The Concept of Power in Healthcare

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The aspect of power within an organization works to influence or control human element behavior via behavioral manipulation contingencies. In this case, an individual ought to be powerful by deliberately accessing effective behavioral consequences as well as the required skills to employ them in a contingent manner. The impact than any form of organizational power has on the entire organization's operations, mainly depend on the influence that the individual has on the subordinates' behavior and the perceptions held by others on such individuals. According to Jasper (2005), within the healthcare sector the aspect of power influence various decision both in the initiation stages and during the implementation procedures.

Whether formal or informal, power controls and influences the key interpersonal relationship between the subordinates and the management. There are four aspect of power exhibited in any healthcare. First, subordinates in any healthcare have their behavior or conduct greatly influenced by the formal positional powers that the management have over them. For example, the hospitalists and other nurses have their contribution in the organization mainly affected by formal authority tickling-down the hierarchy, thus such staffs get their work-done in reference to management's directives. Here the aim it's to mainly influence the decisions made by the juniors for the benefit or the entire organization. Secondly, the perceived relevance power acts as an informal power that impact on subordinates conduct by allowing an individual to exercise power inline with the organization's priorities. For example, using relevance power a senior nurse would be obliged to make key decisions regarding the outpatients or even inpatient attendant care issues (Rigolosi, 2005).

Third, within healthcare culture it's believed that expert power significantly influences the flow in service delivery among the staff members. Individuals practicing in the institutions are expertise in their areas of specialization and therefore their contribution in terms of decision making in the healthcare sector is premised on their training. For instance, when making prescription follow-up to various outpatients, the assigned nurse would use their expertise to streamline the procedure. The same case happens to key doctors practicing under their special training areas. Finally, the aspect of coercive and reward power in healthcare influences the contribution made by various staffs down the managerial ladder (Swansburg & Rousell, 2008). For example, it's a general practice that various care providers expect some advanced rewards owing to major achievements in their line of work. Rewards power in healthcare is recognized in terms of day-off, increase in pay or even social incentives for recognition purposes. It's inventible that some poorly performing healthcare institutions have their seniors embrace coercive power in a bid to have the subordinates comply with their iron rule. As such, various care providers tend to be intimidated in order to deliver quality care to various patients. Common intimidation approaches used includes a bid to fire an individual or have them demoted.

Transformational Leadership: U.S healthcare

A common transient managerial fads associated with healthcare system has instigated the need to have transformational leaders who not embrace new challenges but also device future ways to handle undetermined patients diverse needs in the system. The emerging need for transformational leadership in the healthcare not only earns the concerned institutions competitive advantage but also equip leadership with crucial skills to manage the diverse healthcare needs in 21st century. Transformational leadership enhances a culture where the followers admires, trust and respects their respective leaders (Tomey-Marriner, 2004). Such followers tend to be more motivated and more often deliver goals above expectations. With the U.S healthcare contributing to over 15% in GDP to the nations economy, the need t o encourage transformational leadership among managements as well as the subordinates is undoubtedly viable. Currently the healthcare suffers a big crisis with the quest for affordable and equitable healthcare services, among both the working as well as the unemployed class. A potential mitigating course would entail transformational leadership instigated by the dire need to offer quality care under the modern advanced technology. If inspirational leaders fail to adopt appropriate mitigating factor, various traditional leadership techniques applied in healthcare institutions will continue derailing anticipated reforms in healthcare. It's worth noting that transformational leadership would work better to inspire change and growth in the sector if adopted during any reform procedure.

Three aspects of transformational leadership have been noted among healthcare managements. First, as transformational leaders various management teams have exhibited charisma aspect as a key attribute that has seen the workers gain motivation to perform better. The charisma component among healthcare transformational leaders plays a vital role during need-for change, articulation of workable vision as well as during value commitment drafting for organizational benefits. According to research, transformational leaders exhibiting charisma attributes always have their followers identify with their vision and values for future growth in the organization. Various leaders under healthcare institution portray this trait by instilling confidence among subordinates as responsible managers.

