Gabriel F.

Naig PhDN Student

Nursing is an art, and if it is to be made an art it requires as exclusive a devotion, as hard a preparation, as any painters or sculptors work.
-Florence Nightingale-

Creativity and Innovation

Creativity artistic or intellectual

inventiveness ( Websters New Twentieth Century

Dictionary, Unabriged 2nd edition.

Innovation- introduction of something

new.

Establishing a Climate for creativity

Techniques of creativity training

a. brainstorming b. synaptic c. morphological analysis d. brainwriting e. visualization f. cueing f. lateral thinking g. lateral thinking

Motivators of creativity
Providing assistance to develop new ideas Encouraging risk taking while buffering resistant

forces Providing time for individual effort Encouraging interaction with others outside the group Promoting constructive intragroup and intergroup competition Recognizing the value of worthy ideas Exhibiting confidence in workers

Metamanagement
it is a planning framework that cut across

organizational boundaries and facilitates strategic decision making about current practices and future directions. it stresses teamwork, organizational flexibility, open communication, innovation, risk taking, high morale, and trust.

Actions by nurse managers that help to develop and maintain a creative climate
Providing freedom to experiment without fear or reprimand
Maintaining a moderate amount of work

pressure Providing challenging yet realistic work goals Emphasizing a low level of supervision in performance task

 Delegating responsibilities Encouraging use of a creative problem-solving

process to solve unstructured problems Providing immediate and timely feedback on task performance Providing the resources and support needed to get the job done

Creative problem solving

Starts by using vague or ill-defined problems as

challenges .Problems can be attacked intuitively to generate as many ideas as possible. Solutions may create new challenges and new cycles of creative problem solving.

Several theories of creative problem solving ( Lattimer and Winitsky)

Simplifying- determining the important components

and concentrating the most crucial factors and the most essential relationships, then making intuitive judgments. Specifying- establishing the value of key factors, the probabilities of uncertainties, and the preferences for the outcome Rethinking- examining the original analysis regarding omissions, inclusions, order and emphasis.

Godfrey recommends an alternative theory of creativity with the following five steps
Perception- realizing there is a problem Preparation- research, data collection, and

arrangement of information to define the problem Ideation- analysis and structure of a variety of formats that stimulate analogies and images, brainstorming

Godfrey recommends an alternative theory of creativity with the following five steps
Incubation- withdraw and relax when the flow

of ideas ends. The unconscious takes off and the forms of images of possible solutions. Validation- test a solution

Creativity in the workplace

Creative people including nurses, have a broad

background of knowledge. They have the mental skills of curiosity, openness, sensitivity to problems, flexibility, ability to think in images and capability of analysis and synthesis.

 Creative individuals value the work and association of

other creative individual; they stimulate each other to think and perhaps even to be competitively creative. They can tolerate ambiguity, they have self confidence and persistence.

Several theories of creative problem solving ( Lattimer and Winitsky)

Thinking- identifying factors to be used in

solving an issue or developing a strategic plan; the choice is between a risk-free alternative that involve risk.

Several theories of creative problem solving ( Lattimer and Winitsky)

Decomposing- breaking the situation into

components-alternatives, uncertainties, outcomes and consequences-and working with each component and combining the results for a decision.

Managing creativity can be challenging. Nurse managers must build an environment in which interpersonal relationship and trust are established to allow for maximal creative effort among staff. With willingness to listen and a spirit of cooperation, staff will accept differing behaviors and ideas without defensiveness or fear losing control.

The following can be done by the nurse manager to nourish creativity in nursing personnel
Noting the creative abilities of those who develop new methods and techniques and enhancing employees self esteem. Providing time and opportunity for creative work , to be planned during performance appraisals and included in scheduling Permitting time for educational offerings

 Recognizing expertise in clinical practice,

research efforts and managing skills Encouraging nursing personnel to become involved in progress, in the workplace, in a community endeavor, and in professional organization Encouraging calculated risk taking and acceptance of personal responsibilities, allowing for the freedom to fail.

Social Intelligence
Is the ability to get along with others and to get

them to cooperate with you. Why? Because the biggest obstacle to learning something new, in this case implementing change, is that you already believe you know it.

To encourage creativity, hire creative people. Frequently they are the ones who have taken time off to learn and explore; sometimes considered off the wall, they bring fresh view points to their chosen profession. Weed out the complacent. Model, measure, and teach curiosity; seek out work. Change the pace, and make it fun.

Perception related to change

Recognition- we relate the change with

something we already know. Interpretation- misinformation about the change comes from misinterpretation. The brain converts incoming data into what we believe it should be. Expectation- this controls much of our perception; it is how we organize our thoughts about the change that can often be a selffulfilling prophecy.

 Leaders who are creating a healthy work

environment where change can flourish must ask if they and their staff are exhibiting nourishing behaviors or toxic behavior regarding change.
Toxic behavior is a consistent problem of

behavior that makes others feel devalued, inadequate, angry, frustrated, or guilty.

 Nourishing behavior is a consistent pattern of behavior that makes others feel valued, love respected, capable, and appreciated,

which are all behaviors required for change to be adopted and consequently successful.

Dr. Albrechts model of Social Intelligence

S= Situational awareness P= Presence A= Authenticity

C= Clarity
E= Empathy

 Situational awareness- this dimension is a kind

of social radar or the ability to read situations and to interpret the behavior of people in change situations. Presence- this incorporates the range of verbal and non verbal patterns such as ones appearance, posture, voice quality, and subtle movement. In other words, presence is a whole collection of signals that others process into an evaluative impression of a person.

 Authenticity- staff and others have a kind of

social radar that enables them to pick-up various signals from our behavior to judge whether we are honest, open, ethical, trustworthy, and well intentioned or inauthentic.

 Clarity- this is the ability to explain ourselves,

illuminate ideas, pass data of action, and enable leaders to get others to cooperate. Empathy- the shared feeling between two people or a state of connectedness with other staff member creates the basis for positive interactions and cooperation