Introduction
Change management, as applied to the healthcare sector, has some peculiarities. The goal of the current project is to provide insights into the ways how understanding in nursing may be increased. This requires alterations not only in practices employed by specialists but also changes at the organizational level. In particular, it is important to modify the attitudes of employees, which will affect their behaviors (Dang, Rohde, & Suflita, 2017). Also, it is necessary to place the workforce in such an organizational context, which will contribute to the redistribution of roles and the emergence of new relationships. The purpose of this paper is to discuss a change theory to be applied to the project as well as to identify the possible implementation difficulties.
Change Theory
William Bridges’ transition theory is to be utilized to stimulate understanding in nursing (Dang et al., 2017). Its core lies in the idea that either success or failure of change efforts depends directly on employees’ behaviors (whether they start acting differently). The people affected by the change should pass several stages of physiological readjustment. First, they need to accept the fact that the setting has changed, and this implies that they also need to modify their behavior (Dang et al., 2017).
Second, they need to proceed to the neutral zone in which employees no longer behave the usual way and, yet, they do not employ a new mode of conduct. Third, people adapt to the setting, start acting in a different way, and accept the new environment in which they have to function. This way, employees will be able to proceed gradually from one stage to another, experiencing less stress and anxiety.
Implementation Plan and Outcome Measures
The implementation plan will focus on creating a new environment in which interdisciplinary collaborations will be encouraged. Healthcare institutions should provide education to nurses and other specialists so that professionals know how to communicate with each other effectively and bring the best of care to their patients. It may be assumed that successful communication will not only result in greater job satisfaction but also ease the burden placed on nurses (Daly, Speedy, & Jackson, 2015). The main outcome measures will be new behavior exhibited by nurses and changes in their daily activities. In the medical setting, not much can be done from the economic point of view since the project requires interventions employed on the psychological and practical levels.
Potential Barriers
The main potential barrier to project execution is poor motivation from the side of the nursing personnel (Daly et al., 2015). At present, nurse turnover is one of the greatest issues faced by the healthcare sector. Specialists operating in this area are often overworked and lack the motivation to try new practices. In addition, another barrier is the number of work nurses needs to do on a day-to-day basis.
Their tight work schedule implies that they will need to allocate time to learn how to modify their behavior. This may result in resistance to change and the lack of desire to alter their work routine (Daly et al., 2015). To overcome these issues, it is necessary to discuss with nurses the benefits the planned change will bring to them and their patients. It is crucial to emphasize that greater understanding will help them do their job more effectively and will take some load off them.
Concluding Remarks
Thus, it can be concluded that it is essential to explicate to nurses that changes are inevitable. They should understand why alterations are important not only for them but also for their clients. Change management should occur at the institutional level so that healthcare specialists receive the necessary support and have as much time as needed to adapt their conduct to the new organizational context.
References
Daly, J., Speedy, S., & Jackson, D. (2015). Leadership and nursing: Contemporary perspectives (2nd ed.). Sydney, Australia: Elsevier.
Dang, D., Rohde, J., & Suflita, J. (2017). Johns Hopkins nursing professional practice model: Strategies to advance nursing excellence. Indianapolis, IN: Sigma Theta Tau.