Rebecca M Patton has been a nurse since 1980 and was elected a president of the America Nurses Association (ANA) in 2006 for 2 years and was re-elected again in 2008. ANA is an association that represents major health policies, work place issues and the practice of registered nurses. After her term in ANA, she is currently the director of Perioperative services for EMH Regional Health Care System in Ohio.
Leadership Characteristics
She is a Humble Person And a Great Example to Nurses
Nursing is a profession that involves dealing with many individuals from various backgrounds and people who have different physical, emotional or mental problems. This way, humility is a very important aspect in the nursing profession as it allows good communication with the patients as well as their relatives. Rebecca is an active church member as well as a volunteer worker. A volunteer work includes a community mission trip to Zimbabwe, a third world country in Africa, where she had an opportunity to work in a Zimbabwean hospital. This is a great sign of humility and she set a good example to other nurses that it does not matter where you are, all that matters is the services you give to the people. A good leader should be able to set a decent example for his/her subordinates to follow and emulate whatever they do.
Well Educated And Well Informed
Throughout human history, it has been an uphill task for the women to obtain education and be respected in the society. Education does not only entail a college degree but rather involves being well informed in one’s field, seeking out the more experienced individuals in one’s field and learning from them. In an interview in Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing it is revealed that Rebecca has a nursing degree as well as a masters degree; besides that, she has good experience having worked as a nurse since the 1980s and has held major position in the health care system. Through this and what she has done for the association, she is well informed about what the nursing profession entails, what it lacks and what needs to be done about the loopholes that exist. Given the above, she is a good and competent leader as she knows her area of specialization very well and propelled the association to greater heights.
Ability to Solve Problems and to Convey a Vision
The nursing profession faces a few problems such as; shortage of nurses, patient safety and advocacy, the nurses’ work place rights, patient staffing as well as occupational health and safety. In an interview at the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing where she has undertaken her master’s degree, she says that she will push for patient safety and advocacy while she is a president of ANA through making sure that mistakes that have been made are corrected and people are educated on the patient safety and advocacy.
The above leadership characteristics are very essential in that, they build a leader who is respected by her staff and who respects her subordinates. This makes the subordinates feel a sense of belonging hence boosting their efforts to learn and work better.
The Unique Contribution(s) Rebecca Patton Made to the Nursing Profession and/or Nursing Practice
Nursing Events
As past president of ANA, Patton has participated in various events with the National students Nurses’ Association. She performs as as a mentor, educator and a leader to this future nurses and in doing so, she instills good working ethics and positive attitude in the future leaders.
Contribution to Initiatives
Ms Patton has made a major contribution in an initiative dubbed National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators. It is an initiative that spells out what nurses do and in what way they affect the health care system. This was the first of such an initiative in the health care system and she managed to involved a thousand of hospitals to take part in this wonderful project and she personally got involved in the initiative engaging other people as well.
Advocacy Characteristics Rebecca Patton Employs to Meet Health Care Needs of Individuals, Families, and/or Aggregates.
Meaning of advocacy in the nursing profession remains to be very puzzling and unclear. There is a confusion on whether advocacy is supposed to be a moral or professional duty therefore to avoid ambivalence and ambiguity; it is all about taking advocacy to bring the change in the policies that are currently in place and other laws that govern the health care system at large.
Powerful Nursing Practice
This involves exercising political power as a nurse on behalf of patients and their families. This characteristic was clearly seen when Rebecca Patton led her fellow nurses to campaign for and get committed to the affordable bills act. She was among the nurses who helped by sharing the expert knowledge as well as professional experience. By doing so, Rebecca strengthened the credibility of nurses and made them agents of change to influence the health care policy.
Inspirational Motivation
Ms Patton has talked of the future of the nursing profession and what has to be accomplished during her tenure. She has articulated a compelling vision and has given the people confidence that the goals will be achieved. She has promised to take part in the building and renovation of hospitals in the United States so as to make sure that the hospitals are built for the nurse as well. When nurses are kept in mind, there will be fewer accidents since sinks and outlets will be in the right place.
Idealized Influence
This is a trait that is meant to instill pride in others; while celebrating their annual Nurses week, Rebecca, in a letter to her fellow nurses, asked the nurses to take time and reflect on how rewarding their profession is and also to share their passion with other people too so as to inspire young people to join them in the quest to provide quality care to patients.