For example, in the wake of new reforms within healthcare institutions, charismatic leaders are highly concerned about their influence in driving the anticipated changes by instilling self-confidence among staff by openly expressing their take on the benefits associated with the overhaul. More often healthcare leaders have made known of their standards and expectations on service care provisions as key aspect in enhancing quicker reforms. Similarly, changes in healthcare calls for changes in subsystems used in various institutions (Tomey-Marriner, 2004). For instance, healthcare CIO (i.e. Chief Information Officer) exhibit transformation leadership aspects during vision development as well as execution of various informational strategies in any healthcare organization. In addition, as transformational leaders in such organizations management teams endeavor to align key organizational goals with the institutional strategy in offering quality services. It's this close alignment that steers the organization towards goal attainment by seeking approval from the led.

Modern leaders in healthcare set-up are more of inspiration leaders with an aim of motivating diverse staff teams in attaining goals beyond self-interest. Based on this aspect, various managers use innovative communication abilities to relay institution's vision (Rigolosi, 2005). When the vision is communicated to the workers, approval gained is an assurance of how visionary the leadership is. Additionally, healthcare practices keep on changing over time and therefore there is need to inspire the staff to adopt the most viable approach in attaining the set objectives in a more profitable approach. With transformational leaders such as hospitals or even care center departmental managers, individuals such as hospitalists and nurse among other care providers strive to attain their best by shifting their interest from mere daily concerns in workplace to a more visionary approach when expending their efforts. Inspiration leaders mainly associated with healthcare reforms tend to exhibit a sense of commitment and endurance in undertaking any mission for organization's benefit. Finally, healthcare management has demonstrated intellectual stimulation aspect where job incumbents are deliberately encouraged to remain creative and innovative by engaging such workers in problem solving. For example, getting the work-done by involving the services of specialist nurses for inpatient care provisions has encouraged such practicing nurses to be more innovative in offering quality care among patients. Creativity has also been exhibited where the management has allowed the staff members to use teamwork approach in service delivery. This has aspect has been attained by having the leaders communicate the intended plan in more persuasive approach thus making t possible for the staff fraternity commit to the vision.

Leadership Challenges: Healthcare Case

Driving human element towards set goal attainment under varying constraints isn't an easy concept in healthcare set-up owing to modern globalization tendency in workplace. As much as transformational leadership has found a place in modern healthcare institutions, performance management among employees still remain a big challenge among various leaders (Swansburg & Rousell, 2008). For example, leaders find it more technical to clearly identify evaluating/measuring dimensions in order to develop a viable performance plan that caters for the identified staff needs. During evaluating dimension procedures data that relates to employees behavior requires accuracy of highest standards prior to effectively implementing training approach that caters for the changing needs among the workers. In order to contain this challenge, healthcare leaders ought to institute refresher training among management teams in order to equip them with best performance management techniques.

Healthcare leaders aren't prone to problems associated with personality as well as diversity among the human capital. Personalities brings-in persist resistance during change procedures in workplace, possible if the perceived change will influence individual performance level or the perceived status quo. Individuals working in various healthcare institutions are part of global economy, and therefore there is a big challenge among leaders to spur organizational growth amid diversity constraints. Employees' diversity has been witnessed in the perceived differences in areas such as employee's positions, prejudice, ethnicity, gender/spiritual discrimination and cultural biases (Jasper, 2005), For instance, the number of nurses has been swelling every fiscal year in key healthcare institutions in U.S such that issues to do with gender biases or even discrimination presents a big challenge among leaders. Various considerations included in recruitment as well as promotional schedule in healthcare are greatly influenced by the demand emanating from workforce diversity. For example, when hiring from global market healthcare leaders are required to familiarize with all the aspects of cultural prejudice and biases as an attempt to embrace workforce diversity.

Technological advancement presents a challenge that possibly influences the pace at which the healthcare leaders have a particular job done. According to Rigolosi (2005), constant change in healthcare IS (Information System), as an attempt to remain competitive presents as a challenge when retaining old generation in the workforce. As such the leaders ought to device new approaches in having every task completed even after the retiring generation (baby boomers), get replaced by more vibrant new generation such as generation Y. Finally, there is a perceived challenge in handling turnover rates have proven to be problematic among various leaders. The idea of training staff who then leaves the organization owing to differences in remuneration, may affect goal attainment.