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Monday, February 24, 2014
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
Managing Change: An Online MSN Degree Can Help
Managing change
is an essential part of nursing administration and executive nurse leadership;
however, change is easier said than done.
Take the “Tolerance for Change”
assessment found at http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0073381225/student_view0/chapter14/self-assessment_14_2.html
Understanding your own “me” issues related to change can help you with
fostering the change process in others. Several change theories have been
developed to assist you with needed change in your workplace or in your own
life.
One of my
favorite change theories is Lewin’s theory of unfreezing and refreezing of
behavior. His model indicates that
people need to “unfreeze” learned behavior patterns, change to the new
behavior, then refreeze the new
behaviors into their daily activities. I
once read it takes 21 x of doing something before it becomes a habit, which
fits nicely into Lewin’s theory of change. One of the most difficult aspects of
change is taking that first step.
Helping others
change with that first step is a key skill of nursing leaders. Getting individuals to see the reason(s) for
change can promote initial behaviors toward desired change. For example, changing a procedure such as
shift change reporting processes requires a broad understanding of the need for
change. Typically, if a nursing leader
can foster staff agreement regarding the change, the leader can then begin to
garner ideas from their staff to implement the change. By including the staff in brainstorming ideas
to initiate change, staff will feel more ownership in the change.
Dr. Maggie
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
Communication with Online MSN Degree Faculty
Often life
“happens” with a personal or work-related crisis. When in an online MSN degree program, it is
important for students to have strong communication with their online teachers.
Our busy lives guarantee that a crisis will occur during school at the worst
possible time. It is not a matter of “if”,
but a matter of when! Working ahead, if
possible, is the best safeguard against looming catastrophes in our lives. More importantly, when something happens
which may be an obstacle to our course work, it is imperative to contact
faculty as soon as possible regarding the situation. Even if you might meet a
due date, ask for the extension anyway, you can always not use the extension,
but at least you are covered.
Via Email or
phone, have a friend or family members call the faculty to inform them of a “personal
situation” affecting the ability to do course work for a few days. Details are not needed if you feel you’d like
to keep them to yourself. What is needed
is a definitive time frame for your absence from class and when you will resume
coursework so that an appropriate extension is requested. Remember, most MSN programs will only grant
incompletes if 75% of work is completed
for a course. Keep in mind that you are then
responsible for past course work to make
up PLUS current course work, which may cause undue stress-so try to avoid
incompletes where possible.
Communication
with faculty regarding course content or assignment questions is associated
with important timing of those questions.
Be sure to ask about assignment questions at least a week in advance of
an assignment due date to allow for faculty response time to incorporate the
information in your assignment. Email or the Q& A discussion area are the
best ways to ask your questions. If you
have a complex issue or lack understanding of a majority of an assignment,
setting up a conference call with faculty is the best way to handle those types
of complex questions, as email may become too cumbersome. In addition, for those of you who might be
auditory learners, one phone call can be more helpful than a dozen emails when
it comes to getting the answers you need.
Dr. Maggie
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
Statistics Help and Online MSN Degree Programs
An
understanding of basic, and even some intermediate, statistics helps the online
master of science in nursing science degree student evaluate clinical research
for reliability and clinical applicability. A terrific resource to augment any text or
material from a graduate statistic course is :
Donnelly,
R.A. (2010). The complete idiot's guide to statistics. 2nd ed. New York, New York: The Penguin Group.
The
book explains in layman’s terms statistical principles, and when to apply them
with simple examples. At the very least
I recommend this book to use as a resource when evaluating research for use to
determine if a change in nursing practice is warranted.
Dr. Maggie
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