I had the privilege to work with the ward manager of the paediatric ward during my placement.

He was an outstanding leader with admirable work relationships with the team. I consider him
an effective nurse leader; one leads the team to a certain target. The nurse leader was able to
identify the needs and maturity level of team members and be able to work with them in
adaptive way. He exhibited the situational theory as a nurse leader. Kleber (2022) says “the
most effective leaders are those who can adapt their leadership style to fit the needs and
maturity levels of their followers in different situations” is the situational leadership theory.
(Harrington, 2021 and Kleber, 2022)
Among the many good traits that the leader had, he was a good and effective communicator
with team, patients and other departments; also an exceptional nurse who exercised
professionalism, accountability and able to deal with challenges (Laurent, 2000).When a new
nurse joined the team straight out of school, the leader did not sideline her but gave clear
instructions and closely monitored her until she was confident to complete any duty. The leader
was a good director and coach sharing knowledge, guiding and supporting the team members.
Praise was given to boost team confidence and morale.
The leader knew staff members in terms of their strengths and weaknesses and was able to
adjust to the needs of each staff. This was important as he was leading people at different
profession development levels; student, assistants, competent nurses and expert nurses
(Karkada and Cherian, 2017). The ward manager was flexible and could modify his approach
depending on the needs off a particular situation. An assistant nurse needs guidance and
leadership always but an expert nurse can fulfil any delegated responsibilities without being
given instructions (Stanley, 2017). In a challenging scenario, there was a staff shortage in the
ward as most nurses had to help in emergency ward. The shortage did not affect the running of
the ward as the leader managed to delegate duties and responsibilities to everyone to ensure
everyone carried their weight, providing support to the team.
Every team member was able to share opinions and experiences as the leader valued every
input and would develop procedures that the team was able to follow in a collaborative manner
depending on the situation at hand (Laurent, 2000). This leadership helped the team to join
efforts and work as one to fulfil delegated responsibilities. Because the ward manager valued
every input, reflective feedback was given at all meetings whether positive or negative. This
encouraged staff to be honest about their challenges and suggest solutions. Team that are
allowed to develop such skills are confident in their duties and responsibilities. (Harrington,
2021 and Major, 2019)
The leader was extremely supportive of the team and managed to create positive environment
ideal for teamwork and team engagement. The team was cooperative, listened to each other,
attended to concerns of others and helped each other to reduce pressure of excessive
workload. The leader was an effective communicator and would always check is information
passed reached the recipient in the intended form and would promptly rectify any
misunderstanding that may have arisen due to communication breakdown. (James and
Bennett, 2020 and West, 2012)
It is evident that the ward manager used the situational leadership approach to lead the team.
This is because he had characteristics of sharing knowledge listening to and attending to
individual needs and dealing with different situations differently. He showed a knowledgeable
and supportive character while being able to delegate responsibilities accordingly. This theory
may be criticised as being effective due to some leaders falsely interpreting situational needs.
However this approach built a strong team under this ward manager’s leadership (Dye, 2017).
Effective team work was evident as the leader had great interpersonal skills, leadership and
technical strengths (Cottrell, 2019). These skills helped him create and lead a strong team and
provide quality patient care in the ward. Working with such a ward manager challenged me to
improve my technical and leadership skills to be able to identify needs of others, offer support
to others, engage with others and be knowledgeable enough to delegate responsibilities to
become an effective leader who can build a strong and effective team. ( Karkada and Cherian,
2017, Stanley, 2017 and West, 2012)
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