Case Study: The New Charge Nurse
You are a third-shift (11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.) nurse supervisor to whom several charge nurses report. Each charge nurse is responsible for a nursing unit. Six months ago, you promoted Sally Besnick to be one of the charge nurses. Six months before she was promoted, Besnick had earned a bachelor of science in nursing (B.S.N.) from an out-of-state university. She is the same age a the five registered nurses (RNs) she supervises, all of whom graduated from a two-year associate of arts (A.A.) nursing degree program at a local technical college. B.S.N. programs are generally considered the “gold standard” of nursing preparation. Sally is the only charge nurse with a B.S.N. who reports to you.
Besnick received the same in-service training in supervision as the other charge nurses, but there are major problems on her unit. Morale among her nursing staff is low, absenteeism is high, and not all of the administrative work on her unit is getting done. There are no indication that the quality of care on her unit is below acceptable levels, however. You think Besnick’s main difficulty is that she cannot control, lead, discipline, or correct her subordinates. She seems easygoing; her subordinates call her Soft Sally behind her back. Given their hands-on training and greater experience, they feel that they can deliver technically better patient care than she can. Besnick is personable and well liked by you and by the other charge nurse. She socializes with them after hours and, like them, Besnick participates in American Nurse Association professional activities. Besnick and her husband recently bought a new house in town after renting for the year that she has worked at the hospital. They adopted a baby 2 months ago. You are concerned that if you demote Besnick, her pride will be hurt and she will quit. You do not want to lose a good RN, especially one with a bachelor’s degree
Questions:
a) Develop a problem statement. Identify several tentative alternative solutions.
b) Which solution is best? Why?
c) Describe how you would implement the solution chosen. How would you evaluate the results?