Answer

Innovation, Creativity, and Risk-Taking

Competition and the desire to improve performance in every realm has led to a focus on creativity, innovation, and risk-taking. Healthcare, being one of the key service sectors, demands innovation and creativity for those involved to effectively forge better ways of dealing with the diverse populations of the world (Hughes, 2006). Nurses, in particular, are in constant engagement with patients and act as their advocates in matters of better healthcare delivery. At the center of it are the nurse leaders, who are expected to guide and ensure improved patient outcomes. In his article titled Nurses at the Forefront of Innovation, Hughes (2006) delves into the various roles of nursing leaders in promoting creativity, innovation, and risk-taking towards improving healthcare standards of the various organizations.

While innovation may be inherent with different individuals, it is significantly dependent on the environmental factors that can either inhibit or promote it. Hughes uses various examples to demonstrate how nurse leaders, or just nurses, have actively engaged in multiple projects to help come up with innovation in different healthcare facilities. As Hughes (2006) notes, change does not have to be new or large. Instead, he asserts that there is a need for focus, which can only be attained by having the leaders guide the organization in the right direction. An excellent and intriguing example is the case with mobile surgical services in New Zealand, where Maryanne Sweeney, a registered nurse, actively involved herself in the development of Mobile Surgical Services. Through research, Maryanne had learned of 1996/1997’s mobile cataract service, which prompted her curiosity about being able to take the service to people instead of waiting for them to travel to the service providers (Hughes, 2006). Ideally, the leadership of an organization impacts creativity and innovation.