Course Materials: Jeff Todd Titon et al. Worlds of Music: An Introduction to the Music of the World’s Peoples, Shorter Version/3rd Edition. Belmont, Ca.: Schirmer,2009, ISBN: 978-0=495-57010-3 (includes 3 audio CDs).
A minimum of 250 words for each threaded discussion is required for your answer to each discussion question. Students may post anytime during the week to either discussion.
Why did the Marquis Wen (p. 253) more than two thousand years ago find ancient music boring, and what has changed in our listening attitudes since then?
Is this true in Western music culture, too? Please cite examples.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Listening Attitudes in Music
During a conversation with Zi Xia, a Confucian scholar, Marquis Wen asks him why he finds it quite boring to listen to ancient music as opposed to the new music from other kingdoms, such as the Wei and Zheng kingdoms. Marquis Wen informs him that whenever he listens to ancient music, he immediately lies down and is asleep within no minute. He does not find the ancient music appealing at all, and according to him, it only serves to tire people and put them to sleep. Zi Xia explains that the ancient music is quite peaceful, moves according to the rhythm of the drums and at a steady beat and speed. From the start of the music to the end piece, it moves cleanly with peaceful sounds.
New music on the other hand, is quite chaotic and uneven, and it is this lack of harmony that keeps Wen awake. Zi Xia further explains to Wen that what he hears when he listens to new music is airs or just sound and not music (Tan, 2008). Ancient music was filled with history, culture, and deep information about the achievements of ancient rulers. It provided guidance on managing family life, personal growth and development, and living peacefully with others.
Judging from the conversation between Zi Xia and Marquis Wen above, it is quite clear that the music of today is quite unlike what was there, in ancient times. Zi Xia describes new music as chaotic and full of vile and unrighteous elements (PureInsight.org, 2012). It is not beneficial to its listeners, and only gets worse with each new generation. Just like Wen, the current western culture listens to the airs and not the music, which indicates that listening attitudes have not changed much since the ancient times.
Criteria Fill in the answers in this column.
Demographics: Provide initials of the RN, official job title of interviewee, and the date the interview was conducted. CF, RN, 08/08/2014
Required Questions
(answer EVERY question in this section)
1. Describe your career path to your current position. Include information about education and experiences. I earn my Bachelor’s in Nursing degree in a basis regular program of 4 years that typically focuses on the sciences and principles of nursing career practice.
I have been a nurse for 22 years. My first 12 years were spent working in Labor and Delivery and I have spent the past 10 years on the Mother Baby unit. This past December I took a Clinical Unit Leader (CUL) position on the Mother Baby Unit. Our OB unit is very busy.
2. Discuss the value of best evidence as a driving force in delivery of nursing care at your facility. You can’t turn around in nursing without encountering the term
Evidence-Based Practice (EBP).
Many computer systems are now installed with software called Computerized Decision Support (CDS). In the very near future, we can expect to see more computers with hyperlinks or guidelines for evidence based practice. Nurses are so important in the development of CDS. We have the knowledge and skills to provide guidance to nurses in practice. Nursing informatics is a growing field and nurses are strongly recognized as vital to the information technology of the future!
Standardization goes a long way in not only meeting the financial needs of the organization, but also the improved patient safety and care objectives. We can all agree that the ultimate goal of standardization is, in fact, patient safety resulting from clear, concise communication of evidence-based clinician instructions.
Use of a standardized nursing language for documentation of nursing care is vital both to the nursing profession and to the bedside/direct care nurse. Some of the benefits and advantages for the direct care/bedside nurse would include: better communication among nurses and other health care providers, increased visibility of nursing interventions, improved patient care, enhanced data collection to evaluate nursing care outcomes, greater adherence to standards of care, and facilitated assessment of nursing competency.
3. What safeguards and decision-making support tools are embedded in patient care technologies and information systems that support safe practice at your facility? Throughout the years technology has evolved to shape the nursing profession by moving from manual applications to now technology driven. Technology has evolved from nurses having to manually calculate IV drip rate to now using an IV pump when administering IV solution or certain medications , Nurses also had to manually calculate medications then go to the pharmacy and get the medications now with the EHR system in place most of the units the nurse uses the pic system when administering medications. Positive aspects of using the EHR and pic system when administering medications is when properly used this system help to prevent medication errors and provide clear and concise documentation from the physician order to the nurse charting what and how much medication was given . Negative aspect is that a nurse can possible administer too much of the medication by not verifying the correct dosage or order or simple not following the 6 rights to medication administration.
4. Tell me about patient care technologies that have improved patient care at your facility. Data from monitors of physiological processes can be integrated into an electronic record. Some monitoring systems require that the client be connected in some way to the device. For client assessments, nurses use ecg rhythms, cardiac output, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, and other measurable data. This data can be integrated into the patient’s medical record.
Monitoring systems that use wireless technology enable automatic nurse-paging capabilities when client measurements fall outside normal parameters. For example, a patient connected to a centralized telemetry system experiences a run of multifocal premature ventricular contractions. The monitoring system immediately pages the nurse. If the nurse fails to respond in a specified time, the system sends pages to other nurses working on the unit.
This enables a faster response to abnormal findings. Advanced technology is improving healthcare by leaps and bounds.
5. What groups of healthcare workers rely on you to collect high-quality information or data and how is it utilized? As we move to toward greater interoperability and sharing data within networks, it will become even more critical to involve the nursing staff in identifying and understanding the value and uses, as well as the input and other requirements, of information included in the record. Nurses are an essential part of the team and play critical role of the nurse in implementation of the EHR.
Optional Questions
(Answer only ONE question from the choices below.)
1. Please tell me what challenges you have faced in dealing with other disciplines who may not “understand the needs of nurses/nursing?”
2. Please share an example of how GIGO (garbage in, garbage out) impacted a decision related to your information or data collection.
3. Please give me an example of how the lack of interprofessional collaboration impacted your role.
4. Please describe what a typical day on the job is like for you.
Follow-Up Questions
(Answer all of these. Please do not ask them during the interview.
Instead, reflect and answer them afterwards.)
1. How will completing this interview impact your practice as a BSN-prepared nurse? Give specific examples.
2. Resources (scholarly articles or texts). Indicate 2 scholarly resources or texts used prior to the interview to familiarize yourself with the individual’s organization, role, or any of the questions you asked to make you a more knowledgeable interviewer. Resource #1:
Resource # 2:
SAMPLE ANSWER
Interview with Nursing Information Expert
Interviewer Form
Your Name:Date:
Your Instructor’s Name:
Directions: After completing your interview, you must use this form to submit your assignment to the Dropbox. You may use the form to capture information as you conduct your interview, or fill it in later. The form is expandable and will enlarge the textbox to accommodate your answers. Do not rely only on this form for everything you must include! Please look in Doc Sharing for specific instructions in the Guidelines for this assignment.
Criteria
Fill in the answers in this column.
Demographics: Provide initials of the RN, officialjob title of interviewee, and the date the interview was conducted.
RN, Nurse, 08/08/2014
Required Questions
(answer EVERY question in this section)
1. Describe your career path to your current position. Include information about education and experiences.
I pursued a Bachelor’s degree in nursing for four years, whereby I focused on sciences and principles of nursing career practice. I have practiced nursing for 22 years working in various units, such as Labor, Delivery unit, and Mother Baby unit. I enrolled for a Clinical Unit Leaders course in one the units last December to increase my knowledge base.
2. Discuss the value of best evidence as a driving force in delivery of nursing care at your facility.
Evidence-based practice has become valuable and a driving force in delivery of nursing care in my facility in many ways. It has contributed to achievement of the goals as it has enabled clear and effective communication of instruction. Quality of healthcare has improved through better communication among nurses and other health providers; it has enhanced data collection aimed at evaluating nurse outcomes and helped in facilitating assessment of nursing competency.
3. What safeguards and decision-making support tools are embedded in patient care technologies and information systems that support safe practice at your facility?
Technologies have evolved in healthcare over the years. Various safeguards and decision-making support tools exist to support safe practice. One of them is the use of IV pump instead of IV drip in administering of Medications or IV solution. EHR and pic systems are also new technologies that are used to enhance service delivery.
4. Tell me about patient care technologies that have improved patient care at your facility.
Various patient care technologies exist and aim to improve quality of practice. Some of them are ECG rhythms, blood pressure, cardiac output, oxygen saturation, and other measurable data. Other technologies are centralized telemetry system that monitor the state of a patient. The system is able to relay information to other nurses in the unit in case the nurse assigned to a patient fails.
5. What groups of healthcare workers rely on you to collect high-quality information or data and how is it utilized?
Nurses are the group of healthcare workers that rely on me to collect high quality information. I have the requisite skills and knowledge in data collection and, therefore, able to render better services. The data is utilized differently including, research, to understand the health condition of the patient, and in making decisions concerning the medication of the patient among many others.
Optional Questions
(Answer only ONE question from the choices below.)
1. Please tell me what challenges you have faced in dealing with other disciplines who may not “understand the needs of nurses/nursing?”
I have faced a number of challenges dealing with other disciplines that do not understand the needs of nursing. One of the challenges is insufficient knowledge in other areas assigned. This deterred me from delivering quality work. Further challenge is lack of teamwork among the members. I, therefore, could not deliver quality services. Communication barriers and different cultural backgrounds have also been a challenge, since working with other colleagues that come from different backgrounds brings a cultural diversity complication.
2. Please share an example of how GIGO (garbage in, garbage out) impacted a decision related to your information or data collection.
3. Please give me an example of how the lack of interprofessional collaboration impacted your role.
4. Please describe what a typical day on the job is like for you.
Follow-Up Questions
(Answer all of these. Please do not ask them during the interview.
Instead, reflect and answer them afterwards.)
1. How will completing this interview impact your practice as a BSN-prepared nurse? Give specific examples.
Completing this interview will enable me understand the scope of knowledge and skills I have. It will enable me to appreciate the skills I need to acquire to render my services well. I will be able to get versed with new technologies available in healthcare and how they are used to enhance quality healthcare.
2. Resources (scholarly articles or texts). Indicate 2 scholarly resources or texts used prior to the interview to familiarize yourself with the individual’s organization, role, or any of the questions you asked to make you a more knowledgeable interviewer.
Assignment: respond to student 1 and student 2 separately in one of the following ways:
•Validate your colleague’s analysis of important factors for developing and leading an effective team with your own personal experience as a team leader or team member. Explain how your example validates your colleague’s viewpoint.
