Abstract
As the largest occupation within healthcare, nurses play a key role in health promotion (WHO, 2020a). The importance of nurses is even more critical in global health crises, as recently witnessed by the COVID-19 pandemic, as they are deeply embedded in communities and uniquely positioned to implement and promote health initiatives and prevention in tandem with communities (Coster, Watkins, & Norman, 2018). Indeed, nurses have been instrumental in educating the public and involving affected communities in disease prevention and treatment during health crises. However, power inequity and conflict still exist among healthcare providers, creating barriers to meaningful collaboration and participation essential for patient care (The Institute for Safe Medication Practices, 2005). This paper examines how hierarchical structures within care providers create power imbalances leading to intra- and inter-group conflicts with a particular focus on dysfunctional interactions between nurses, primary caregivers in health crises, and other healthcare providers. For instance, some physicians have been reported to engage in disrespectful, disruptive, and confrontational behavior with nurses, deterring their full participation in patient care (Rosenstein & O’Daniel, 2005). To alleviate such destructive conflict, To ameliorate such destructive conflict, this paper reviews Lipsky’s (1981; 2010) seminal work on Street-Level Bureaucracy (SLB) and proposes that nurses as front-line health professionals should be empowered with professional discretion to address and resolve inter- and intra-group conflict. Additionally, ideological currency (Bunderson, 2001), defined as the amount by which the organization promotes the philosophical values and beliefs held by the professional, is proposed to strengthen collaboration among various stakeholders.
Presenters
Sujin HorwitzProfessor, Management and Marketing, University of St. Thomas, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
Community Diversity and Governance
KEYWORDS
Healthcare Professionals, Conflict, Street-level Bureaucracy, Ideological Currency