In an interview, conducted by Medscape today, Ms Patton reveals how a nurse can advocate for change; she says it is done by simply standing up and getting involved. From her interview, it becomes clear that she has an idealized influence on the nurses and this is an advocacy trait that will propel change in the nursing profession.
Advocacy for nurses is a tough decision to make since an individual is forced to step out of familiar grounds and into grounds of policies and politics. However, a nurses’ real world experience will be of much help so as to enable the much awaited and needed change in the health care system.
Specific Barriers, Obstacles, or Circumstances that Precipitated or Influenced Ms Patton’s Decision to Address the Situation that Led to the Change
Health Care not having Much Attention as it Should
Ms. Patton saw the drawbacks of the health care system of the US and how passive the government is, and this made her to advocate for change in the health care system. Her passion has been clearly seen throughout the health care debate whereby as ANA’s president, she has argued that health care is a basic human right and her goal is to ensure that health care is guaranteed to all citizens, easily accessible, quality and affordable. This led to the health care reform bill being signed into law.
Accidents in the Workplace- Emphasis of Safety and Quality
Having seen many accidents both with nurses and patients, she has advocated for safety and therefore the program National Quality Indicator Database has been brought about with her help. This database tracks nurses’ impact on patient care outcomes, it shows the importance of nurses delivering high quality and safe care to the patients. Thus, healthcare workforce leaders will be able to see, estimate and reward the nurses for excellent performance
The Impact this Leader’s Contribution will have on Future Generations of Nurses
Ms Patton’s contributions will make future generation of nurses be aware of their role in the society. Her contribution will greatly encourage future nurses not to be afraid of being advocates of health reforms given their professional knowledge, the belief and the credibility they have in the eyes of society.
She was determined to make nurses appreciate their profession with all its challenges, and this will make future nurses to be proud of what they do and do it wholeheartedly. It will help them learn ho to face the challenges, how to accept the challenges and use them to better their careers.
Due to her contributions to the program of National Quality Indicator Database, most nurses will be able to be recognized by the healthcare workforce leaders and they will receive extra pay for their exemplary performance in giving care where it is needed the most. This, in turn, will motivate the future nurses to grow professionally and this will result in a better nursing workforce with highly specialized skills and high quality care.
How Ms Patton’s Contribution, Including how She Propelled the Change, Impacts You From a Personal and Professional Perspective: Knowledge, Values, and Beliefs.
Ms. Patton has influenced my knowledge of the nursing profession as it has opened my eyes to see that nursing is not just a profession like any other but it is rather a call. It is a challenging profession but when is devoted to it, he/she will do whatever it takes to see a health society.
From a professional perspective, Ms Patton is a hard worker and dedicated to her profession. This is the kind of dedication we need to have a proper and working health care system. She is an exemplary performer who takes her role seriously and ensures she leaves a situation better than she found it. These traits instill good professional characters in me in that one’s profession is supposed to be taken seriously and not as a punishment but rather as a calling.
Conclusion
Ms. Patton is a great leader and she speaks for the people who do not have the right to speak; she speaks for patients and their families and ensures that the patients get high quality and specialized care. She incorporated her leadership skills and her education to bring out the best in the nursing profession. She has influenced many nurses and helped them to be proud of the profession seen as challenging. She is an exemplary nurse leader with a vision of the nursing profession who takes the profession to greater and better heights.
Summary
The article describes a phenomenal nurse leader who has made the nursing profession recognized world wide. Rebecca Patton is a past ANA president and she is currently the director of Perioperative Services for EMH Regional Health Care System in Ohio. She is a humble nurse leader who is a great example to her fellow nurses, she has a nursing degree as well as a master’s degree and has capabilities of solving problems as and when they arise. These leadership qualities have propelled her to greater heights.
She has made major contributions to the nursing profession; she takes part in nursing events and shares her knowledge with young nurses. She has taken part in a very important initiative, National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators which ensures that great efforts of nurses caring for their patients does not go to waste.
Additionally, she is an advocate for health policies and reforms; she has campaigned for the affordable bill act and even has got recognition from President Obama himself. In spite of many challenges, she has forged on and made significant changes and developments in the health care system and she will always be remembered for her great contributions and revival of the public credibility to nurses. She is an exemplary leader who is ready to work with other people in order to achieve her vision. This paper talks of her contributions, the challenges she has faced, her influence and her charisma.