•Extend the conversation by providing an additional resource on leading an effective team, and explain how that resource either supports or refutes your colleague’s viewpoint.
•Critique your colleague’s analysis, and offer additional insight by explaining how environment might affect one of the factors he or she chose.
Be sure to include at least one additional scholarly reference to support each response.
Student #1
The team leadership can be effective if both the leaders as well as team members consider the following factors.
Shared Goals and objectives
The team goals and objectives must be stated clearly. The team members must be committed to these goals in order to accomplish the given task. The team commitment is achieved by engaging all the team members particularly on the definition of goals and objectives that relates to their main aim (Ledlow & Coppola, 2011).
Utilization of Resources
The ultimate aim of a certain team is to ensure all their operations are effective. This is attained through use of its resources at disposal efficiently. Therefore, they must establish an environment that tolerates personal resources to be employed. Each member must be allowed to contribute any relevant information or ideas in order to sustain the rational argument of the team. Additionally, utmost utilization of team members calls for complete participation as well as self-regulation (Bleak & Fulmer, 2009).
Trust and Conflict Resolution
Since there must be disagreement among the team members, the aptitude to identify conflict and to look for resolution ways through discussion is a critical role for a team to succeed. For a team leadership to prosper effectively, members must deal with their emotional and interpersonal issues with a feel of common trust and respect in order to resolve inevitable conflicts among them.
Ledlow, G. R., & Coppola, M. N. (2011). Leadership for health professionals: Theory, skills, and applications. Sudbury, Mass: Jones and Bartlett.
Student # 2
In order to manage a team effective, trust has to be established. It is one of the important aspects of developing a team. Having trust in a team is a critical element that allow team members to bond and work together. A leader need to also be able to listen, coach, mentor effective delegating and conflict resolution (Turaga, 2013). Creating a culture of trust requires the seven Cs of trust, capability, character, commitment, consistency, and connection that a team should represent. A team must have open and honest communication because this allows the team to get to know one another. Members can take ownership of his or her task and responsibilities, (Turaga, 2013).
According to Sadler (2003), leadership involves the mobilization of different resources towards the achievement of a shared goal or objective. Leadership is a never-ending process where the leader continuously applies his knowledge and skills into inspiring his followers (Sadler, 2003). As stated by Student #1, having and working towards a shared objective represents one of the key characteristics of an effective team. In order to be an effective team leader, it is imperative that one ensures that the team he heads has the same vision for the good of the group. This way, all the other factors such as trust and conflict resolution fall into place all on their own. In addition, benefits accrue such as better time management, efficient resource utilization, and effective service delivery among several others.
From personal experience, I have witnessed the chaos that arises when team members do not share or are not aware of the goal of their team. At the time, we as team members did not know what we were working towards, and as such, most of our input to the group would either be irrelevant or ambiguous to the situation. Instead of addressing this situation, the team leader would critique or turn down any such input without explanations, resulting in a lot of mistrust and conflict among members. In the end, we came to learn that having a shared goal acts as a reference point to which all members must refer, and this is exceedingly vital in team leadership.
According to Student #2, some of the key characteristics of an effective leader encompass “listening, coaching, delegating, mentoring, and conflict resolution” (Turaga, 2013). A leader who possesses these qualities recognizes the significance of having a strong team, and as such, does all he can to ensure the growth and development of each team member. An effective leader is one who knows his strengths and weaknesses and the limits to which he can operate. Effective leadership can be measured not by the successes of the leader, but by that of the followers. A good team leader also knows the people he leads. From time to time, he may need to employ different leadership styles when dealing with different team members.
Another vital resource for effective team leadership is open communication channels and feedback. Most teams comprise of members with different insights, perspectives, and backgrounds, which if not managed properly may result into conflict. According to studies on the subject, in a majority of cases, conflict among members stem from either inadequate information or lack of communication (Leanne E. Atwater, 2012). It is upon the team leader to ensure that open channels of communication exist, and all team members receive adequate feedback, whether positive or negative, for every input they present.
In summary, both students’ responses are quite insightful, but not exhaustive. They are several other factors that influence effective leadership, such as situation, environment, and communication that they have not addressed. With regard to the environment, it is imperative that the leader knows that the leadership style adopted varies with the environment within which the team operates (Stringer, 2002). In addition, there may be situations when some team members may fall behind or need to be motivated, and this may require a lot of diligence and patience on the part of the team leader. An effective team leader will use his judgment to determine the best course of action that guarantees effectively
References
Leanne E. Atwater, D. A. (2012). Leadership, Feedback and the Open Communication Gap. New York: Psychology Press.
Sadler, P. (2003). Leadership. London: Kogan Page Publishers.
Stringer, R. A. (2002). Leadership and Organizational Climate: The Cloud Chamber Effect. New York: Prentice Hall.
Turaga, R. (2013). Building Trust in Teams: A Leader’s Role. IUP Journal of Soft Skills, 7 (2), 13-31.
We can write this or a similar paper for you! Simply fill the order form!
ANALYSIS OF RESEARCH DATA
Analyzing Quantitative Data
Previously you discussed how data is collected. Now you will consider how the information gathered with data collected is analyzed.
How does the researcher go about organizing and looking at the data in order to understand what it means? In quantitative research this is accomplished through the use of statistics.
The methods for data analysis depend on the purpose and data collection methods. Most all studies will have descriptive statistics. These statistics describe the sample that was studied. They include data like the percent of men and women, the mean age of the sample, and any other demographic data collected.
The two other most common methods of data analysis are the paired t-test, which measures the differences in means between two groups, or the same group with a pretest and posttest; and the Pearson’s r which measures the relationships between two variables. Pearson’s r can also be used to identify relationships between demographic data and other variables.
Activities
REQUIRED ACTIVITIES
From your textbooks, read:
Introduction to Nursing Research Incorporating Evidence-Based Practice
• Chapter 12
• Chapter 13
Please look up and read the following articles before completing the critique of this paper
• Coughlan, M., Cronin, P., & Ryan, F. (2007). Step-by-step guide to critiquing research. Part 1: quantitative research. British Journal Of Nursin, (BJN), 16(11), 658–663.
• Giuliano, K., & Polanowicz, M. (2008). Interpretation and use of statistics in nursing research. AACN Advanced Critical Care, 19(2),211–222
• Ingham-Broomfield, R. (2008). A nurses’ guide to the critical reading of research. Australian Journal Of Advanced Nursing, 26(1), 102-109.
Please review the following websites.
Please visit the following sites to understand statistics and nursing research:
KuKanich, K. S., Kaur, R., Freeman, L., & Powell, D. A. (2013). Evaluation of a Hand Hygiene Campaign in Outpatient Health Care Clinics. AJNonline; 113(3).
Problem:
What is the problem the study was conducted to research?
Many research studies conducted earlier have tested the interventions for improving hand hygiene within teaching hospitals and clinics and the interventions were found to be successful. Nonetheless, moderately few research studies have actually tested such interventions within outpatient hospitals and clinics.
Why is the problem an important one for nursing to research?
The problem is an important for nursing to research primarily because it will help to improve adherence to hand hygiene practices of health care workers in outpatient settings.
Study Purpose
What is the purpose of the study?
The purpose of the research study is essentially to improve hand hygiene in 2 outpatient healthcare clinics by introducing an informational posters as well as a gel sanitizer (Kukanich et al., 2013).
Research Question
What is the main research question?
The researchers formulated 5 main/primary questions that were to be addressed in the study. These include the following:
Could an intervention campaign carried out in 2 outpatient healthcare clinics result in improved hand hygiene?
Are there any dissimilarities in the observed frequency of hand hygiene at baseline compared with that at 1 week and 1 month after introducing the intervention?
Are there any dissimilarities in the observed frequency of hand hygiene basing on the gender, profession, and timing (post-patient and pre-patient contact) of the worker?
Which tools of hand hygiene do healthcare staffs in these settings – outpatient settings – prefer?
Would the observed healthcare staffs later on report that both or either intervention tools were actually motivating and indeed influenced habits of hand hygiene?
Hypothesis/hypotheses
What is the study hypothesis? If it is not stated, what would you say the hypothesis is?
Interventional campaigns in the 2 outpatient health care clinics will lead to improved hand hygiene. The use of a multifaceted implementation approach that consists of a gel sanitizer and giving informational posters helps in achieving significant improvement in adherence to HH practices and practices within outpatient clinics.
Study Variables
INDEPENDENT
Define the meaning of the term “independent variable.”
Independent variables (IV) are those variables which are manipulated or varied by the researcher during the investigation. In essence, the IV is the presumed cause, it is the antecedent. In experiments, the IV is the one which is manipulated and controlled by the person doing the experiment. In non-experiment research in which there is no experimental manipulation, the IV is basically the variable that logically has some effect on the Dependent Variable (Hoe & Hoare, 2012).
Identify the independent variables in this study and provide a definition of the variable.
It is notable that 2 outpatient health care clinics were used in this research study. The 1st clinic was an outpatient oncology clinic, and the 2nd clinic was an outpatient gastrointestinal (GI) clinic. The IV in this study basically comprised the introduction of an informational poster and a gel sanitizer as an intervention.
How is the independent variable carried out in this study?
Gel sanitizer was included in this study in order to provide HCWs with an alternative to foam sanitizer and water and soap. The researcher’s created an informational poster in order to increase HCW’s awareness of HH, offer information regarding when HH has to be done, and encourage HCWs to take personal responsibility for decreasing the spread of infections which are associated with health care (Kukanich et al., 2013).
DEPENDENT
Define the meaning of the term “dependent variable.”
A Dependent Variable (DV) is understood as the response which is measured in an experiment. The DV is the presumed effect, it is the consequent. The Dependent Variable is not manipulated by the investigator, rather, it is the Dependent Variable which is measured or observed for variation as a presumed, supposed outcome of the variation in the Independent Variable (Venkatesh, Brown & Bala, 2013). The Dependent Variable is essentially the status of the outcome or the effect in which the investigator is interested. In essence, the DV is the variable that the researcher observes and is likely to change in response to the IV.
Identify the dependent variables in this study and provide a definition of the variable.
In this study, the DV is the adherence of health care workers – doctors, nurses, and other workers in the hospital setting – to hand hygiene practices and guidelines.
How is the dependent variable measured in this study?
