Characteristics of an Effective Nurse Administrator Research Paper

Introduction

A philosophy of caring and compassion is necessary but not sufficient for effective nurse administration. Nurse administrators assume additional duties and responsibilities when they manage health care facilities. In addition to understanding the regulations affecting day to day operations, nurse administrators need to have a firm command of financial management and human resources management expertise. Nurse administrators also need to know about how to form strategic alliances with partners in the community, government, and private sector. Essentially, nurse administrators tend to be relatively far removed from the job of actual nursing and provision of care, while also keeping in mind the need for patient-centric policies. Strong communication skills, organizational and coordination skills, leadership skills, and of course, strategic management skills are among the core characteristics of an effective nurse administrator.

Scope and Standards

A nurse administrator serves in an executive, managerial, and leadership position. The nurse administrator serves in many different roles at once, as financial manager and coordinator, as staff director, and of strategic planner. The nurse administrator sets the tone for the organizational culture, having a strong impact on policies and procedures within the organization. Likewise, nurse administrators advocate on behalf of patients and have a strong bearing on community health objectives too (American Nurses Credentialing Center, 2016). While the goals of healthcare administration usually aligns employee and patient interests, there are times when conflicts arise. Therefore, nurse administrators need to have deft and well-developed political skills. The nurse administrator is someone who is highly qualified for the position, who has received essential training and necessary skills certification (American Nurses Association, 2016).



Nurse administrators handle the day-to-day operations of the institution but also take into account global and macro-level issues in healthcare ranging from federal healthcare policies to changes to local ordinances that might impact hospital logistics. Healthcare administrators make decisions related to how to allocate funds and human resources, how to handle and resolve conflict, and how to maintain effective relationships with stakeholders through activism and philanthropy in ethical ways (Klein, 2014). Within the healthcare context, nurse administrators can work in urban, suburban, or rural regions. Their institutions can be small, large, local, national, or multinational. The nurse administrator frequently juggles divergent demands from funding partners, community members, patients, nursing staff, and lawmakers. On call all the time, nurse administrators continually coordinate between different public and private sector stakeholders by attending meetings, reading and learning about policy changes, and keeping up to date on emerging tools, technologies, and practices. Even nurses who feel healthcare…