1. A nurse manager of a 20-bed medical unit finds that 80% of the patients are older adults. She is
asked to assess and adapt the unit to better meet the
... [Show More] unique needs of the older adult patient.
Using complexity principles, what would be the best approach to take in making this change?
a. Leverage the hierarchical management position to get unit staff involved in assessment and
planning.
b. Engage involved staff at all levels in the decision-making process.
c. Focus the assessment on the unit, and omit the hospital and community environment.
d. Hire a geriatric specialist to oversee and control the project.
ANS: B
Complexity theory suggests that systems interact and adapt and that decision making occurs
throughout the systems, as opposed to being held in a hierarchy. In complexity theory, every
voice counts, and therefore, all levels of staff would be involved in decision making.
REF: Page 8 TOP: AONE competency: Communication and Relationship-Building
2. A unit manager of a 25-bed medical/surgical area receives a phone call from a nurse who has
called in sick five times in the past month. He tells the manager that he very much wants to come
to work when scheduled but must often care for his wife, who is undergoing treatment
for breast cancer. According to Maslow‘s need hierarchy theory, what would be the best approach to
satisfying the needs of this nurse, other staff, and patients?
a. Line up agency nurses who can be called in to work on short notice.
b. Place the nurse on unpaid leave for the remainder of his wife‘s treatment.
c. Sympathize with the nurse‘s dilemma and let the charge nurse know that this nurse may be
calling in frequently in the future.
d. Work with the nurse, staffing office, and other nurses to arrange his scheduled days off
around his wife‘s treatments.
ANS: D
Placing the nurse on unpaid leave may threaten the nurse‘s capacity to meet physiologic needs
and demotivate the nurse. Unsatisfactory coverage of shifts on short notice could affect
patient care and threaten the needs of staff to feel competent. Arranging the schedule around
the wife‘s needs meets the needs of the staff and of patients while satisfying the nurse‘s need
for affiliation.
Leading and Managing in Nursing 6th Edition Yoder-Wise Test Bank
NURSINGTB.COM
REF: Page 10 TOP: AONE competency: Communication and Relationship-Building
3. A grievance brought by a staff nurse against the unit manager requires mediation. At the first
mediation session, the staff nurse repeatedly calls the unit manager‘s actions unfair, and the unit
manager continues to reiterate the reasons for her actions. What would be the best course of
action at this time?
a. Send the two disputants away to reach their own resolution.
b. Involve another staff nurse in the discussion so as to clarify issues.
c. Ask each party to examine her own motives and issues in the conflict.
d. Continue to listen as the parties repeat their thoughts and feelings about the conflict.
ANS: C
Ury, Brett, and Goldberg outline steps to restoring unity, the first of which is to address the
interests and involvement of participants in the conflict by examining the real issues of all
parties.
REF: Page 16 TOP: AONE competency: Communication and Relationship-Building
4. At a second negotiation session, the unit manager and staff nurse are unable to reach a resolution.
It would now be best to:
a. Arrange another meeting in a week‘s time so as to allow a cooling-off period.
b. Turn the dispute over to the director of nursing.
c. Insist that participants conti [Show Less]