The DV variable was measured by directly observing HCWs to measure HH opportunities as well as attempts at baseline, after the intervention, and in the course of the follow-up period. Direct observation by trained observers is essential in providing more precise, exact information as regards the preferences of a health care worker for hand hygiene tools. The investigators measured the number of HH attempts against the number of HH opportunities. The opportunities were monitored by direct observers who recorded the attempts. HH opportunities were defined as the opportunities which occurred instantaneously prior to, and after a HCW directly contacts a patient. HH attempts are efforts to do HH in each opportunity (Kukanich et al., 2013).
Conceptual Model/Theoretical FRAMEWORK –
Is the framework explicitly expressed or must the reviewer extract the framework from implicit statements in the literature review? JUSTIFY your response!
In this research study, the conceptual model/theoretical framework is not explicitly expressed. The reviewer has to extract the framework from implicit statements in the literature review. This is because it is not overtly or clearly stated by the authors anywhere in the article and to know it; the reviewer must read through the statements contained in the literature review.
Is the framework based on scientific, substantive, or tentative theory?
The theoretical framework in the article is based on tentative theory; the researchers built tentative theory basing on certain propositions.
Does the framework identify, define, and describe relationships among the concepts of interest? Provide examples and rationale for your response.
Yes, the framework identifies, defines and describes relationships amongst the concepts of interest. For instance, the researchers have pointed out that an earlier hospital-wide study included the promotion of alcohol-based sanitizers, which led to increased usage of these hand sanitizers that resulted in improved adherence to HH guidelines. Simply put, there was a relationship between the promotion of alcohol-based sanitizers and improved adherence to HH guidelines; the more it was promoted, the more the HCWs in that hospital used it. Another example is the relationship between alcohol-based sanitizers, soap and water, and bacteria. When properly used, studied have demonstrated that alcohol-based sanitizers are more effective in removing some bacteria relative to water and soap (Kukanich et al., 2013).
How is the framework related to the body of knowledge in nursing?
The framework is related to the body of knowledge of nursing in that it helps in understanding how exposure of HCWs in busy outpatient healthcare settings to interventional tools could result in improvement of adherence to HH guidelines. It also helps to understand how gel sanitizers or informational posters help to improve adherence.
Review of the Related Literature
Are the articles relevant with previous studies and theories described?
Yes, the articles are relevant with previous studies and theories described. This because the articles are largely about adherence of HCWs to HH guidelines, which are in line with the previous theories and studies described which are also about the same thing – adherence of HCWs to guidelines of hand hygiene.
Are the references current? Identify the number of sources within past 10 years and the number of sources within past five years.
A total of 28 references were used by the researchers in this study. Most of them are relevant since out of the 28, 18 of them are from past the 10 years – dated 2004 up to present year –, and 5 are from the last 5 years – 2009 up to present year.
Describe the current knowledge about the research problem.
The practice of hand hygiene (HH) by healthcare workers (HCWs) including nurses and physicians using either water and soap or an alcohol-based hand sanitizer, is regarded as the most effective and significant method utilized to prevent healthcare-associated infections. Earlier studies have clearly shown that hand hygiene helps to reduce the rates of healthcare-related infections, adhering to the guidelines of hand hygiene is low amongst HCWs. In order to improve the adherence to HH guidelines and sustain such improvement in the long-term, it is important to recognize and address barriers. The main barriers basically include: a perception that HH interferes with patient-worker relationships; skin irritation; poor habits that were learned early in life; time constraints; poor access to HH materials; time constraints; forgetfulness; as well as lack of knowledge of HH guidelines (Huis et al., 2013).
Cleaning hands using an alcohol-based sanitizer usually takes less amount of time compared with washing with the use of water and soap. In addition, when utilized properly, it has been demonstrated that alcohol-based sanitizers are more effective compared to water and soap in eliminating some bacteria. It is on account of this that the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) actually recommend the utilization of alcohol-based sanitizers or hand rubs for clinical healthcare contexts. Nonetheless, washing hands using water and soap is still the favored way when hands are noticeably dirty. It is also the preferred method whenever one suspects contact with some infectious agents, for instance norovirus and Clostridium agents, considering that these organisms are very much resistant to killing with the use of alcohol (Boudjema et al., 2014).
Individual HCWs generally have dissimilar preferences of HH products and they can be affected to some extent by dissimilar barriers and motivators to HH. Santos (2013) noted that it has been shown by earlier studies that the use of more than one method is necessary in order to attain improved HH practices and sustain them over the long-term. In essence, such campaigns typically comprise the promotion of alcohol-based hand sanitizers. Even though evidence is lacking showing that educational materials alone for instance posters are actually effective at altering behavior of HCWs to adhere to HH guidelines, those which employ messages framed in terms of possible gains instead of losses and which entreat the HCW’s sense of responsibility for the health of the patient might be of benefit in combination with other vital strategies.
Specify the gap in the literature that justifies the need for the research.
There is little or very limited knowledge about the adherence of HCWs in busy outpatient settings to hand hygiene guidelines. There is also gap in knowledge regarding the effectiveness of using gel sanitizers and informational posters in the overall HH performance of HCWs within outpatient clinics. This study was aimed at addressing this gap in existing knowledge.
Many research studies have tested interventions that can be applied to improve HH in teaching hospitals and it was found that they were actually successful. Nonetheless, fairly few studies have tested these sorts of intervention within outpatient clinics. Mensah (2005) in their study which they carried out in outpatient clinics in Britain observed that baseline HH adherence was 18 percent. In a different research study carried out in an outpatient clinic in Israel, Cohen (2002) observed the behavior of doctors and sampled their hands for bacteria, although there was no intervention that was introduced. Observance to HH was low at just 31 percent. It was also observed that 69 percent of the doctors had Stapholococcus aureus in their hands. Some of the reasons that doctors cite for not adhering to HH guidelines include the absence of hygiene facilities, lack of awareness, too much workloads, as well as negative reactions to disinfectants (KuKanich et al., 2013).
Study METHODOLOGY
NAME the specific quantitative methodology of the study.
Observation is the specific quantitative methodology that was applied by the researchers. At times one cannot control a situation, and conducting an experiment is typically not feasible. Nonetheless, it might be probable to observe what goes on.
Provide a clear description/definition of this methodology (in your own words); use an article or your text to support the definition and provide a citation.
Quantitative observation is basically an observation that could be measured in numbers for instance length, volume, and acceleration. In essence, quantitative observations are usually made using instruments (Lubbe & Roets, 2014). They are observations observed of data in numbers; objects are counted or measured and are commonly with numbers.
Why was the choice of this methodology appropriate for this study? JUSTIFY your response.
The choice of observation quantitative methodology is appropriate for this study since the researchers has to collect data through observations. They needed to observe the subjects/participants in order to monitor the HH opportunities and to record the HH attempts of the HCWs in the 2 clinics.
Sample and Setting
Identify inclusion and exclusion sample criteria.
The inclusion criteria included the following: (i) the participant had to be a health care worker; (ii) the participant had to be working at either GI clinic or at the oncology clinic; (iii) the subject had to be a nurse or a physician; and (iv) the subject has to be aware of hand hygiene practices. The exclusion criteria: (i) the individual not being a health worker; (ii) the participant not working at either GI clinic or at the oncology clinic; (iii) the individual not being either a nurse or a physician.
Indicate the method used to obtain the sample. Provide a definition of the method and discuss why it was an appropriate choice for this study
The sampling method utilized by the researchers in this study is purposive sampling. Purposive sampling is essentially a sampling method in which the researcher samples with a purpose in mind. The researcher would typically have 1 or more precise groups that he/she is seeking. Purposive sampling is essentially a kind of non-probability sampling wherein some elements of population do not have any chance of selection, or in which the probability of selection cannot be established accurately (Yarcheski & Mahon, 2013).
Purposive sampling method was appropriate in this research study since the researchers started with a purpose in mind; they wanted a certain predefined group – health care workers in busy outpatient clinics. As such, they only had to sample individuals who are health care workers working in outpatient clinics.
State the sample size. Indicate if a power analysis was conducted to determine the sample size.
This study included a sample size of 88 participants: 41 HCWs at the GI clinic and 47 HCWs at the oncology clinic. Power analysis was not performed to determine the size of the sample.
Identify the SPECIFIC characteristics (demographics) of the sample.
The demographic in this study is defined in terms of gender. Survey was conducted in which 56 HCWs were sent questionnaire survey: 15 from the GI clinic and 41 from the oncology clinic. Of the 56 respondents, 30 were females while 26 were male.
Identify the sample mortality (or attrition) number and percentage.
Sample attrition or mortality is understood as the number of individuals who drop out of the research study in the course of the study. Initially, 88 health care workers were mailed questionnaire survey and only 56 of them returned the survey. As such, the attrition is 32. This is equal to 36.36%.
Indicate the type of consent obtained and institutional review board approval.
Getting consent for the participation of participants in any research study is of major importance. The main types of consent include proxy, post-hoc, implied/implicit, and explicit/express/informed. Implied/implicit consent was obtained from the participants of this research study given that the consent was not obtained through formal ways, for instance verbal or written approval (Schneider, Nicholas & Kurrus, 2013). The participants completed questionnaire forms and this implied their consent to take part. Approval was obtained from the administration of the two clinics.
Identify the study setting and indicate if it is appropriate for the study purpose. JUSTIFY your response!
The research study was conducted in 2 outpatient clinics. This setting is appropriate for the purpose of the study since the researchers wanted to improve HH in the 2 outpatient health care clinics by way of introducing an informational poster and a gel sanitizer.
Identification and Control of Extraneous Variables
Define extraneous variables
Extraneous variables are basically understood as undesirable and unwanted variables which influence the relationship between the variables being examined by the investigator. Extraneous variables influence an experiment’s results, although they are not the variables of interest (Hoe & Hoare, 2012).
What are the extraneous variables in this study? In what way(s) were appropriate measures used to control for the influence of the extraneous variables? Describe fully. If not addressed, explain how you know this and identify the extraneous variables you would note.
In this research study, the extraneous variables include gender, age, background and mood of the participant. It is notable that during the research study, female HCWs were more consistent in HH compared to male HCWs. The influence of extraneous variables was controlled by using almost the same number of male and female participants in the study, and ensuring that they all have the almost the same background regarding knowledge of hand hygiene practices.
Study Instruments/Tools
Identify the instruments used in the research
Survey was the instrument used.
FOR EACH INSTRUMENT: Instrument #1; Name of Instrument: Discuss how the instrument was developed or purpose of use. Cite the source for the background information about the instrument.
