need lots of mgt advice----wanna online mentor??

KatRNagain · Sep 3, 2004

Hello,
I hope others find this thread and join in as in a management position you often feel like an island. I have been in a management position for the past 2 years, having been a house supervisor before that, charge nurse and bedside RN, and bedside LPN. Wow, it's only been 10 years and that sure made me feel old. I'm on the same unit I've been on since I was a student and see myself always home here. The staff joke about me going to work when I leave the hospital each night. My biggest challenge, as I moved from each role, was the behavior of people who moved from LPN to RN right along about 1 year or 2 behind me. They have been my biggest challenge. They make it to where I don't want to come in to work sometimes if I know they are there. I've tried to keep up the team concept, but I'm at the point where I just wanna say, "sounds like a personal problem". I know I'm a great manager because the staff tell me. When I screw up, they know they can tell me that too. My Director and I make a great team. She's made the unit the best I've seen it in the 10 years. But it's hard to come to work everyday when you've got a small group of people who are bent on making your day miserable. It's even worse when 1 of them is an equal.

I would be interested in how you handle this. I've been a nurse manager on my unit for a little over a month. Once the challenge of learning the ropes was over, I've had to do nothing but deal with the "she's touching me, he's touching me" kindergarten bickering. We are going to try some team building in-services, but short of that, I don't know what to do.

RNPATL, DNP, RN · Sep 3, 2004

I think any new manager needs to establish themselves as an individual that is fair, honest and consistent. Most nurse managers have little experience in management and can really mess up. Many nurses have been subjected to this poor leadership and over time they develop a leadership or manager phobia .... the common thing I hear is .... "we don't need to change a thing ... he or she will be gone (like the rest of them were) in a matter of months and then we can go back to doing what we were doing." As a new manager, being able to establish repor and decent communication with the staff is probably the single most important thing to do.

I was asked recently by one of my nurses (I just re-entered nursing management and am running a great MS unit) ...."how do you know where to start with so many issues that need to be addressed?" My response to her was, "I listen to the nurses." Really, that is all it is. Listen, observe and inquire ..... those simple tips and tools are what you need to be successful. Another thing that I have found helpful is asking the nurses on a daily basis if they have the tools and equipment they need to do the job. It is amazing how nurses survive out there with little tools and equipment. Something as simple as taking vital signs can take a lot of time if the equipment is not working. Nothing is more frustrating to a nurse than not having functional equipment.

As a manager, I not only see myself as a patient advocate, but I see my role as one that makes the lives of the nurses a little better. For me, if the nurses are happy (within reason) ... then, it is my hope and belief that patient's benefit from better care.

Just my 2 cents for what it is worth.

steff_rn1 · Oct 7, 2004

I totally agree with the last reply. I think the most important part of being a nurse manager is to listen to your employees, ask their opinions, and pitch in when times are tough. I have gained respect (and cooperation) from my employees by asking their opinions when their is a problem and considering their input in my decisions. My staff also knows that if there is a crisis (even short of staff), I will pitch in and help. This makes them feel that we are all a team and work together. Of course, I still have the "problem children". I just try to make myself available to the staff, talk to them when they have concerns, and address the problems at hand. I feel this has helped me to develop a very good rapport and working relationship with the staff. I have been told many times that the managers before me would "never help someone to the bathroom" or never help the nurse on the floor with orders. I think, that as managers, you should remember where you came from and not think of yourself as on a higher level than the staff under you. Good luck with your position. It takes a very special, people oriented person to be a manager.:)

I think any new manager needs to establish themselves as an individual that is fair, honest and consistent. Most nurse managers have little experience in management and can really mess up. Many nurses have been subjected to this poor leadership and over time they develop a leadership or manager phobia .... the common thing I hear is .... "we don't need to change a thing ... he or she will be gone (like the rest of them were) in a matter of months and then we can go back to doing what we were doing." As a new manager, being able to establish repor and decent communication with the staff is probably the single most important thing to do.
I was asked recently by one of my nurses (I just re-entered nursing management and am running a great MS unit) ...."how do you know where to start with so many issues that need to be addressed?" My response to her was, "I listen to the nurses." Really, that is all it is. Listen, observe and inquire ..... those simple tips and tools are what you need to be successful. Another thing that I have found helpful is asking the nurses on a daily basis if they have the tools and equipment they need to do the job. It is amazing how nurses survive out there with little tools and equipment. Something as simple as taking vital signs can take a lot of time if the equipment is not working. Nothing is more frustrating to a nurse than not having functional equipment.
As a manager, I not only see myself as a patient advocate, but I see my role as one that makes the lives of the nurses a little better. For me, if the nurses are happy (within reason) ... then, it is my hope and belief that patient's benefit from better care.
Just my 2 cents for what it is worth.