Nurse educators take lead in leadership research programme

I am part of a new journey in establishing a leadership development research programme within the context of a university. Its aim? To establish one of the niche areas of the School of Nursing at the University of the Western Cape. Over the last few years, the focus on leadership development has surfaced in many national health care documents. However, few research-based studies have been implemented in the public health care sector of South Africa. It was decided that self-leadership in professionalism would be the focus of our proposal.

A group of eight nursing lecturers gathered in Franshoek, near Cape Town, where we worked on developing a broad framework for the programme and establishing objectives. It was quite a challenge for so large a group to work together in writing one proposal. Apart from that, it was cold, with snow on the mountains around us—not a common phenomenon in Africa. But, what made the writing retreat a great success was the enthusiasm and commitment members showed in writing a proposal that could benefit the community of nurses in the Western Cape.

The Franshoek collaborators

Writing the proposal was, in itself, an opportunity to develop self-leadership. It served as a tool for helping individual participants think about their own self-leadership, in practice. Group discussions led to the realization that self-leadership expands one’s capacity to be effective, both in leadership roles and processes.

It was wonderful to observe how, in the process of developing a leadership research programme, participants assumed leadership roles and worked together in a productive and meaningful way.

Now, the next step—getting funding for the project!

For Reflections on Nursing Leadership (RNL), published by the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International.

Changing to a new, multicultural environment

Taking a step to change your workplace at age 50 is not an easy thing. For me, however, it was a conscious decision and non-negotiable. South Africa’s Gauteng Province, where I moved from—I came from Pretoria—is a rat race. The Cape, where I moved to, is seen by many as having a slow pace. I think everyone would wish for the latter!

Cape Town attracts people from many cultures, so I’ve found myself working with people from a culture different from my own, one that is entirely new and unfamiliar to me. Indeed, I found myself not only in a new workplace, but also part of the minority culture. It is neither uncomfortable nor a source of stress, and I have actually gained some insight into my own feelings and perceptions.

I’m finding that, by acquiring an understanding of my own cultural patterns and those of my colleagues, I am developing the ability to recognise and handle situations differently. As with any new workplace, it has brought different challenges, issues, policies and ways of doing things, and how I respond has to do with how I view it from “the outside.” Sometimes, I even enjoy the different ways in which my colleagues do things. At one stage in the process, I thought, I actually belong in this new culture. But then I posed a question that put it in a different perspective: Are nurses not all from one culture?

Maybe nurses are one culture working in a multicultural environment. In the context of health care delivery, we are seeking to meet the growing and diverse health care needs of people from diverse cultures worldwide. Or does this sound bizarre?

Well, all I know is, tomorrow is another step in the journey, and I will be welcomed in my workplace by nurse educators who also want to make a positive contribution to the educational development of students.

I believe I have the ability to work simultaneously in two cultures.

For Reflections on Nursing Leadership (RNL), published by the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International.

Taking steps to form partnerships

A workshop is like a partnership, and partnerships were indeed formed during a workshop I presented recently in Cape Town to a group of 12 nursing service managers. Throughout, the underlying dynamics of collaboration and shared leadership were emphasized and enforced.

Designed to develop dialogue between partners by pushing them beyond their comfort zone and challenging their thinking, the workshop exposed these health practitioners to a variety of new legislative measures related to health care delivery and required them to explore differences in the legislation through questioning, prodding and reflecting upon underlying principles. It was an environment that involved voluntary cooperation and commitment.

Workshop participants

As equal partners in the process, the workshop participants felt free to openly air their views. As a result, members shared information, creative ideas and solutions that applied in their work settings that, inter alia, included the specialities of psychiatric nursing, infection control and forensic nursing in healthcare settings of various sizes.

In the various sessions, all participants took an active role in sharing their unique qualities and work responsibilities and how they were professionally accountable in practice. This further enhanced a sense of partnership in identifying shared problems and helped foster suggestions for problem-solving strategies.

Throughout the workshop, participants drew upon previous experiences and personal reflection to coach each other. The opportunity to use past experiences as resources was essential and led to the development of a united team. By valuing the motivational needs of the group and their contributions as partners in health care delivery, all participants felt empowered to accept responsibility for transformation in their health care organisations. The coordination of information between different hospitals and services will lead to future collaboration among participants.

For Reflections on Nursing Leadership (RNL), published by the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International.