Conquering Conflict in the Clinical Setting (1 Hour)

Another CE class I have decided to take for the clinical hours of my Nursing Leadership class is titled "Conquering Conflict in the Clinical Setting". The goal of this class was to identify sources of conflict in the clinical setting and developing skills to overcoming that conflict. Conflict is a topic that is very much related to leadership and management. Being in a management role means that at some point or another you will run into conflict. As the leader or manager, you would then have to be able to overcome the conflict. Conflict can be very destructive in the clinical setting. This class stated conflict can be destructive when it "diverts energy away from the goal, destroys morale, reduces cooperation, intensifies value differences, and produces irresponsible behavior". On the flipside conflict can be constructive when it "opens up issues, leads to problem solving, increases involvement, causes honest communication, allows release of emotions, helps build team spirit, and helps individuals grow." This class explored both types of conflict and gave some good strategies for nurse managers and leaders. They gave examples of words to avoid in communication to avoid destructive conflict and words to use to promote constructive conflict. They gave a strategy to approach conflict called the "AEIOU" approach. A for assuming the person means well. E for expressing your thoughts and feelings. I for identifying what you would like to have happen. O for the outcome you expect. and U for understanding on a mutual basis. Some examples of using this approach was explored. I really appreciated this course and took away some great strategies for dealing with conflict in a management role.