Effective Team Building Strategies in Nursing Management, Exams of Nursing

Download Effective Team Building Strategies in Nursing Management and more Exams Nursing in PDF only on Docsity! Chapter 19 Building Effective Teams Yoder- Wise Leading and Managing in Nursing 7th Edition Satisfaction Guaranteed 1. A nurse manager is experiencing conflicts between herself and staff members. She had tried to develop a team by using a shared leadership model to empower the staff. Staff members are functioning: a. as a team. b. independently. c. interdependently. d. as a group. - ANS: D A group is a collection of interconnected individuals working together, with a high degree of interdependence, for the same purpose. A team is a unified group that is committed to a common purpose, performance goals, and approach, for which they hold themselves mutually accountable. The conflict indicates that the staff may not be united in a common purpose. 2. The nurse manager used a mediator to help resolve conflicts on the unit. During the mediation process, the nurse manager saw signs of potential team building. One key concept of an effective team is: a. conflict. b. task clarity. c. commitment. d. a designated leader. - ANS: C Team building involves moving toward a common vision, which requires commitment. Conflict and clarification of tasks are components in the development of this commitment. 3. A mediator suggested that the nurse manager and staff members decide on a method to resolve conflicts. It is important to have agreements about how team members will work together because: a. if there are no agreements, each member will make up rules about how to handle disagreements and relationships. b. people are naturally difficult and will not work well together without such agreements. c. people will naturally ask for agreements about how to be together. d. a way to eliminate nonproductive team members must be available. - ANS: A People must agree on the goals and mission with which they are involved. They have to reach some understanding of how they will exist together. Tenets or agreements such as "I will respectfully speak promptly with any team member with whom I have a problem" go a long way to avoid gossiping, backbiting, bickering, and misinterpreting others. Without agreement, people have implicit permission to behave in any manner they choose toward one another, including angry, hostile, hurtful, and acting-out behavior. 4. By following a shared leadership model, the nurse manager believes that staff members will learn to function synergistically. Some teams function synergistically because members: a. do not volunteer unwanted information. b. actively listen to each other. c. listen to the person who believes he or she is an expert. d. do not speak unless they are absolutely sure they are correct in their views. - ANS: B Active listening in a group creates synergy in that team members really hear one another's ideas and share in decision making. 5. The chief nursing officer decided that the nurse managers need a series of staff- development programs on team building through communication and partnerships. She understood that the nurse managers needed to build confidence in ways of handling various situations. The greatest deterrent to confidence is: a. lack of clarity in the mission. b. lack of control of the environment. c. fear that one can't handle the consequences. d. fear that the boss will not like one's work. - ANS: C Fear of not being able to manage consequences undermines confidence and a sense of competency. 6. The mediator noticed that tension was still evident between the nurse manager and staff members. He informed the chief nursing officer that to begin team building, it would be important that everyone: a. work together in a respectful, civil manner. b. use avoidance techniques when confronted with a conflict. c. develop a personal friendship with each other. d. socialize frequently outside of work. - ANS: A For team building to occur, team members need to be able to listen actively and respect one another's opinions, while feeling comfortable in openly expressing their own. 7. The state of being emotionally impelled, demonstrated by a sense of passion and dedication to a project or event, describes: a. commitment. b. control. c. willingness to cooperate. d. communication. - ANS: A Commitment is described as having a sense of passion and commitment to a project without necessarily having a need to control. 8. The mediator suggested to the unit staff that a group agreement needed to be made so meetings could become productive. For example, the group agreement, "We will speak supportively," prevents: a. it deals with all aspects of communications in patient care except communication with the physician. b. the nurse is on the same communication level as administration. c. it honors a familiar, structured transfer of information among health professionals. d. it honors an unstructured transfer of information. - ANS: C The SBAR system was developed by professionals in the California Kaiser Permanente System and involves direct, respectful communication skills among professionals with the aim of quality patient care. 17. In the cardiac intensive care unit, there has been simmering discontent about the new nurse manager, who avoids any discussion about her scheduling and practice decisions. The staff have begun to sort into "different camps" depending on how they feel about the manager or the decisions. Which of the following statements MOST accurately describes this situation? a. The tension that has been generated will result in creative solutions. b. Staff will become a cohesive group that takes a stand against the manager. c. The conflict will result in increased dialogue about practice and scheduling options. d. Patient care may suffer because attention and energy is being diverted toward the unit relationships. - ANS: D Destructive conflict polarizes groups, saps group morale, deepens differences in values, and diverts energy from more important activities, such as patient care. Constructive conflict opens up issues of importance, results in solutions to problems, and enables authentic communication. 