Survey was the instrument utilized by the researchers. A survey was mailed by the researchers to the nurse managers at the 2 clinics, and was circulated to 41 HCWs at the GI clinic and to 47 HCWs at the oncology clinic, 3 months following the final day of the follow-up observations. The researchers carried out the survey in order to evaluate the HCWs’ opinions of HH at their respective clinics, as well as their preferred tools of HH – gel sanitizer, foam sanitizer, or water and soap (Kukanich et al., 2013). Surveys are a descriptive, non-experimental method of research and they are particularly valuable whenever the investigator wants to gather data on phenomenon which cannot be observed directly, for instance opinions and perspectives of participants (Hoe & Hoare, 2012).
Identify the type of measurement strategy (e.g., Likert scale, visual analog scale, physiological Measure, questionnaire, observation, or interview).
Questionnaire, observation and Likert scale were used. Observation was measurement strategy applied. Interventional observation was used as the participants were directly observed to monitor HH opportunities and record HH attempts. Questionnaire was used after the observation. A 5-item Likert scale that ranged from strongly agree to strongly disagree was utilized for questions about the motivational effectiveness of each of the intervention tools.
Identify the level of measurement (nominal, ordinal, interval/ratio) achieved by the measurement strategy. Provide a definition of the level of measurement(s) you identified and justify WHY you believe the instruments represent this level of measurement.
The measurement strategy achieved ratio. In ratio measurement, a meaningful absolute zero is always there. This implies that the researcher can construct a meaningful ratio using a ratio variable (Yarcheski & Mahon, 2013). The instruments represent ratio level of measurement because in the survey conducted in this study, there could be zero HCWs who believe that HH campaign has improved their HH practices.
Report the reliability of the instrument from previous studies and the current study.
He instrument is consistent. The information collected by the survey is consistent.
Report the validity of the instrument from previous studies and the current study.
The instrument is accurate and it serves the function that it was intended to serve, and always gives information that is correct.
Data Collection Methods
Detail how the data were collected.
Data were collected through observation and the use of survey. Through observation, the investigators observed the subjects/participants in order to monitor the HH opportunities and to record the HH attempts of the HCWs in the 2 clinics. One month following the final day of interventional observations, the researchers conducted follow-up direct observations of HH on 3 non-consecutive days. Survey was carried out to evaluate the HCWs’ opinions of HH at their respective clinics, as well as their preferred tools of HH – gel sanitizer, foam sanitizer, or water and soap
In what way(s) is the data collection procedures appropriate for this study?
Observation is appropriate since they needed to observe the subjects/participants in order to monitor the HH opportunities and to record the HH attempts of the HCWs in the 2 clinics. Survey is appropriate since it was useful in assessing the HCWs’ sentiments of HH at their respective clinics, as well as their preferred tools of HH.
In what way were appropriate steps taken to protect the rights of the subjects?
The subjects were respected and treated as autonomous agents and those who wanted to drop out were allowed to do so. In essence, there right to end participation in the research study at any time was respected. They were also given access to information as regards the research study.
Statistical Analysis Procedures
Identify the statistical procedures used in the study: Statistical Procedure #1 (Name and definition):
Chi-square: Pearson’s x2 was used. Pearson’s chi-squared is essentially a statistical test which is used in sets of categorical data in evaluating how probable it is that any observed dissimilarity between the sets came about by chance (Yarcheski & Mahon, 2013). In essence, it is utilized in determining whether there is any sort of relationship between 2 categorical variables.
Pearson’s Chi-square is the only statistical procedure that was used.
How was it used in the study?
Pearson’s x2 analyses were utilized in comparing the frequency of HH attempts throughout the 3 observation periods and in comparing the post-contact and pre-contact frequency of such attempts. It is notable that every calculation had 1 degree of freedom, and a P value equal to or less than 0.05, that is, <= 0.05, was seen as significant (Kukanich et al., 2013). Only descriptive statistics were utilized in assessing the frequency of HH by HCW’s profession and gender considering that there were considerably less observations of male HCW’s to allow comparative analyses. In addition, descriptive statistics were utilized to compare the HH tools utilized, given that product availability did vary in the course of the study.
Complete the table below with the analysis techniques conducted in the study:
Statistical Procedure
Statistical Findings
Significance (provide a narrative description of the significance as well as the actual statistical values
Chi-square
Before intervention: Rate of attempt at GI clinic = 21%
Rate of attempt at oncology clinic = 11%
After intervention:
Rate of attempt at GI clinic = 54%
Rate of attempt at oncology clinic = 36%
In both the GI and oncology clinics, the overall rates of HH attempts to HH opportunities were 21% and 11% respectively.
This improved greatly after the intervention was introduced to 54% and 36% respectively, and remained improved at the 1-month follow-up period 51% and 32% respectively.
What are the specific results of the study? Provide DEPTH and write IN YOUR OWN WORDS.
In the GI clinic, at baseline, the overall rate of HH attempt to opportunities was 21%, it was 11% for the oncology clinic, and after the intervention, these improved substantially to 54% for the GI clinic and 36% for the oncology clinic. Half of those who were surveyed agreed or strongly agreed that the HH campaign had actually increased the awareness of HH. On the whole, 34 percent of the subjects agreed that HH campaign had improved their HH practices. Moreover, half of the participants agreed or strongly agreed that introducing gel hand sanitizer served as an effectual motivator and resulted in improved frequency of HH. HH performance was consistently better after contact with patient compared to before contact with patient.
Strengths\Limitations
What are two major strengths of the scientific merit of this study? (This does not refer to findings of the study)
It was easier to answer the research questions using a small sample size than a large one
The study was carried out on a new area which has not been examined previously thus it greatly contributes to the body of existing knowledge.
What are two major limitations of the scientific merit of this study?
The possibility of the Hawthorne effect – some HCWs may have noticed that they are being observed, and hence they cleaned their hands more regularly.
Only 56 subjects actually took part in this study which is a very small figure hence the findings cannot be generalized to the entire population of outpatient HCWs. It is difficult to generalize findings from a small size (Hackshaw, 2010).
How did the researcher generalize the findings?
The researchers generalized the findings by stating that the HH campaign demonstrated that providing informational posters and introducing a gel sanitizer could bring about short-term improvements in HH performance within outpatient clinics.
What did the researchers say the relevance of the data was? Describe the researchers’ interpretation of the findings.
They stated that the results of the research show that the HH frequency by HCWs in busy outpatient healthcare settings is low. They added that short-term exposure to interventional tools could result in modest improvement still seen at 1-month follow-up. Moreover, pre-testing interventions within a particular healthcare setting and utilizing a multi-faceted implementation approach may help in achieving the highest improvements. Reinforcing and/or establishing a clinic-wide expectation that HCWs would follow HH recommendations is also an important measure which might further encourage HH adherence.
Where in nursing can the results of the data be applied?
In busy outpatient settings
What suggestions for further study were identified?
The researchers recommend that in future, after the collection of baseline data, researchers should seek the ongoing involvement and support of influential HCWs who may also act as role models for other HCWs.
Is the description of the study sufficiently clear for replication? Explain and Justify your response
Yes, the description of the data is adequately clear for replication. This is because the instruments used were valid and reliable. They were accurate and measured what they were designed to measure.
REFLECTION
Reflect upon your newly developed understanding of quantitative research. What has this experience critiquing a quantitative research study meant to you and how will this make a difference in your overall practice of nursing? Please provide depth and be sure you respond to the question. This is a subjective response and must be at least 2 full paragraphs. Please respond in reference to understanding quantitative methodology and not the specific focus of the research study.
What has the experience of reading and critiquing a quantitative study meant to you?
It has meant much to me as it has helped to gain essential knowledge and skill that I can effectively utilize to conduct a useful quantitative research. It has helped me to identify the weaknesses such as small sample size that I need to avoid in order to ensure that the findings which I obtain can be generalized. It has also offered me a better, clear understanding of Chi-square/Pearson’s X2 and how I can use this statistical procedure in quantitative data analysis.
How will understanding and using quantitative research findings make a difference in your practice of nursing?
The understanding of using these quantitative research findings will make a difference in my practice of nursing in several ways. It will allow me to effectively apply the findings in my workplace, for instance by adhering to HH guidelines. Moreover, it will help me to focusing on doing what is right in order to improve outcomes.
References
Boudjema, S. S., Dufour, J. C., Aladro, A. S., Desquerres, I. I., & Brouqui, P. P. (2014). MediHandTrace®: a tool for measuring and understanding hand hygiene adherence. Clinical Microbiology & Infection, 20(1), 22-28. doi:10.1111/1469-0691.12471
Cohen, H. A .(2002). Handwashing patterns in two dermatology clinics. Dermatology;205(4):358-61.
Hackshaw, A. (2010). Small Studies: Strengths and Weaknesses. European Respiratory Journal; 32(5):1141-1143.
Hoe, J., & Hoare, Z. (2012). Understanding quantitative research: part 1. Nursing Standard, 27(15-17), 52-57.
Huis, A., Hulscher, M., Adang, E., Grol, R., van Achterberg, T., & Schoonhoven, L. (2013). Cost-effectiveness of a team and leaders-directed strategy to improve nurses’ adherence to hand hygiene guidelines: a cluster randomised trial. International Journal Of Nursing Studies, 50(4), 518-526. doi:10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2012.11.016
KuKanich, K. S., Kaur, R., Freeman, L., & Powell, D. A. (2013). Evaluation of a Hand Hygiene Campaign in Outpatient Health Care Clinics. AJNonline; 113(3).
Lubbe, J., & Roets, L. (2014). Nurses’ Scope of Practice and the Implication for Quality Nursing Care. Journal Of Nursing Scholarship, 46(1), 58-64. doi:10.1111/jnu.12058
Mensah E. (2005). Hand hygiene in routine glaucoma clinics. Br J Ophthalmol;89(11):1541-2.
Santos, L., Souza Dias, M., Borrasca, V., Cavassin, L., Deso di Lobo, R., Bozza Schwenck, R., & … Bierrenbach, A. (2013). Improving hand hygiene adherence in an endoscopy unit. Endoscopy, 45(6), 421-425. doi:10.1055/s-0032-1326284
Schneider, B., Nicholas, J., & Kurrus, J. E. (2013). Comparison of Methodologie Quality and Study/Report Characteristics Between Quantitative Clinical Nursing and Nursing Education Research Articles. Nursing Education Perspectives, 34(5), 292-297.
Yarcheski, A., & Mahon, N. E. (2013). Characteristics of Quantitative Nursing Research from 1990 to 2010. Journal Of Nursing Scholarship, 45(4), 405-411. doi:10.1111/jnu.12038
We can write this or a similar paper for you! Simply fill the order form!
