Leadership Strategies to Improve Outcomes, Patient-Centered Care, and the Patient Experience Related to the Opioid Crisis

Effective leadership is paramount for effective intervention in the opioid epidemic. Thus, nurses and other healthcare professionals should adopt effective leadership strategies. These strategies include effective communication, the ability to inspire organizational subjects toward change, and self-awareness. Successful leaders also maintain organizational transparency and demonstrate learning agility.

Leadership plays a big role in containing the epidemic. Leaders enhance organizational vigilance towards the crisis by influencing organizational members to be vigilant. They also rally organizational members towards the set-out goals, thus ensuring their collaboration and concertedness in epidemic interventions. Leaders also coordinate care among professionals, thus ensuring that every aspect that needs to be addressed is properly handled.

Collaboration and effective communication are both warranted to ensure the containment of the opioid crisis. Effective collaboration strategies in healthcare include sharing responsibilities, effective communication, role interdependence, assumption of complementary roles, mutual respect, accountability, and cooperation (Schot et al., 2019). To communicate effectively, both parties should use simple language, be good listeners, maintain flexibility toward the other’s opinions, remain genuine during conversations, and maintain objectivity. These strategies foster a positive work environment and perpetuate peer understanding.

To effect change processes in healthcare, leaders must utilize effective change management strategies in these change processes. These strategies include maintaining transparency, effective communication, inviting participation from organizational members, and creating a roadmap for the change process (Moussa et al., 2019). Leaders should also choose a suitable change model to utilize in the change processes and be patient with the change process.

Conclusion

The opioid addiction crisis highlights one of the ongoing population issues that present challenges to the healthcare system. The adverse consequences of this epidemic warrant healthcare changes to maintain health preservation efforts in communities. Nurses play a role in this epidemic. Their knowledge and skills place them in strategic positions to participate in policy-making processes targeting enhancing interventions. To be effective in this respect, they should demonstrate exemplary leadership and have the ability to collaborate with other health professionals.

References

BARZEGAR SAFARI, M., BAHADORI, M., & ALIMOHAMMADZADEH, K. (2020). The Related Factors of Nurses’ Participation and Perceived Benefits and Barriers in Health Policy Making. Journal Of Nursing Research, Publish Ahead of Print. https://doi.org/10.1097/jnr.0000000000000385