Purdue Global University Leader Opinion Discussion

Purdue Global University Leader Opinion Discussion

Purdue Global University Leader Opinion Discussion

Question Description
I need help with a Nursing question. All explanations and answers will be used to help me learn.

Consider a situation where you lead in the healthcare environment. What spurred that leadership role? How did you change through that process? What resources did you consult to help you grow?

Describe a situation in which you were (or wished you could have been) an opinion leader.
What are the characteristics of opinion leaders?
When you consider your current skillset with what you see as an opinion leader, what areas do you need to develop?
In what ways do you see yourself being an opinion leader in your MSN role?
Responses

1( col s) I consider this scenario as an example of a situation where I became an opinion leader. I noticed that nurses in my emergency department have multiple conflicting practices that are outdated and do not fully support Evidenced-Based Practice (EBP). I came across a journal article that corrected common nursing misconceptions and methods through EBP. The EBP study corrected the misconception of placing hypotensive patients in the Trendelenburg (head-down) position. EBP studies show that Trendelenburg positioning does not improve hypotension or hypotensive shock and can even impose a danger on obese patients, increase ICP, and airway compromise (Miller et al., 2015). I decided to print the journal article and hang it in our break room. I encouraged my fellow nurses to read the article. It started a conversation. It became a learning experience for all of us in the department and eventually resulted in positive change. Nurses now place hypotensive patients on supine positioning with their airway protected. The patient’s lower extremities were elevated instead of the head-down position. More nurses followed in sharing EBP findings, they shared their knowledge within the group, and discussions followed. It is exciting to see fellow nurses share their expertise and work as a team.

An opinion leader is an everyday leader that can create positive change through their knowledge, optimistic views, and personality (Anderson & Whall, 2013). Opinion leaders do not have to be in a leadership role. They can be a clinician or any member of the healthcare team. They have excellent clinical and leadership knowledge grasp and are influential because of their optimistic attitude and social skills. They are always opened to helping others, and they create a constructive atmosphere in the organization.

The areas that I need to develop as an opinion leader is to acquire more knowledge. I understand that I need to educate myself first so that I can share this knowledge and influence others to create change. I am in the process of working on my master’s degree so that I can improve myself as a clinician and as a leader. As an opinion leader in my future MSN role, I can see myself always looking for areas of opportunity where I can inspire others for positive change. As a future nurse executive leader, I plan to continuously support the staff, answer their questions, and engage them in providing solutions to problems. I plan to identify issues that affect the staff, patients, or the organization. I will work on these issues through EBP to create positive change. I will not tolerate a culture of intimidation and punitive disciplinary action as these create a hostile working environment and lowers morale. I hope that my MSN education in leadership will equip me with the knowledge and training needed to be a good leader someday.

References:

Anderson, CA, Whall, AL. Nursing opinion leadership: a preliminary model derived from philosophic theories of rational belief. Nurs Philos. 2013 Oct;14(4):271-83. https://doi.org/10.1111/nup.12008. PMID: 24034158.

Miller J, Hayes DD, Carey KW. 20 questions: evidence-based practice or sacred cow? Nursing. 2015;(8):46.https://doi.org/10.1097/01.NURSE.0000469234.84277.95.

2(ho n)Leadership is an important skill to have as one enters the role of APRN. A leader is someone who understands the vision of an organization and is able to influence others and self to make the vision happen (Tracy & O’grady, 2019). I have not had a chance to be in a leadership role in my career. I have been a member of groups to improve the workplace environment and patient’s care and safety in most places I have worked at. I am currently a member of a patients’ safety group in the unit where I work. The manager and other members value my input due to my previous background of travel nursing. They are always willing to hear what kind of safety measures other places use that can be applied on our unit.

The most important characteristic of an opinion leader is being knowledgeable in the field they represent. Leaders are usually great resources that everyone goes to with questions or problem-solving issues (Carpenter & Sherbino, 2010). Three types of networking can help leaders accomplish goals that apply to the organization vision (Ibarra & Hunter, 2019) . Operational networks allow leaders to connect with people within the organization that helps them make plans and execute them. Leaders recognize areas that they lack knowledge of and can resource themselves outside of the organization through personal networking. Through strategic networking, leaders recognize areas that require help and can seek support through other leaders within the organization and have them take the lead.

Knowledge is the skill I need to develop in order to become an opinion leader.I have been a nurse for less than a year and do not consider myself at the capacity of leading. There are still more things I need to learn through experience and education with time. I take advantage of the continuing education and training offered through my organization whether it is mandatory or optional to build my knowledge. Also, the MSN program I am enrolled in is going to provide me with the education I need in order to be a competent Nurse Practitioner and become an opinion leader in the next few years.