For this assignment, you will write a paper about at least four social and demographic changes you identified in your research in the studies for this unit. Make sure you:
• Describe each change.
• Explain how each change will impact the human resources role as a strategic employee relations partner and its practices for the next 5–10 years.
• Identify and explain at least three HR practices for managing the changes that will promote positive employer-employee relationships.
• Organize research and data in a coherent manner to support your position and influence others.
• Include a reference page, and format your references using APA (6th edition) guidelines.
• Use at least three academic references, in addition to the Web sites used for the demographic data.
* 4 pages
SAMPLE ANSWER
Diversity and Inclusion
Diversity and inclusion has emerged as subjects of discussion in the ever changing world. Diversity, in broader terms, refers to any particular dimension that is used to distinguish one group of people from the other (Gerber & Linda, 2010). It calls on people to respect and appreciate the differences in terms of gender, ethnicity, age, education, nation of origin, religion, sexual orientation, and disability among others. There is however more to do with diversity than just mere description as it appears. It is the tendency of different individuals to carry along with them diverse perspectives, life styles, work experience and culture (Gerber & Linda, 2010). As a basis and a driver of invention, diversity could be viewed as an incredible idea in the world of business and the society at large. Inclusion on the other hand, is used to refer to the state of being respected, supported and valued. It is all about giving attention to the needs and preference of every person and making sure that every individual is provided with the right conditions to attain is or her potential (Gerber & Linda, 2010). Inclusion is always reflected in the relationships, culture and practices of an organization which has the sense of supporting a diverse workforce. Logically speaking, diversity means the mix and inclusion is the means of making the mix to collectively work well.
Diversity is something that is real in the society today given that immigration now happens anywhere in the world. Taking the United States, which is a typically diverse country as an example, there are African-Americans, Hispanics, Chinese, Native Americans, and many others all of whom have different ways of life religion included. The whole of this population, however diverse they may be, there has to be inclusion so that each of them has to play a role in spinning the wheel towards development.
These different groups of people with wide range of cultural identities have to find a way of understanding and coping up with the different cultures that they interact with. The most prominent social challenge in this case therefore is how to cope up with the different cultures within the society.
Fostering epistemological inclusiveness and diversity in the workplace has occupied the center stage of the priorities set aside by Human resource development professionals. Any multinational institutions like international schools and companies have to embrace this particular matter of concern (Klerck, 2009). As had been stated earlier on in this paper, different groups of people from different cultural and ethnic groups tend to find themselves in the same environment at the same time. Employment and education lead the table in bringing people of such kind together.
Social change is manifested in the revolution of norms (Gerber &Linda, 2010). This is evident today especial in the multicultural nations, US being one of them. Gender roles have increasingly overlapped. To this day, women are seen to perform duties which, in the previous years were viewed as solely left for men. People migrate from one country to the other to seek better employment opportunities. What is evident in the modern society is improved mobility, increased flexibility, increased connectedness and better freedom.
The world is swiftly and steadily being initiated into a society of diversity. This diversity is indeed impelling the very fundamental part of different societies and the culture of such societies. The social trends are increasingly being viewed, not as a likely danger, but as a prospect to expand the worldview, share experiences and then initiate better tactics and inventive ideas to solve world problems and live together as one.
As a matter of fact, diversity will continue to thrive in the major institutions in every corner of the world. This is because globalization is taking place day by day and this is drawing people from all walks of life. Africans, Americans, Asians and Europeans are consistently brought together and each one of them comes in with their own culture and this, they try to impose on others. Some may reject such practices others may embrace them. This implies that in some way, diversity will be reduced later on in the centuries to come. In this way the world will move towards being integrated into one cultural institution. This is practically proven by interracial marriage that has been currently observed, a practice that never existed in the past.
As is the case in several countries, the population of the United States is steadily graying. The elderly population has been on the rise and is projected to even further grow in the near future. Statistics show that by 1950, only 8 percent of the total US population was age 65 and above. The same age group had risen to 12 percent by the year 2005 and this is expected to hit 23 percent by the year 2080. In fact the percentage of the elderly population is projected to double the current population in a century to come. Contrastingly, the population of the working-age is expected to shrink from 60 percent as it stood in 2005 to about 54 percent by 2080. These are the expected demographic changes in the US. To support this, the following table was obtained from the Board of Trustees (2006).
Year
Population (thousands)
Percentage
65 or older
All ages
Under 20
20-64
65 or older
1950
160118
54466
92841
12811
8
1970
214765
80684
113158
20923
10
1990
260458
75060
153368
32029
12
2005
302323
83963
181457
36902
12
Projected
2020
339269
87547
198213
53510
16
2040
376856
92268
207416
77172
20
2060
402,079
96760
218777
86543
22
2080
428,214
101,159
230,137
96,918
23
Table 1: U.S. population, by age, selected years 1950–2080
Researches that have independently been done have indicated that if the current population trends continue in The US, then the immigrant population risk overtaking the original population (Toossi, 2012; Schwatka, Butler & Rosecrance, 2012). The population growth of this country depend on immigrates rather than bath rates. In fact it is expected that there will reach a point when the number of immigrants will exceed the number of births annually. This is seen to be possible because of inclusion in every sector in The US economy. As was noted earlier on, the population is first aging and this implies that the working population is also in the reducing end. Labor will have to be imported (Toossi, 2012; Schwatka, Butler & Rosecrance, 2012). The purchasing power of this country will have to be boosted. In this way diversity and inclusion will be seen to have changed the demography of this particular country.
References
Board of Trustees of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance and Disability Insurance Trust Funds. 2006. 2006 Annual Report of the Board of Trustees of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance and Disability Insurance Trust Funds. Washington, DC. Retrieved from http://www.ssa.gov/oact/tr/tr06/index.html
Gerber, J. J. and Linda, M. M., (2010). Sociology. Toronto: Pearson Canada.
Klerck, G. (2009). Industrial relations and human resource management: A critical approach. London: Routledge.
Schwatka, N.V., Butler, L. M. and Rosecrance, J. R., (2012).An aging workforce and injury in the construction industry. Epidemiologic Reviews 34, 156–167.
Toossi, M., (2012). Labor force projections to 2020: A more slowly growing workforce. Monthly Labor Review 135 (1), 43–64.
We can write this or a similar paper for you! Simply fill the order form!
Role of Leadership in Shaping Organizational Culture
Role of Leadership in Shaping Organizational Culture
Order Instructions:
Recent research stated that “[c]ompanies with an established organizational culture that includes strong capabilities for change, commitment to innovation and a high level of trust have a significant advantage” when attempting to adopt a strategy of broad-based corporate sustainability (Eccles, Perkins, & Serafeim, 2013). Yet an Ethics Resource Center (2012) survey found that 42% of respondents felt their organizations exhibited signs of a weak ethics culture with a low degree of trust and transparency. Organizational leaders should have a strong incentive to identify and address any disparities that exist between their organization’s current culture and a productive healthy one. They must understand the impact they can have as leaders in facilitating an organizational culture, determining the necessary steps to build that culture, and taking the necessary action to create a healthy organizational culture.
To prepare:
•Reflect on all you have learned about leadership and leadership theory throughout this course. Begin searching for scholarly references about the relationship between leadership and organizational culture. Reflect on the leadership characteristics and skills that are useful in promoting a healthy organizational culture. Also, consider the leadership styles that promote a healthy organizational culture. Think about the impact on organizational culture of how a leader responds to specific situations, such as crises. Reflect on how a leader might use power to promote a healthy organizational culture and how a leader can promote ethics in a healthy organization.
The “To prepare” is intended to aid in your reflection upon how the various leadership theories and other topics throughout the course relate to organizational culture. However, you are free to analyze other facets of the relationship between leadership and organizational culture.
By Day 7 of Week 7, submit an 8-page comprehensive scholarly analysis of the role leadership plays in shaping an organizational culture.
Your paper must contain ten scholarly resources. These can be a combination of the Learning Resources used throughout this course and new scholarly resources. Your paper should adhere to the APA Course Paper Template found in the Walden University Online Writing Center. The link is located in this Module’s Learning Resources.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Role of Leadership in Shaping Organizational Culture
Introduction
A very important role of an organization’s leadership team is to create and maintain an appropriate organizational culture. This process can take place at any organizational level, and variations in different departments are quite common in larger organizations. As much as this is necessary for the business to meet its demands, it is also important for the company to possess an overriding culture that has the capability of permeating and functioning in its various departments. Leaders are the main contributors towards the shaping of an organization culture. They have various roles, all of which contribute to the resulting culture. Organizational culture is a term used to describe the beliefs and values that have been in existence within an organization for a longer period. It also refers to the staff beliefs as well as foreseen values of their work, which influence their behavior and attitudes towards work. Leadership teams usually work toward adjusting their leadership behavior so as to accomplish the organization’s mission, a step that may end up influencing employees’ level of job satisfaction. Therefore, it is essential to clearly understand the relationship between leadership, organizational culture, and employee job satisfaction. This paper analyses the various roles of leadership in the shaping of organizational culture by looking at the arguments presented by different scholars at different times.
The Role of Leadership in Shaping Organizational Culture
The role leadership plays in shaping an organizational culture involves many activities. First, they shape the culture by how they react to critical issues. Organizational culture affects the performance of a business either negatively or positively. This depends on whether or not the culture is constructive or destructive. Stanislavov and Ivanov (2014) argue that leaders can shape organizational culture by changing to a more effective leadership orientation. The leadership style used within organizations shapes the culture as it determines how the employees will be reacting in the working environment. According to the study conducted, three casinos were used to identify the relationship between leadership style and the organizational culture adopted. In casino A, the previous manager showcased a predominantly commanding style. This type of leadership focuses on giving commands to employees without giving them room for having a say in the situation. As a result of this, the organizational culture was focused on control and competitiveness (Stanislavov & Ivanov, 2014). When such a leadership style is used, the working climate may be affected negatively since the engagement of employees is prohibited. Therefore, instead of employees feeling like they belong, they end up feeling as if they are being misused for the benefits of others. With such a leadership style, employees cannot effectively work in teams because each one of them is busy competing so as to get on the good side of their leader.
When another manager was employed, the situation changed drastically. The leader displayed an affiliate style, which gave room and enhanced collaboration. This resulted to an organizational culture that featured a ‘political system’ (Stanislavov & Ivanov, 2014). This type of culture was shaped because the employees were free to air their thoughts and arguments on certain topics. This triggered a positive climate that made the employees feel free and appreciated. Unfortunately, the employees also recorded a decrease in how they competed on tasks since the leadership was not as strict as before.
