise, 2011). It looks as if Rosemary has failed in both of these areas. She may be nervous about speaking up because she is a new nurse, but that needs to be a skill you learn quickly as a nurse, especially a new one. When Rosemary was unable to get ahold of her manager by calling her, she should have emailed or could have talked with the assistant to nail down a time when she could meet with the nurse manager. She needs to be able to problem-solve and think critically.

Leading and management both require action and engagement. Rosemary’s nurse manager did not seem to do either of these things. She sounds as if she is a hands-off type of manager. Our book refers to her leadership style as Laissez-faire, which is not effective in this case (Yoder-Wise, 2011). If her manager were more of a democratic leader, it would be more beneficial. Rosemary could benefit from a democratic leader who could communicate and gather ideas from the people she is managing. I think Rosemary is more of a follower at this point in her career. Hopefully, she can develop the skills she needs to be a leader sooner rather than later. Rosemary can do this by not being afraid to ask for help. She could even ask some of the people who have been there longer, like the LPNs, if she is struggling. Maybe she needs more practice with skills or needs to shadow someone on the day shift to start to feel more comfortable in her role.