References

Carpenter, C., & Sherbino, J. (2010). How does an “opinion leader” influence my practice? Retrieved December 11, 2020, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3217217/

Hamric, A. B., Hanson, C. M., Tracy, M. F., & O’Grady, E. T. (2019). Advanced practice

nursing an integrative approach. Elsevier, Saunders.

Ibarra, H., & Hunter, M. L. (2019, February 07). How Leaders Create and Use Networks, by Herminia Ibarra and Mark Lee Hunter. Retrieved December 11, 2020, from https://hbr.org/2007/01/how-leaders-create-and-use-networks

You must proofread your paper. But do not strictly rely on your computer’s spell-checker and grammar-checker; failure to do so indicates a lack of effort on your part and you can expect your grade to suffer accordingly. Papers with numerous misspelled words and grammatical mistakes will be penalized. Read over your paper – in silence and then aloud – before handing it in and make corrections as necessary. Often it is advantageous to have a friend proofread your paper for obvious errors. Handwritten corrections are preferable to uncorrected mistakes.

Use a standard 10 to 12 point (10 to 12 characters per inch) typeface. Smaller or compressed type and papers with small margins or single-spacing are hard to read. It is better to let your essay run over the recommended number of pages than to try to compress it into fewer pages.

Likewise, large type, large margins, large indentations, triple-spacing, increased leading (space between lines), increased kerning (space between letters), and any other such attempts at “padding” to increase the length of a paper are unacceptable, wasteful of trees, and will not fool your professor.

The paper must be neatly formatted, double-spaced with a one-inch margin on the top, bottom, and sides of each page. When submitting hard copy, be sure to use white paper and print out using dark ink. If it is hard to read your essay, it will also be hard to follow your argument.

ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE CLASS

Discussion Questions (DQ)

Initial responses to the DQ should address all components of the questions asked, include a minimum of one scholarly source, and be at least 250 words.
Successful responses are substantive (i.e., add something new to the discussion, engage others in the discussion, well-developed idea) and include at least one scholarly source.
One or two sentence responses, simple statements of agreement or “good post,” and responses that are off-topic will not count as substantive. Substantive responses should be at least 150 words.
I encourage you to incorporate the readings from the week (as applicable) into your responses.
Weekly Participation

Your initial responses to the mandatory DQ do not count toward participation and are graded separately.
In addition to the DQ responses, you must post at least one reply to peers (or me) on three separate days, for a total of three replies.
Participation posts do not require a scholarly source/citation (unless you cite someone else’s work).
Part of your weekly participation includes viewing the weekly announcement and attesting to watching it in the comments. These announcements are made to ensure you understand everything that is due during the week.
APA Format and Writing Quality

Familiarize yourself with APA format and practice using it correctly. It is used for most writing assignments for your degree. Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for APA paper templates, citation examples, tips, etc. Points will be deducted for poor use of APA format or absence of APA format (if required).
Cite all sources of information! When in doubt, cite the source. Paraphrasing also requires a citation.
I highly recommend using the APA Publication Manual, 6th edition.
Use of Direct Quotes

I discourage overutilization of direct quotes in DQs and assignments at the Masters’ level and deduct points accordingly.
As Masters’ level students, it is important that you be able to critically analyze and interpret information from journal articles and other resources. Simply restating someone else’s words does not demonstrate an understanding of the content or critical analysis of the content.
It is best to paraphrase content and cite your source.
LopesWrite Policy

For assignments that need to be submitted to LopesWrite, please be sure you have received your report and Similarity Index (SI) percentage BEFORE you do a “final submit” to me.
Once you have received your report, please review it. This report will show you grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors that can easily be fixed. Take the extra few minutes to review instead of getting counted off for these mistakes.
Review your similarities. Did you forget to cite something? Did you not paraphrase well enough? Is your paper made up of someone else’s thoughts more than your own?
Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for tips on improving your paper and SI score.
Late Policy

The university’s policy on late assignments is 10% penalty PER DAY LATE. This also applies to late DQ replies.
Please communicate with me if you anticipate having to submit an assignment late. I am happy to be flexible, with advance notice. We may be able to work out an extension based on extenuating circumstances.
If you do not communicate with me before submitting an assignment late, the GCU late policy will be in effect.
I do not accept assignments that are two or more weeks late unless we have worked out an extension.
As per policy, no assignments are accepted after the last day of class. Any assignment submitted after midnight on the last day of class will not be accepted for grading.
Communication

Communication is so very important. There are multiple ways to communicate with me:
Questions to Instructor Forum: This is a great place to ask course content or assignment questions. If you have a question, there is a good chance one of your peers does as well. This is a public forum for the class.
Individual Forum: This is a private forum to ask me questions or send me messages. This will be checked at least once every 24 hours.