Reflection on Professionalism

On a basic level, my leadership role requires the provision of guidance and mentorship to my Home Care teams. More specifically, the promotion of team development, effective teamwork and establishment of an environment that fosters quality improvement and supports a culture of safety for all staff and patients in our care. The Canadian Health Act states, “the primary objective of Canadian health care policy is to protect, promote and restore the physical and mental well-being of residents of Canada and to facilitate reasonable access to health services without financial or other barriers” (1984, Canadian Health Care Policy section, para. 1).In order to align with the act, I am responsible for ensuring consistency in the delivery of patient-focused care and providing accessibility of service through the continued interaction and collaboration with both internal and external partners and participants.

Although my position is non-unionized, I am regulated to perform to the standards set out by my regulatory body, the College and Association of Registered Nurses “endeavours to ensure that all Alberta RNs and NPs provide safe, competent and ethical nursing care” (CARNA, 2019, para. 2).I am required to assess current practice and performance on, at the very least, an annual basis. Development of a learning plan follows this assessment in order to continue to expand my knowledge base.

Currently, my social media presence has been quite limited, mostly due to the overwhelming desire to preserve professional boundaries as it relates to posting socially. During a workshop called Discovery Insights, I learned that I am most comfortable in expressing myself in indirect ways, which may explain my hesitation. Alberta Health Services has developed a policy regarding social media presence which specifies that “when making public comment, it is the responsibility of the individual to clearly indicate when the comments are being made in an official capacity on behalf of AHS, or alternatively, when the comments are personal or private views and opinions or on behalf of an organization or profession. Having made this distinction, employees and physicians can speak in either capacity” (Alberta Health Services, 2011, p.1).

As a self-admitted introvert, it is uncomfortable for me to consider the possibility of expanding my current social media presence, however it is equally challenging to disregard its obvious advantages in a professional sense. “Social media is a wonderful tool for the synthesis and dissemination of nursing knowledge and information, as well as engaging platforms to support continuing education” (Canadian Nurses Association, 2012, p.5).

When challenged with the question of what kind of professional identity I want to create, I can easily recall an activity within one of my leadership preparatory courses. As a very standard introduction, we were required to recall a leader within our organization whom we respected and were tasked with identifying individual traits they displayed that were particularly admirable. We then needed to pinpoint the specific personal value that it may correspond to. To complete this activity, we quietly reflected on our own personal values and considered how this may impact our performance and overall satisfaction in the workplace. “Think of your life as a house. Can you knock down the walls between the rooms and be the same person in each of them” (George, Sims, McLean, and Mayer, 2007, p.7)? Authentic leadership is when you can genuinely be the same person regardless of the setting. “Intrinsic motivations are congruent with your values and are more fulfilling than extrinsic motivations” (George et al., 2007, p.6).

Accountability is a central principle in my personal life represented by an amusing acronym, “DWYSYWD, or Do What You Say You Will Do” (Kouzes and Posner, 2010, p.28). The Oz Principleis a frequently used resource book where performance is improved as a result of the employees’ engagement and focus on the results of the larger organization (Connors, 2010). By developing my professional identity to where I can be recognized as authentic, I can inspire others to follow my lead, resulting in professional growth within our organization. Working within the health care field where all employees are heard, respected and accountable, would have a direct implication on our mission to provide the right care, in the right place, at the right time.

References

Alberta Health Services. (2012). Social Media, pp. 1. Retrieved from https://extranet.ahsnet.ca/teams/policydocuments/1/clp-ahs-pol-social-media.pdf

Canadian Health Act, R.S.C., (1984), c. C-6. Canadian Health Care Policy section, para.1.

Canadian Nurses Association. (2012, February). When Private Becomes Public: The Ethical Challenges and Opportunities of Social Media. Ethics in Practice for Registered Nurses, pp.5. Retrieved from https://www.cna-aiic.ca/~/media/cna/page-content/pdf-en/ethics_in_practice_feb_2012_e.pdf?la=en

CARNA. (2019). Retrieved from What We Do: https://www.nurses.ab.ca/about/what-is-carna/what-we-do para.2.

Connors, R. S. (2010). The Oz Principle: Getting Results Through Individual and Organizational Accountability.New York: Penguin Group.

George, B., Sims, R., McLean, A. N., & Mayer, D. (2007, February). Discovering Your Authentic Leadership. Harvard Business Review, pp. 6-7.

Kouzes, J. M., and Posner, B. Z. (2010).The Truth About Leadership. (pp.28). San Fransisco: Jossey-Bass.