Hu, Dinev, Hart, and Cooke (2012) suggest that a one on one correspondence is present when aligning top management behaviors with organizational culture characteristics such as power sharing behavior and culture, participative behavior and decision making culture, transformative vision, and risk tolerance culture. They further argue that the management has a role of shaping organization culture by drafting policies that are acceptable to employees and using education to reinforce the policies and frame organizational culture (Hu, Dinev, Hart & Cooke, 2012). The paper studies an information security organization whose employees were not being strict on information confidence. Therefore, the only way to ensure that no such problems were experienced in the future, a new organizational culture, which would focus on two components, had to be created. The first was to create a shared assumption about information security, and the second featured the education of the employees about these assumptions.
The role of the management in shaping an organizational culture in this case is displayed by the fact that leaders are responsible for the implementation of the above mentioned components. The creation of policies to guide employees in their daily tasks is the duty of the leader. The policies created need to be designed in such a way that when employees follow them, they will behave just as they are expected to. The education of employees on the various policies is important as it shows them the importance of sticking to the policies. Therefore, instead of forcing them to follow the policies, the leader will be showing them the benefits of doing so. When employees realize these benefits, the result will be that they will end up sticking to the policies without being followed. Their beliefs and attitudes will be changed, and so will the organizational culture.
According to Lightle, Baker, and Castellano (2009), the leadership team of an organization are responsible for shaping the organizational culture by overseeing the organizational ethical values. In their journal, a case study of Washington Mutual has been used to describe cases where organization leaders are not playing their role of ensuring that their ethical values are upheld. Some of the unethical activities, which result to an unethical organizational culture, are frequently hidden from the leaders until when it is too late. However, this is not an excuse for the leaders to claim their purity. Lightle, Baker, and Castellano (2009) argue that leaders need to establish codes of conduct, create ethical guidelines, and make use of monitoring programs that will help prevent fraudulent acts or at least establish an organizational culture that punishes those who break the rules. Similarly, they state that the organization culture created should also encourage and reward integrity and responsibility.
When codes of conduct are established by a leader, the employees will get to believe that the ways stated are how they are supposed to act in the workplace. Ethical guidelines will show them what is acceptable and what is punishable. Since employees are always keen on keeping their jobs and avoiding punishments, the result will be that a majority will focus on doing what is acceptable and avoiding what is punishable. All these actions will result to the creation of an organizational culture, which the leader was hoping for as he or she was creating these guidelines. When the leader monitors the activities of employees, it will be easier to spot an area that causes concern, and which needs immediate attention. This is also part of an organizational culture once employees and leaders become accustomed to the rule of monitoring.
Latham (2013) stated that leaders have a role of shaping the organizational culture through their leadership behavior. Although setting the example is a common axiom of leadership, it is even more important when leading transformation that the leaders become the change they want to witness in their organization. This means that the leadership behavior needs to be consistent with the organizational vision and desired culture. Therefore, if the leader needs to create an organizational culture that focuses on respect for each other, he must first treat others with the same level of respect he expects them to use. If this leader shows that he does not tolerate any screaming and yelling, as he himself does not use that for communication, the employees will find it easier to follow his footsteps (Latham, 2013). The same goes for the ethical organizational culture whereby the leader must first show no tolerance for unethical behavior in the organization.
Symbolic managers spend most of their time thinking of the organizational values, and how they can transform the culture into an even stronger subject. These managers view their primary job as that of managing conflicts arising value, which result from the flow of daily events. Kane-Urrabazo (2006) believes that managers have a role in the development of a healthy organizational culture by displaying exemplification of trustworthiness and trust, empowerment and delegation, and also consistency and mentorship. These components decide how employees behave within the organization, and how they carry out their tasks. When employees know how they are expected to behave, they will behave in that way. However, if no guidelines are offered, each one will showcase behavior that they believe to be acceptable. In this case, when the employee is given a specific task, they will act accordingly to complete the task. However, when no task delegation takes place, employees may have trouble completing a task since some areas may be left untouched. Therefore, the leader has the role of shaping an organized organizational culture by ensuring that each individual is aware of his or her specific tasks.
George, Sleeth, and Siders (1999) state that leadership literature has emphasized the role of leaders in articulating a vision, and in establishing an organizational culture through setting objectives and then clearing any hurdles by smoothing out the path for attaining the objectives. They further argue that the leaders need to employ behaviors will create, communicate, and manage the organizational culture (George, Sleeth, & Siders, 1999). Thus, the mode through which leaders establish and communicate a set of shared values and beliefs of the organization to employees is very important. These authors believe that leaders play their role of shaping the organizational culture by articulating the vision. This implies that culture can be created when the leader clearly and effectively expresses his vision ideas to the employees.
The reason why creation of organizational culture commonly fails is because the leaders fail to articulate their vision. For this to be successful, employees need to have an understanding of the benefits associated with the vision, why that and not any other, and so on. By setting objectives and clearing hurdles, the leader is giving the employees a target to work towards. Then to ensure that they are successful, the process is monitored for factors, which may result to its failure. These hurdles may, therefore, include unethical behavior, unsatisfied employees, lack of employee engagement and so on.
The management shapes an organizational culture by understanding employee related variables such as organizational commitment, job satisfaction, and performance (Yafang, 2011). When these variables are clearly understood, the management can easily visualize a culture that will not affect these negatively. Instead, the articulated vision in this case will be formed on a basis that encourages the employees’ commitment to the organization, their job satisfaction, and improved performance. The leader will therefore shape the culture by encouraging activities that will make the employees feel satisfied as members of the organization. This may include treating them with respect, creation of compensation plans that will meet their needs, giving them room to take part in decision making and so on. Once they feel satisfied with their jobs, they will become committed to the organization, a step that will increase performance.
Heidrich and Alt (2009) also believe that the role of the leader influences the creation and change in the organizational culture. According to these authors, this is achieved when the leader defines behavioral norms and decision making methods, as well as when the leader makes decisions that eventually affects the organization’s value system. There are many ways through which a leader can have an impact on upon shaping the organizational culture (Heidrich & Alt, 2009). First, by being a role model; second, by making use of a reward system; third, through the selection and recruitment process; fourth, by using structure and strategy; and fifth, by considering the physical setting. Therefore, as the leader plays the role of shaping organizational culture, there are steps that must be taken. For instance, the leader needs to employ strategy, otherwise, the visualized culture will not be achieved. This is because a new mission cannot be completed with the use of old organization values and beliefs.
According to Veiseh, Mohammadi, Pirzadian and Sharafi (2014), organizational culture is shaped by the leadership role of transforming employees. This is because transformational leadership has been linked to how leaders encourage employees to perform better as well as to prepare reliable paths for new organizations. This is because this type of leadership is formed on a basis of four aspects: One, purposeful influence; two, intellectual encouragement; three, inspirational motivation; four, encouraging supports. By indulging in the above, the leader is influencing the organizational culture since the beliefs and values are also altered in the process.
Nguyen Huu, Yunshi, Ping-Fu, and Sheng-Hung (2014) also agree that transformational leadership shapes organizational culture. This is because such leaders are able to positively influence the followers to share their values and beliefs by promoting a higher level of intrinsic value associated with the accomplishment of a goal, emphasizing the important link between follower’s effort and goal achievement, and also by creating a very high level of commitment on both the part of the leader and follower towards a common organizational vision, mission, and goals.
Conclusion
Leaders are the main individuals within an organization who can actively shape the organizational culture. The works of the scholars analyzed in this paper prove that leaders shape the culture through their behaviors, actions, and their chosen leadership styles. Leadership behavior will affect whether or not the visualized organizational culture is achieved since employees are usually keen on how the leader conducts him/herself. The actions need to go hand in hand with the words and expectations of the leader; otherwise, the formation of a culture will not be effective. Lastly, leadership styles also play a role as they define the organization’s climate, which directly impact employees.
References
George, G., Sleeth, R. G., & Siders, M. A. (1999). Organizing Culture: Leader Roles, Behaviors, And Reinforcement Mechanisms. Journal Of Business & Psychology, 13(4), 545-560.
Heidrich, B., & Alt, M. (2009). Godfather Management? The Role of Leaders in Changing Organizational Culture in Transition Economies: A Hungarian-Romanian Comparison. Management (18544223), 4(4), 309-327.
Hu, Q., Dinev, T., Hart, P., & Cooke, D. (2012). Managing Employee Compliance with Information Security Policies: The Critical Role of Top Management and Organizational Culture* Managing Employee Compliance with Information Security Policies: The Critical Role of Top Management and Organizational.. Decision Sciences, 43(4), 615-660. https://www.doi:10.1111/j.1540-5915.2012.00361.x
Latham, J. R. (2013). A Framework for Leading the Transformation to Performance Excellence Part II: CEO Perspectives on Leadership Behaviors, Individual Leader Characteristics, and Organizational Culture. Quality Management Journal, 20(3), 19-40.
Lightle, S. S., Baker, B., & Castellano, J. F. (2009). The Role of Boards of Directors in Shaping Organizational Culture. CPA Journal, 79(11), 68-72.
Nguyen Huu, D., Yunshi, L., Ping-Fu, H., & Sheng-Hung, Y. (2014). An Empirical Study Of The Organizational Culture, Leadership And Firm Performance In A Vietnam Family Business. International Journal Of Organizational Innovation, 6(4), 109-121.
Stanislavov, I., & Ivanov, S. (2014). The role of leadership for shaping organizational culture and building employee engagement in the Bulgarian gaming industry. Tourism (13327461), 62(1), 19-40.
Veiseh, S., Mohammadi, E., Pirzadian, M., & Sharafi, V. (2014). The Relation between Transformational Leadership and Organizational Culture (Case study: Medical school of Ilam). Journal Of Business Studies Quarterly, 5(3), 113-124.
Yafang, T. (2011). Relationship between Organizational Culture, Leadership Behavior and Job Satisfaction. BMC Health Services Research, 11(1), 98-106. https://www.doi:10.1186/1472-6963-11-98
We can write this or a similar paper for you! Simply fill the order form!
Details:
Write a paper (1,250-1,750 words) describing the approach to care of cancer. In addition, include the following in your paper:
1. Describe the diagnosis and staging of cancer.
2. Describe at least three complications of cancer, the side effects of treatment, and methods to lessen physical and psychological effects.
