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Servant Leadership: Denver School Of Nursing

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Servant Leadership Laura Alcorn
Denver School of Nursing

Characteristics of Servant Leadership
Servant leadership can be defined as the skill of empowering others towards a common goal through service to them (Hunter, 2014). The theory of servant leadership was initially written about by Greanleaf in the 1970s even though it has existed for hundreds of years (Parris and Peachey, 2012). Greanleaf believed that servant leadership was brought about by individuals reflecting on personal growth rather than providing a step by step manual on how to be a servant leader (Parris and Peachey, 2012). More recent researchers include in the definition of leadership various attributes such as altruistic calling, service, empowerment, …show more content…

Parris and Peachey (2012) in a study of the characteristics of servant leadership state that “servant leaders are distinguished by both their primary motivation to serve…” (p. 379). The goal of service to others is not to fulfill others wants but to fulfill their needs (Hunter, 2014). Greanleaf (1970) stated that the outcome of service should be that followers will become wiser, freer, more autonomous, and desire to serve others as well (as cited in Parris and Peachey, 2012).
A servant leader must also have a vision or goal that they promote and inspire others to meet (Parris and Peachey, 2012). Any organization has a vision with goals and interventions to meet these goals. While serving others on a day to day basis the servant leader should always be working towards and inspiring others to this vision (Patton, 2014). According to Greanleaf (2008), the vision should seek to improve the lives of others (as cited in Gunnarsdóttir, 2014). For example in healthcare, the goal is to improve the health of communities and those needing care (Victor et al, …show more content…

I work in a hospital that has gone through several changes recently. These changes have caused the workloads to increase and a lot of the teamwork which existed before has broken down. Patient ratings have subsequently dropped. Due to these changes and stress, sometimes I catch myself with the mindset of working independently of others. However working independently and not serving my team members will not ultimately improve patient care which is my vision and my organization’s vision. I am working on keeping this vision of improving healthcare outcomes and others lives at the forefront of my mind when I do simple tasks. When I can effectively organize my day to include helping other nurses or CNAs I know that patient outcomes will improve and staff morale will improve (Patton, 2014). These practices will carry over when I am a nurse. Now and in my nursing practice I will do my best to model servant leadership in order to provide the best quality of care for patients and my team

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