18. From the information presented in this chapter, which of the following statements best defines an accomplished team? Effective teams: a. can create a form of synergism in which the outcome is greater than the sum of the individual performances. b. do not necessarily need goals, objectives, vision, and a clearly stated purpose. c. do not always have effective communication patterns. d. may or may not have a clear plan that is followed and revisited and has an ongoing evaluation scheme. - ANS: A Research on team building over many years has established that high-functioning teams are characterized by synergy that takes the team from a collection of individuals to an outcome that is greater than the sum of the parts. 19. "I really wish that my supervisor would realize and acknowledge all the things I do well." In nursing, this has been identified as a problem. Which statement is part of the solution? Focus on: a. new staff. b. care assignments with which the individual is not familiar. c. making corrections. d. the strengths of the individual rather than the weaknesses. - ANS: D The research of Rath (2007) included many recommendations, one of which was that focusing on mediocre behaviors and on a person's weaknesses will not lead to excellence. Focusing on weaknesses tends to decrease the appreciation, and thus the acknowledgements. 20. Trust is an important aspect of helping relationships, therapeutic communications, and the positive communications model. Which statement does not involve or define trust? Trust: a. involves decisions to manipulate situations to gain advantage over another. b. is the basis by which leaders facilitate the activities and progress of a team. c. is low among members and leaders in poorly performing teams. d. involves what we say and not necessarily what we do. - ANS: A Trust is high in high-performing teams and involves not consciously taking advantage of others and behaving in a way that inspires trust. It is the basis by which leaders facilitate the activities and progress of a team. 21. Team Member A and Team Member B engage in heated disagreements on a frequent basis in team meetings. Their behavior is characterized by insistence on their points of view and refusal to back down or to negotiate alternative solutions once their ideas have been expressed. This behavior is characteristic of: a. autocratic leadership. b. constructive conflict. c. dualism. d. creativity. - ANS: C Our society tends to be dualistic in nature. Dualism means that most situations are viewed as right or wrong, black or white. Answers to questions are often reduced to "yes" or "no." As a result, we sometimes forget a broad spectrum of possibilities actually exists. Exercising creativity and exploring numerous possibilities are important. This allows the team to operate at its optimal level. 22. The unit manager was addressing nursing students in the lounge area and was discussing team leadership and team effectiveness. She stated, "One can agree to disagree with another team member's perspective even when one doesn't necessarily see that perspective as being the correct one." In being creative, what did she mean? a. Championing one's own opinion b. Being compassionate c. Being flexible d. Committing to resolution - ANS: D Caregivers must listen to the other person's perspective, listen to the message accurately, identify differences, and creatively seek resolutions. 23. Which of the following would not be a characteristic of an effective team nurse leader? a. An autocratic perspective b. Excellent communication skills c. Awareness of everyone's abilities d. A genuine interest in team members - ANS: A In ineffective teams, leadership tends to be autocratic and rigid, and the team's communication style may be overly stiff and formal. Members tend to be uncomfortable with conflict or disagreement, avoiding and suppressing it rather than using it as a catalyst for change. When criticism is offered, it may be destructive, personal, and hurtful rather than constructive and problem-centered. Team members may begin to hide their feelings of resentment or disagreement, sensing that they are "dangerous." This creates the potential for later eruptions and discord. 24. As a nurse manager, you notice that one of your new nurses has provided exceptional care for a patient with especially complex needs. What would be the MOST effective way of recognizing the nurse's performance? a. At the next performance review, note specifically what the nurse did to make the patient comfortable. b. To avoid embarrassing the nurse in front of others, find a way to compliment the nurse in private. c. When the nurse comes out of the room, tell the nurse specifically what you appreciated about the care that was provided. d. Encourage the patient to note the care on the patient feedback form so that the institution can recognize the nurse's efforts. - ANS: C Acknowledgement is most effective when it is specific, timely, given in public, sincere, and on an eye-to-eye basis. The more time that elapses between the event and acknowledgement, the less effective it becomes. 1. Mobilizing others to accomplish extraordinary things requires what leadership behaviors? (Select all that apply.) a. Celebrating the successes of others b. Demonstrating exceptional technical skills c. Imagining possibilities d. Establishing a sense of "being in this together" - ANS: A, C, D Leaders who inspire teams to accomplish extraordinary things or to display synergy model the way, inspire shared vision, challenge the status quo, and encourage the heart by celebration of success.