3. Prepare this assignment according to the APA guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.
This assignment uses a grading rubric. Instructors will be using the rubric to grade the assignment; therefore, students should review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the assignment criteria and expectations for successful completion of the assignment.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Integrated approach to care
Cancer could be complex and difficult, and it typically necessitates the involvement of several specialists in an integrated or integrative approach to care. If one chooses a care center that provides multidisciplinary care, then the individual will be able to receive a uniquely effective and convenient approach to cancer treatment. When all the cancer specialists meet within a single place, more options for cancer treatment are likely to be discussed (American Cancer Society, 2014). Moreover, differences of opinion could be resolved at that moment, and the patient gets a treatment program which is more comprehensive that focuses on a physical treatment plan, as well as social and emotional needs of the patient. With an integrated approach, the patient will be an active member of the team and gets to listen to the discussions, ask any questions, and voice his or her concerns. The team will guide the patient in understanding his/her options, although the patient remains the final and very well-informed decision-maker (American Cancer Society, 2014).
Diagnosis and staging of cancer
Diagnosis: a medical history particularly the history of symptoms, and physical examination are the initial steps in cancer diagnosis. Usually, the doctor would order several tests, many of which would be determined by the kind of cancer, as well as where the cancer is thought to be situated in, or on the body of the patient. Additionally, physicians would order electrolyte levels, a complete blood count, in addition to other blood studies which might provide more information, for instance a prostate specific antigen test might guide the physician to carry out more tests like prostate biopsy (American Cancer Society, 2014). Imaging studies are usually utilized in helping the doctor detect any abnormalities within the body that might actually be cancer. Ultrasound, MRI and CT scans, and X-rays are the common tools employed in examining the patient’s body. Other tests like endoscopy could allow visualizations of tissues within the intestinal tract, bronchi or throat that might be cancerous. Radionuclide scanning is commonly utilized in areas which cannot be visualized properly, for instance some lymph nodes or inside bones. The test will involve IV injection or ingestion of a weakly radioactive substance which could be concentrated and detected in the tissue which is abnormal (American Cancer Society, 2014).
Staging of cancer is understood as the process used by the physician to find out how much cancer there is within the body of a person, and where it is situated. It is, in essence, how the physician learns the stage of an individual’s cancer. Staging information is used by physicians in planning treatment and to help in predicting an individual’s prognosis or outlook (American Cancer Society, 2014). It is of note that cancers that have similar stage typically have the same outlooks and are usually treated the same way. The stage of cancer is also a way that physicians use in describing the degree of the cancer whenever they converse with one another regarding a person’s cancer.
Staging is of major importance given that it tells the specialist the best possible treatments that the cancer patient actually needs. For instance, the treatment for early stage cancer of the breast might be radiation and surgery, whilst a more advanced cancer of the breast might also necessitate treatment with chemotherapy (American Cancer Society, 2014). Moreover, specialists also utilize the stage to help in predicting the course that a given cancer is likely to take. When staging cancer, the specialist looks for the primary cancer, which is the original tumor, in addition to other tumors. The doctor looks at the number, size, as well as locations of any tumors to find out if the cancer has actually extended far away. The physician also looks at the nearby lymph nodes to see if the cancer has spread into them (American Cancer Society, 2014).
Complications of cancer
Depending on the health of the individual as well as the stage of the tumor, complications of cancer could be life-changing, inconvenient, painful and even deadly. Amongst the most common complications of cancer include fatigue, metastasis, sleep disorders, pain and depression. (i) Emotional and mental complications of cancer: generally, patients with cancer have the risk of developing mood disorders such as major depression and anxiety. A lot of cancer patients experience grief, sadness, as well as anxiety in response to the diagnosis and treatment of the disease. Whenever these feelings interfere with the capacity to lead a productive life or to undergo treatment, nevertheless, the cancer patient might have developed a mood disorder which calls for professional treatment (American Cancer Society, 2014).
(ii) Physical complications of cancer: the main physical complication is pain. As a tumor is growing, it could extend into the nearby tissues or exert pressure on a surrounding nerve, which makes the patient to feel pain. The pain falls into 3 key types: neuropathic pain – this is pain as a result of injury to the central nervous system; somatic pain – pain that affects the particular area of the skin, bone or muscle; and visceral pain – pain as a result of damaged organ tissue (American Cancer Society, 2014). The other physical complications associated with cancer are as follows: vomiting and nausea; hypercalcemia, which is high amount of calcium within the blood; malignant pleural effusion, which is the accumulation within the lung cavity that makes breathing to be difficult. Lymphedema, which is the swelling as a result of damage to lymph nodes; sexual issues for instance vaginal dryness and erectile dysfunction; as well as pruritus, which is a sensation of itchiness.
Side effects of treatment
Radiation therapy and chemotherapy cause several side effects, considering that chemotherapy medications are very strong. The main side effects include Pain: this could be as a result of certain treatments for instance surgery. Vomiting and nausea: these are amongst the most dreaded side effects of cancer treatments. Fatigue: this is a distressing and common side effect of cancer and its treatment (American Cancer Society, 2014). Other treatment side effects include anemia and bleeding problems, confusion and memory problems, diarrhea and constipation, lymphedema, skin changes, hot flashes and night sweats, tiredness as well as hair thinning and hair loss. Other side effects include anxiety, reactivity to unpleasant stimuli, tension, depression, confusion, and hostility.
Methods to lessen physical and psychological effects
Patients with cancer who experience overwhelming feelings of despair, worthlessness, anxiety, hopelessness or sadness need to talk with a physician regarding the symptoms as well as possible treatment of these complications. In essence, psychological effects could be lessened through relaxation therapy, which eases symptoms of anxiety. Relaxation techniques which are known to ease the psychological side effects include mental imagery, hypnosis, as well as progressive muscle relaxation. They help in reducing tension, anxiety and depression (American Cancer Society, 2014). Fatigue can be lessened by establishing a sleep pattern, developing a routine for going to sleep, trying to those avoid activities which makes him/her most fatigued, and beginning an endurable everyday exercise regimen to decrease fatigue and improve sleep. To reduce physical effects, there are medications that the patient can take. There are drugs to reduce or totally eliminate the pain, which can also be lessened through massage that soothes the body
I need to have this as one of the references: Leinbach, T. R., & Capineri, C. (2007). Globalized freight transport: Intermodality, e-commerce, logistics and sustainability. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Introduction
The European Union is primarily made up of twenty-eight countries which are located in Europe and mostly cooperate on political, environmental and economic matters. These countries have formed the EU as custom union which formulates policies and rules that establish competition rules that are required for effective functioning of their own internal market and also policies that govern the union members while dealing with other non-member countries in the global market. North America is largely dominated by the US and Canada. The Europeans and Americans cooperate and share common values related to economic, cultural, social and political ties. These ties are mostly reflected closely on transatlantic relations.
To assess and also develop the transatlantic cooperation between the Americas and the European Union, frequent presidential summits are regularly organized to facilitate mutual agreements on controversial issues.
The establishment and the emerging issues on global production network led to social integration on the international scene on matters touching on information, communication and transportation innovations which finally resulted on global expansion of trade and other economic activities. (Hesse & Rodrigue, 2004)
Freight transportation especially cross-border freight transportation is considered in the Americas as a high GHG (Green House Gas) emitting industry. The American system puts a lot of emphasis on subsidies regulation and regulated emission pricing that controls the GHG transmission from rail and truck transportation systems.
Protection of the environment is a major concern of the American transport integration. The impact of transportation on climate change has prompted several studies that have recommended the harmonization and adoption of renewable energy and other environment protection standards in the transportation industry.
Transportation is currently the second largest consumer of energy in the US while in Canada it’s the greatest. Transportation energy efficiency is a major concern for the national government as well as for the national climate change regulatory authorities.
Globalization of the manufacturing industry and logistics in the US has transformed the supply chain management (SCM) into a more comprehensive and complex framework that have eliminated inventories and instead integrated supply chain management systems. The expansion of GPN has been largely based on logistics. (Leinbach & Capineri, 2007)
In EU countries, Freight transport logistics is comparable to the North American policies on the need for improved efficiency on the general transport system through logistics which targets more environmentally friendly, efficient and safer energy consumption levels. Globalization has created new challenges for the European Union. The fast growth in the economy has also led to the growth in the transport system that has also resulted in congestion, pollution, noise and accidents. Transport is largely dependent on fossil fuels. The EU has established European loading standards in an effort to mitigate the effects of transportation on the environment and also to maintain a sustainable mobility.
The climate change has compelled the EU and the North Americans to seek alternative energy sources for transportation. Biofuels and gas remain the most recommended alternatives currently feasible as they do not attract any technological conversions. However Biofuels are not far much better than fossil fuels hence gas is the most recommended of the two alternatives.
In June 2005, the EU – US summit launched the transatlantic economic integration to spur growth and cooperation in both organizations by maximizing their economic potentials. The other policies are the OAA (Open Aviation Area) created in 2003 and it seeks to provide legal basis for transatlantic air services and Galileo that was established in 2004 and its aim is to regulate the global positioning systems in transportation networks.
Future research is needed on the effect of the threat of terrorism and its impact on the transportation system both in EU and America. The US and the EU have cooperated before on controlling the impact of terrorism on international trade but more research is needed on how to tackle and eradicate the threat posed.
The most interesting part of the cooperation is that there is no doubt that the transportation systems contribute to most of the environment hazards globally and both unions are still having a dialogue on how to implement the right measures to tackle the effects on climate change. (FHWA, 2005) The efforts to minimize and reduce the effects on the environment from the transportation systems are not satisfactory.
References
FHWA, Office of Freight Management and Operations (2005): Freight Facts and Figures 2005, p. 9. Washington D.C.: FHWA.
Hesse, M. and J-P Rodrigue (2004) “The Transport Geography of Logistics and Freight Distribution”, Journal of Transport Geography, Vol.12, No. 3, pp. 171-184.
Tensions between the claim to individual autonomy and the obligation to conform to the expectations of the wider community.
Order Instructions:
Drawing on the readings and lectures for this topic, examine the tensions between the claim to individual autonomy and the obligation to conform to the expectations of the wider community. Answer with reference to one of the following issues: immigration, immunisation, obesity, euthanasia, same sex marriage.
