Assignment: Shared Governance

Assignment: Shared Governance
Assignment: Shared Governance
Attend a committee meeting in your health care organization. If you are not currently employed in a health care setting, you may elect to attend a committee meeting at another company, a community center, a local school, local chamber of commerce or other professional organization.
Observe the interactions between committee members and the process used by the committee to arrive at decisions.
In 500-750 words, describe the function of the committee and the roles of those in attendance. Describe your observations of the interactions between members of the committee and determine whether the process used to arrive at decisions is a form of shared governance. Please include if you felt the meeting used shared governance or not.
A minimum of two academic references from credible sources are required for this assignment. Source must be published within the last 5 years and and appropriate for the assignment criteria and nursing content.
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.
Committee Review
I. Introduction of the committee
II. Function of the committee
A. Roles of those in attendance
III. Describe your observation of the interactions between members of the committee.
IV. Do you believe the meeting used shared governance or not?
Simple conclusion.
Shared Governance is a nursing empowerment and shared decision-making paradigm that holds staff nurses accountable for decisions that affect policies, procedures, and processes at the point of care.
Without a doubt, shared governance is a powerful tool for empowering nurses and improving patient outcomes.
It encourages front-line clinicians to participate in decision-making about issues that affect them and the services they provide, and it fosters a culture of openness about work practices and support for personal and professional development, with an emphasis on evidence-based patient outcomes.
It’s also a cornerstone of the international Magnet® certification program, which is the highest international recognition for nursing performance and quality of care that a healthcare organization can get.
Implementing shared governance, on the other hand, can be time consuming and stressful.
It takes a lot of effort, but the benefits of shared governance frequently surpass the challenges of implementation.
Here are some pointers on how to put it into practice in your company.
Why is it critical to develop shared governance in nursing?
It encourages the use of evidence-based procedures.
Establishes a foundation for patient-centered care.
Nurse retention has improved.
Job satisfaction has improved.
Encourages professional development
Interprofessional ties are strengthened.
FORM A STEERING COMMITTEE FIRST
Nurses representing all clinical areas and nursing positions should make up your steering committee.
You’ll be able to approach shared governance from the perspective of nurses at all levels if you have a diverse group.
The steering committee’s purpose is to delve deeply into shared governance.
You should examine your current decision-making and internal communication processes.
Are there any nursing service committees in place, and if so, how are they working?
The steering committee will: After you’ve done a thorough dive into your current protocols, the steering committee will:
Create a shared governance mission statement for the organization.
Create bylaws that outline your shared governance system.
Propose a new leadership structure for nurses.
Establish a system for sharing general information and shared governance outcomes to employees at all levels of your company.
Educate all clinical nurses on your shared governance model and their participation in it.
TIP #2: Form Councils
You can either ask for staff nurse volunteers or run an election to form your councils, with each council electing a chairperson.
You’ll need three types of councils if you’re using a combined unit-based and councillor model.
Each patient care unit should have its own unit-based council, which is responsible for determining nursing practice choices for that unit.
Specialty Nursing Councils — These councils represent nurses and practice decisions in a particular field of nursing.
Coordinating or Leadership Council – This council will serve as a direct link to the organization’s administration and will coordinate operations among other councils.
The chairperson of the Leadership Council should ideally be the Executive Director of Nursing.
TIP #3: Create a set of bylaws for the council.
Each council will require a set of bylaws to establish the basic rules for how they will function.
The following should be included in the bylaws:
Accepting volunteers for membership is governed by a set of rules.
A maximum number of participants
Meeting schedules and cadences – these meetings should be required and managed by the chairperson.
Members’ term restrictions and proposals for member turnover
An open communication and confidentiality policy
Establishing standards for topics submitted before the council for consideration is the final and most important stage of developing council rules.
These rules will need to be presented to all employees in order to encourage nurses to bring issues to the attention of management and to assist them understand the resolution procedure and deadline.
You’ll also need to figure out who will be in charge of putting the changes into action and explain the voting process, including the minimum number of votes needed to pass a policy or procedure modification.
TIP #4: Establish a Timeline for Implementation That Is Reasonable
As you can see from suggestions one through three, creating shared governance requires a significant amount of effort.
It is necessary to recognize that establishing shared governance is a marathon, not a sprint, and that an adequate and fair schedule for implementation is essential.
Remember that each organization’s timing will vary depending on its nursing culture and willingness to change.
TIP #5 Strengthen and Maintain Shared Governance
It’s crucial to remember that shared governance is a never-ending process.
It’s a continually changing practice paradigm, and nurses transferring into decision-making roles or new to the organization will need ongoing training.
You’ll also need to build instruments to enable you and other nursing leaders assess the shared governance’s outcomes.
This will allow you to pivot and alter your framework as needed to guarantee that your shared governance is delivering the best patient results possible.