An easy-to-read writing style guide that builds the knowledge you need for leadership and management roles. This title helps readers to make a successful transition from student to professional while still focusing on the humanistic aspects of caring.

Table of Contents

• Foreword
• Preface
• Contributors
• LPN/LVN Advisory Board
• Reviewers
• Acknowledgments
• UNIT ONE: The Nursing Profession in Today's Health-Care Environment
• CHAPTER 1: Historical Perspective and Current Trends
• The Beginning of Nursing
• Dark Ages and Introduction of Christianity
• Renaissance Period
• Era of Industrialization
• Early Health Care in the United States
• The Beginning of Modern Nursing
• History of the Licensed Practical and Vocational Nurse
• Current Trends and Issues
• CHAPTER 2: Caring as a Personal and Professional Behavior
• What Is Caring?
• Applying Caring Theory in Your Personal Life
• Understanding Nursing Models
• Applying Caring Theory in Your Professional Life
• Setting Priorities Using Transpersonal Caring
• Caring for Family and Significant Others
• Caring Includes Everyone
• Personal Motivation
• CHAPTER 3: Understanding the Changing Roles in Nursing
• Paradigm Thinking Defined
• Critical Thinking Concepts
• Theoretical Frameworks for Management
• Basic Principle of Patient Advocacy
• CHAPTER 4: Health-Care Environment
• Health-Care Systems
• Roles and Tasks of the Licensed Practical Nurse in the Health-Care System
• Health-Care Agencies
• CHAPTER 5: Nursing and Informatics
• Looking at the Past
• Looking at Today
• Nursing Informatics
• Looking Forward
• UNIT TWO: From Student to Nurse
• CHAPTER 6: Fulfill Your Role as a Student
• Knowing Yourself and Understanding Nurses’ Ways of Knowing
• Learning in the Classroom
• You as a Student in the Clinical Area
• Communication in the Clinical Setting
• Successful Study Strategies
• Understanding Test Questions
• Managing Test Anxiety
• Writing Successful Papers
• Conclusion
• CHAPTER 7: The Importance of Critical Thinking
• What Is Critical Thinking?
• Thorough Thinking
• Thorough or Critical Thinking as Applied to Science
• Thorough or Critical Thinking as Applied to Nursing
• Creative Thinking
• Critical Thinking
• CHAPTER 8: Entry Into Practice
• Nurse Practice Act
• Finding the Perfect Job
• Mentoring
• Other Strategies
• CHAPTER 9: Employment Process
• Employer Expectations
• Application Process
• Preparing for the Interview
• Letter of Resignation
• CHAPTER 10: Leadership and Management as a Professional Concept
• Leadership Versus Management
• Historical Overview of Nursing Leadership and Management Roles
• Where Is the Licensed Practical Nurse in This Historical Picture?
• Leadership Styles
• What Type of Leader Are You?
• CHAPTER 11: Communication Skills in Leadership and Management
• Communication in the Academic Setting
• Communication in the Clinical Setting
• Failed Communication
• Types of Communication
• Other Forms of Communication
• CHAPTER 12: Considering Culture
• What Is Culture?
• Population Mosaic of the United States
• Personal Cultural Competency
• How to Develop Culturally Competent Care
• Barriers to Cultural Competency
• Common Ethnic Groups in the United States
• Cultural Assessment
• Hiring and Managing a Diverse Workforce
• Nurse Managers and Culture
• CHAPTER 13: Understanding Benefits of Change
• What Is Change?
• Effective Decision Making During Change Process
• Kurt Lewin's Change Theory
• Role of the Licensed Practical Nurse as Change Agent
• Transitions
• Final Thoughts
• CHAPTER 14: Setting Meaningful Priorities
• Setting Personal Priorities
• Application of Maslow's and Watson's Theories
• Priority Setting in the Clinical Arena Requires Teamwork
• Need for Priority Setting
• It Starts With the Ability to Make Good Decisions
• Conclusion
• CHAPTER 15: Handling Conflict in the Nursing Profession
• How Conflict Occurs
• Types of Conflict in Nursing
• Causes of Conflict and Approaches to Resolving It
• Establishing a Conflict Resolution Style
• The Role of the LPN
• Transactional Approach to Conflict Management
• Other Important Skills
• CHAPTER 16: Dealing With Chaos
• Understanding the Changes
• Understanding Newtonian Physics or the Scientific Age
• Understanding Quantum Physics or the New Science
• Chaos Theory
• Strange Attractor
• Are You Ready?
• CHAPTER 17: Ethics and Law in Nursing Management
• Personal Values
• Understanding Ethics
• Legal Issues
• Nurse Practice Act
• Understanding the Law
• Legal Issues Specific to Nursing
• Safeguards
• CHAPTER 18: Understanding Use of Power
• What Is Power?
• Types of Power
• Power and the Role of Licensed Practical Nurses
• Positive and Negative Uses of Power
• Empowerment
• Powerlessness
• Conclusion
• CHAPTER 19: Motivating Employees
• Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Revisited
• Oppressed Group Behavior
• Theories of Motivation
• Creating a Motivating Environment
• CHAPTER 20: Team Building
• Understanding Characteristics of a Team
• Stages of Team Development
• Group Norms
• Understanding the Value of Team Concepts
• Conclusion
• CHAPTER 21: Delegating, Coaching, and Evaluating Performance
• Leader, Manager, or Both
• Delegation and Making Assignments
• Sharing Information With Staff Members
• Coaching
• Evaluating Performance
• APPENDIX Answers to Review Questions