SAMPLE ANSWER
The Tensions between the Claim to Individual Autonomy and the Obligation to Conform to the Expectations of the Wider Community
Conformity, which is the act of toning behaviors, believes, and attitudes to group norms, holds much to the social role (Westring & Ryan, 2010). Social role is an expected behavior and is viewed to be normal within a particular society and any behavior that contrasts it will be viewed to be abnormal (Westring & Ryan, 2010). The ever changing society presented a scenario where individuals in the society tend to come up with such behaviors that have, since the time immemorial, been considered as unacceptable in the society. Such people tend to justify their behavior by citing the existing laws that tend to protect individual rights. Tension has, therefore, built up between such claims of individual autonomy and what the wider community expects from such individual. This paper looks into a behavior that has of late taken the center stage in several communities and greatly contrasts what such communities expect, which is same sex marriage.
There are various unrelenting efforts to make same sex marriage a normal occurrence in the society, and this is mostly in the western world (Westring & Ryan, 2010). Contrastingly, most of these countries are anchored upon Christian norms. It is quite clear in the Holy Bible that God condemns same sex marriage and anyone practicing this would be committing great sin against the will of their Creator. In a bid to safeguard the principles of Christianity, Christian religious leaders are constantly at loggerheads with the various leaders in the government who are fighting for gay rights.
Fundamental human rights and freedoms should be obeyed to the latter. In fact, appropriate action should be taken against those who are found guilty of stripping one of one’s rights. Right to self-decision and privacy is paramount and everybody should be granted despite one’s religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and region of origin (Westring & Ryan, 2010). The United Nations has indeed done a good job in clearly spelling out the action to be taken against people who violet human rights and freedom.
Ethics, however, has to be maintained in the society. Take a case where there would be same sex marriages all over the human race such that no one is yearning to marry the opposite sex. Naturally, there would be no procreation. After a century or two, the whole human race would be wiped out of the earth. Various religious books clearly state that procreation was one of the fundamental obligations tasked to man by the supernatural being. In any eventuality that man will neglect this duty then they shall have gone against the will of their creator and the community’s expectations.
The above discussed facts portray tension that has built up in a gay society that is made up of Christian individuals. Those who intend to practice or who are already into the same sex marriages will satisfactorily justify their acts. The society, which in this case in the Christian perspective, will also have its own reason to oppose such acts. This has indeed created a tensed society where there is constant push and pull with each side vindicating its stance on this particular issue of same sex marriage
This paper is a summary of all the nursing papers you guys have written for me for the past weeks so it will make sense if the same writer complete this reflection also by going back and using all the resources of the previous papers to complete this paper. the writer should pay close attention to all the requirements and respond to all the questions. It requires a minimum of 7 paragraphs in 4 pages.
Reflection and Evaluation
Reflect upon your new knowledge about nursing research and EBP. Explain how this new knowledge will influence your daily practice? What was your most significant learning? What assignment did you find the most and least meaningful to your understanding of research and EBP? Did you meet the course outcomes?
Your role as an advanced practice nurse is paramount in nursing research. You will be examining studies for evidence which can be taken to the bedside. Without nurses prepared for this, the research-practice gap will continue to widen. You have learned how to generate research questions, whether they are from practice or from the literature. You have learned about various research methodologies, both quantitative and qualitative. Over the weeks, you have analyzed nursing research studies, both quantitative and qualitative. You have touched on collaborative research efforts. You have been introduced to legal and ethical principles in research. You have investigated a clinical guideline and applied it to a practice setting.
Now for the big question: can you now use research to improve practice? Are you able to take the evidence you find in the literature and translate it into practice guidelines which staff nurses will be willing to adopt? Only you can answer this important question.
This paper provides you with an opportunity to reflect on what you have learned during the course. To accomplish this, please create a minimum 7 paragraph written reflection of your personal learning achievements and professional growth as a result of this course. Remember that a paragraph cannot be less than 5 sentences, and it is important that all details be included in this paper as it clearly will demonstrate what you have understood in this course. Use the guidelines below to do your evaluations.
1. Evaluate personal learning achievements pertaining to each course outcomes:
1: Evaluate quantitative research studies through systematic examination of all aspects of a nursing research study.
2: Apply research findings from quantitative studies to nursing practice.
3: Evaluate qualitative research studies through systematic examination of all aspects of a nursing research study.
4: Apply research findings from qualitative studies to nursing practice.
5: Evaluate the body of evidence from nursing research in order to support an evidence-based change in nursing practice.
6: Create a plan for application of evidence to current nursing practice.
7; Reflect on how the learning you achieved in this course will support your success in the final course when you will develop a written evidence-based proposal for a change in nursing practice.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Reflection and Assimilation
Considering all the knowledge gained over the course of the research project, I can effectively utilize research to improve nursing practice. In essence, I am able to take the evidence which I find in literature and then translate it into practice guidelines that nursing staff would be willing to adopt. I have been able to achieve each of the course outcome. These are described below.
I have gained ability and competence to evaluate quantitative research. As a result of the research conducted, I am able to evaluate various quantitative research studies through systematic examination of all aspects of a nursing research study. I am able to effectively assess and critique various quantitative research approaches such as cross-sectional design. I am also able to evaluate grounded theory type of quantitative research, whose purpose is theory development. Moreover, I am able to evaluate ethnography research studies which describe the characteristics of a culture (Beck, 2013). Equally important, I can properly evaluate quantitative case studies, which describe in an in-depth manner the experience of an institution, a community, a group, a family or an individual. When evaluating quantitative research studies in nursing, I have learned the importance of bearing in mind the sampling and data collection methods utilized by the researcher, the variables of the study, the research questions formulated, validity and reliability of data, as well as outcomes of the research.
I have gained the ability to apply research findings from quantitative studies. The research has enabled me to use the findings of quantitative research as evidence in nursing practice. The new evidence gained from quantitative studies could be utilized by managers and decision makers in healthcare organizations to solve challenges they experience within their healthcare facilities, and to improve patient care (Aveyard & Sharp, 2013). In essence, I am now able to understand the utility and meaning of quantitative research results and how they can serve as vital evidence for nursing practice changes. Before the findings of quantitative research can be applied, it is imperative to determine if those findings are valid (Jacelon & O’Dell, 2005). In this regard, thanks to this research, I am now able to determine the validity of quantitative research findings before applying them.
I have also gained the ability and competence to evaluate qualitative research studies. Qualitative research is basically understood as a method of inquiry where the investigator, acting as an instrument for the collection of data, seeks to answer questions regarding why or how a given phenomenon happens (Holloway & Wheeler, 2013). I can properly evaluate several qualitative research designs in nursing research including ethnography, phenomenology, grounded-theory, as well as qualitative description. To evaluate whether or not a particular qualitative study in nursing research is useful, I have learned to critically appraise qualitative research in terms of validity and thoroughness. The main areas to consider when evaluating the qualitative research include: if the research question is clear and substantiated sufficiently; and if the design is apt for the research question. Others are if the sampling method was apt for the research design and research question; if data was gathered and managed in a systematic way; if data analysis was apt; and if the description of findings is thorough.
I have gained the ability to apply research findings from qualitative studies. The research has allowed me to be able to properly understand how I can apply the qualitative research findings by asking several questions, such as what relevance and meaning does the qualitative study have for my practice? The question of what meaning could be made of the findings would have to be examined (Smith & Firth, 2011). The study should produce usable knowledge. The other questions are: does the qualitative research study assist me in understanding the context of my practice? and, does the qualitative research study enhance my knowledge regarding my particular practice? I have been able to understand the generalizability of qualitative findings, considering that findings from qualitative findings are not always generalisable (Holloway, Wheeler & Holloway, 2013).
The project has enhanced my skills of evaluating the body of evidence from nursing research. This research has, to a great extent, helped me to improve on my capability to evaluate the body of evidence from nursing research as regards the subject matter in order to support an evidence-based change within nursing practice. This research project involved extensive review of existing literature on the subject matter with the aim of finding evidence to use to support evidence-based change. It is of note that evidence-based practice is a vital approach in providing the best quality care to patients, as well as the patients’ families. Nursing practice which is based on evidence improves patient outcomes and helps to reduce uncertainty usually experienced by healthcare personnel and their patients alike (Boswell, Boswell & Cannon, 2014). Because of this research project, I can clearly distinguish literature that is based on evidence from traditional literature not based on evidence. In essence, this project has enhanced my ability to systematically search for the most relevant, pertinent and current evidence, and to critically appraise this evidence in order to answer a clinical question. Conducting research helps in providing the essential evidence on which to base nursing practice (Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt, 2011).
The plan for the application of evidence to the current nursing practice entails the following: (i) disseminating the evidence. Evidence would be disseminated through various mediums such as press releases in local newspapers, television and radio stations; publications in recognized journals such as New England Journal of Medicine, Science Journal, and Nature Journal; websites. Dissemination will also take place using posters and flyers; oral presentations; as well as organization/hospital-based and professional committee meetings. The evidence will be disseminated with the aim of reaching the wider nursing community who will apply the evidence-based practice. (ii) Encouraging nurses and other healthcare professionals to adopt and implement the evidence-based practice in their daily practice at their workplace in order improve patient care and safety, and reduce injury or death from falls. (iii) Managing and overcoming any barriers and resistance to adopting the evidence-based practice, for instance by providing training (Giuliano & Polanowicz, 2008).
The learning which I have achieved in this course will support my success in the final course when I will be required to develop a written evidence-based proposal for a change in nursing strategy. This is primarily because I will be better positioned and adequately prepared to develop the written evidence-based proposal for a change in nursing practice considering that I would have already conducted the research project and gained the evidence necessary to write the proposal for an evidence-based practice. This research project has given me the essential information, knowledge and necessary evidence on which to base nursing practice. The learning I attained in this course has improved my knowledge and widened my understanding on the evidence-based nursing practice. This will certainly support my success significantly in the final course when in will develop a written evidence-based proposal for a change in nursing practice.
References
Aveyard, H., & Sharp, P. (2013). A Beginner’s Guide To Evidence-Based Practice In Health And Social Care. Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill Education.
Beck, C. T. (2013). Routledge international handbook of qualitative nursing research. Abingdon: Routledge.
Boswell, C., Boswell, C., & Cannon, S. (2014). Introduction to nursing research: Incorporating evidence-based practice. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning
Giuliano, K., & Polanowicz, M. (2008). Interpretation and use of statistics in nursing research. AACN Advanced Critical Care, 19(2), 211–222
Holloway, I., & Wheeler, S. (2013). Qualitative Research in Nursing and Healthcare. Chicester: Wiley.
Holloway, I., Wheeler, S., & Holloway, I. (2010). Qualitative research in nursing and healthcare. Chichester, West Sussex, U.K: Wiley-Blackwell.
