1.

How well has Barbara Norris done in her first month as nurse manager of
GSU? Was she good choice for the position?
The case starts of by describing Barbara Norris as tired, troubled and overwhelmed in
the first month at GSU. Despite having a lot of top management constraints restricting
her from making significant changes, she has done a fairly good job. Her Type Y
nature, democratic leadership style and hands-on experience and qualification have
allowed her to handle the situation accordingly. Looking for a new challenge, she herself
had welcomed the opportunity to stay at EMU and become a turnaround champion. In
the first month, her observant and patient nature allowed her to understand and make
swift initial recovery measures at GSU. Her insights into open communication and
transparent review system helped her provide a forum for open discussion. Her
upbringing had also instilled a sense of deep respect and administration for the nursing
profession, thereby allowing her to resonate with the RN and PCAs concerns.
As nurse manager at GSU, she knew it was her duty to set SMART goals for her
department and be the voice of change in front of the top management. Even though
she was under pressure, she had the quality of emotional balance- Her smile and
response even after hearing all the negative feedback. She multi-tasked and chipped in
whenever there was staff shortage in spite of having to raise a young Family back
home. The prior negative feedback about GSU, Bettys guidance and Johns confidence
in her may have all been cushion factors amidst the stressed environment. Barbara also
payed close attention/observant to the work and attitude of all her nurses-Megans
nature, Jennifers skill set. This allowed her to keep a close tab on her reportees.
One could clearly see that she was starting to set the direction, change the alignment
and engagement of her staff. Hence keeping in mind the attitude, experience and
qualification that Barbara had, she did a fairly commendable job in the first month and
was thus a good choice for the position.