Perceptions Of Clinical Leadership In An Aged Care Residential Facility In Perth, Western Australia

Abstract

IntroductionIn Australia people are living longer and are also well supported with an excellent health system and social welfare structures [1]. Nevertheless, in Australia 80% of people over the age of 65 have three or more chronic conditions and older people with chronic illnesses are the highest users of all health and aged care services [2]. The aged care sector, while facing increasing care and quality demands is also feeling; the impact of a reducing qualified nursing staff pool; a transient and mobile management and nursing workforce; the perception that their service is of lower status compared with acute and community nursing services; and the view, in some quarters, that resources in the field are poor. These perspectives are compounded by the view that most of the care is offered by unskilled workers who, along with the qualified workforce, are poorly paid [3][4][5][6][7][8].In May 2010, the Australian Government announced that it would promote change in practice and build clinical leadership capacity [9]. Despite this high level initiative, limited research exists that explores and describes what clinical level leadership is, who the clinical leaders are and the characteristics and attributes of clinical leaders in aged care residential facilities [10][11][12][13].With the challenges and opportunities that abound in the residential aged care sector, management skills and leadership approaches are considered vital for addressing and dealing effectively with developments in care provision and service improvement in the care home environment. However, while much is known about the impact of management and leadership in the corporate or industry sectors, little is known about how leadership is perceived or how leadership can facilitate effective change and impact positively on residential care, quality and staff attitudes. AbstractObjective: To investigate the perceptions and approaches to leadership and leadership development of senior nurses and care home managers in an aged care residential facility.Method: A descriptive phenomenological research approach was employed to support purposive sampling. A questionnaire (n=10) was used, followed by interviews (n=8). Analysis employed an SPSS and NVivo 0.6 computer programs, with manual data configuration as required.Results: Participants saw a distinction between their role as leaders and managers and that their more clinically focused responsibilities favoured a greater affinity with clinical leadership. In addition, the attributes and characteristics of clinical leaders identified by participants were approachability, clinical skills, clinical knowledge, honesty, integrity, support for others and visibility in the clinical area. Conclusion:The development and deployment of clinical leadership attributes are vital so that senior nurses and care home managers can play a more effective part in care provision and service improvement in the residential care environment.

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