Leading and Managing Client Care - Vocabulary Flashcards

A set of vocabulary flashcards covering key leadership, management, prioritization, delegation, communication, and quality improvement concepts from Chapter 1: Leading and Managing Client Care.

Management

The process of planning, organizing, directing, and coordinating the work within an organization.

Leadership

The ability to inspire others to achieve a desired outcome; can be formal (in a management role) or informal (peer influence).

Formal Power

Authority that comes from holding an official position within an organization.

Informal Power

Influence based on relationships, respect, and peer perception rather than a formal title.

Autocratic/Authoritarian Leadership

Makes decisions for the group, uses coercion, and communicates downward; high output, suitable for crises or staff with little formal education.

Democratic Leadership

Includes the group in decision-making and fosters cooperation; communicates up and down; often yields good-quality output when collaboration is needed.

Laissez-faire Leadership

Leaves decision-making largely to individuals; communication flows both up and down; output is low unless an informal group leader emerges; effective with professional staff.

Transactional Leadership

Focuses on day-to-day operations, uses rewards/punishments to motivate, and maintains the status quo.

Transformational Leadership

Empowers and inspires followers to achieve a shared long-term vision.

Bureaucratic (Authentic) Leadership

Inspires by modeling a strong internal moral code and standards.

Situational Leadership

Flexible approach that adapts leadership style to the situation, often combining autocratic and democratic elements.

Emotional Intelligence

The ability to perceive and manage the emotions of oneself and others; essential for client-centered care and effective leadership.

Five Major Management Functions

Planning, Organizing, Staffing, Directing, Controlling.

Planning

Decisions about what needs to be done, how it will be done, and who will do it.

Organizing

Defining the organizational structure, lines of authority, communication channels, and decision points.

Staffing

Acquiring and managing adequate staff and staffing mix.

Directing

Leading and motivating staff to perform assigned roles.

Controlling

Evaluating staff performance and unit goals to ensure outcomes are met.

Characteristics of Managers

Hold formal authority and power, possess clinical expertise, network with the team, coach subordinates, and make decisions about resources, budget, hiring, and firing.

Critical Thinking

Foundation for clinical decision-making; includes analyzing issues, questioning, synthesis, interpretation, evaluation, and inference.

Clinical Reasoning

Mental process used to analyze clinical situations and make decisions; evolves with experience.

Clinical Judgment

Decision made about a course of action based on critical analysis of data and client needs.

Tanner’s Clinical Judgment Model

Noticing, Interpreting, Responding, Reflecting—the skills used to teach moral reasoning and client engagement.

Clinical Judgment Models (CJMM)

NCSBN framework to measure clinical judgment skills for NCLEX; aligns with CJMM steps.

ATI Clinical Judgment Action Module (CJAM)

ATI module based on CJMM/Tanner/Nursing Process to teach CJ skills; ties NCLEX to education.

PN Nursing Process

Process at the PN level: Data Collection, Planning, Implementation, Evaluation (performed under RN supervision).

Five Stages of Nursing Ability (Benner)

Novice → Advanced Beginner → Competent → Proficient → Expert; progression with experience.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Framework for prioritizing care from basic physiological needs to self-actualization.

ABC Framework

Airway first, then Breathing, then Circulation; often includes disability and exposure.

Priority Interventions

Prioritize life-sustaining needs (airway, breathing, circulation) before less urgent issues.

Disability (in prioritization)

Assessment of neurological status and potential deficits to guide urgency.

Exposure (in prioritization)

Fully expose for assessment while preventing hypothermia and other risks.

Time Management

Organizing care to meet client needs and priorities; includes delegation and efficiency.

Five Rights of Delegation

Right Task, Right Circumstance, Right Person, Right Direction/Communication, Right Supervision/Evaluation.

Right Task

Task appropriate for the delegatee’s education, skills, and scope of practice.

Right Circumstance

Match the task to the health care setting, patient condition, and workload.

Right Person

Delegatee must be competent and within their scope of practice.

Right Direction/Communication

Clear instructions, data to collect, reporting method, and timelines.

Right Supervision and Evaluation

Ongoing monitoring, feedback, and evaluation of the delegated task.

Assignment vs Delegation

Assignment transfers authority, accountability, and responsibility; delegation transfers authority to perform a task while the delegator retains accountability.

Unsafe Assignment

A task that risks patient safety due to high acuity, lack of competence, or mismatched workload; escalate via scheduling, chain of command, or formal protest if unresolved.

Practical Nurse (PN) & Assistive Personnel (AP) Tasks

PNs may monitor findings, suction, NG tube care, enteral feedings, urinary catheters, and select medications (varies by state); APs handle ADLs and routine tasks (e.g., vitals for stable patients, bedpan use).

Preceptor

A more experienced nurse who guides and supervises a new nurse during orientation.

Mentor/Coach

Roles that support socialization and professional development beyond task-oriented guidance.

Orientation

Process introducing new staff to an institution, unit, policies, and culture; can involve preceptors and mentors.

Staff Education/Staff Development

Ongoing education to maintain current knowledge and skills; may use just-in-time training.

Quality Improvement (QI/QA/QE)**

Systematic process to identify and resolve performance deficiencies by measuring outcomes against standards.

Core Measures

National standardized measures used to assess outcomes (e.g., stroke, VTE, heart failure, AMI, substance use).

Audits (Structure, Process, Outcome)

Evaluation methods: structure audits (environment/resources), process audits (care delivery), outcome audits (results and patient outcomes).

Evidence-Based Practice (EBP)

Incorporating current best evidence into clinical decision-making using research and standards; often aided by the PICO model.

PICO Model

Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome—used to frame clinical questions and guide evidence search.

Conflict Resolution Strategies

Approaches to resolve disagreements: avoidance, smoothing, cooperating, competing, compromising, collaborating.

Assertive Communication

Direct, honest, nonthreatening style that respects others’ rights; uses I statements and avoids blame.

Grievances

Formal complaints about unfair treatment; resolved through a policy-driven process, possibly with third-party mediation.

Documentation of Quality Improvement

Recording data, outcomes, and corrective actions to monitor and demonstrate improvement.