A staff nurse who is promoted to assistant nurse manager may feel uncomfortable initially when supervising her former peers. She can best decrease this discomfort by:
A. Writing down all assignments.
B. Making changes after evaluating the situation and having discussions with the staff.
C. Telling the staff nurses that she is making changes to benefit their performance.
D. Evaluating the clinical performance of each staff nurse in a private conference.
Correct Answer: B. Making changes after evaluating the situation and having discussions with the staff.
A new assistant nurse manager should not make changes until she has had a chance to evaluate staff members, patients, and physicians. Changes must be planned thoroughly and should be based on a need to improve conditions, not just for the sake of change.
Option A: Written assignments allow all staff members to know their own and others’ responsibilities and serve as a checklist for the manager, enabling her to gauge whether the unit is being run effectively and whether patients are receiving appropriate care.
Option C: Telling the staff nurses that she is making changes to benefit their performance should occur only after the nurse has made a thorough evaluation.
Option D: Evaluations are usually done on a yearly basis or as needed.