News and presentations from today's Effective Ward Manager conference chaired by Wendy Preston
Head of Nursing Practice The Royal College of Nursing.
In her opening presentation Wendy gave an update on staffing on the wards and the RCN nursing workforce standards which have been released as part of the safe staffing campaign. The standards look at how we drive and influence legislative change. Currently in England there is no one accountable for staffing. The standards outline what should be happening in workplaces to ensure the delivery of safe and effective patient care. They support you and your colleagues to recognise issues around staffing levels and know when to raise concerns. The standards are grouped in 3 key themes, lots of work will be going out to RCN reps which will provide you with lots of detail that you can use to influence your business case i.e. increasing your uplift hours. The standards say why there should be a registered nurse lead, they should be 100% supervisory.
Developing your role as a Ward Manager: A Lived Experience
Liam Button Charge Nurse/Ward Manager
Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• what I wish I’d known
• tips and advice for aspiring Ward Managers
• leading by example
• the highs and the lows of the role
• the challenges of leading through Covid-19
EXTENDED SESSION: Developing your Ward Leadership skills
Sally Bassett Chair RCN Nursing, Management and Leadership Forum
Lecturer in Leadership Oxford Brookes University
• understanding and developing your leadership skills
• developing leadership qualities and behaviours against a framework
• the role of coaching and mentoring
• ensuring a wider understanding of the whole organisation/system in which ward managers work
Sally discussed how leaders develop on 3 dimensions: Knowing, Doing and Being. She said one of the most important things is to be kind, but that can be hard to do and we all have different values. It’s worth going through with your team what really matters to everyone. Sally defined the difference between leadership and management saying management is based on a degree of predictability and planning ahead, whereas leadership is dealing with change, problem solving. You need to recognise when to change your style and approach. Leadership is about influencing a person or group to go in a particular directions.
Sally said we need nursing leadership to protect the public and to ensure joy in the workplace. It’s important you are working in a blame free, safe environment.