Alanazi Sulaiman, Wiechula Richard, Foley David
College of Nursing, Jouf University, Jouf, Saudi Arabia.
Adelaide Nursing School, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia.
Int J Nurs Stud Adv. 2024 Jul 17;7:100222. doi: 10.1016/j.ijnsa.2024.100222. eCollection 2024 Dec.
Followership is defined as the role individuals play in supporting, contributing to, and realizing the vision and directives set by their leaders. Such a role is indispensable in healthcare, facilitating effective team dynamics and healthcare delivery. Within the nursing field, it encompasses nurses' active engagement and participation in healthcare delivery, ensuring safety, fostering teamwork, and enhancing patient outcomes. Despite its significance, the exploration of followership within the nursing context of Saudi Arabia remains limited.
This study aims to explore how followership is perceived and practiced by nurses in this unique cultural and professional setting, and its implications for healthcare delivery.
We conducted a qualitative inquiry involving seven registered nurses working in hospitals affiliated with the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health. Semi-structured interviews were conducted, and a thematic analysis was utilized to extract key findings.
Our thematic analysis identified four main themes and several sub-themes that encapsulate the participants' perspectives on followership. The themes include: (1) Understanding of followership, where a predominant lack of clarity about the concept was observed, often conflating it with teamwork; (2) Followers' involvement in decision-making, highlighting the limited participation of nurses in decision-making processes due to hierarchical and autocratic leadership structures; (3) Barriers to followership, which encompassed issues such as poor leadership, the undervaluation of the follower role, lack of training and development opportunities, challenges in collaboration, and language barriers; and (4) Facilitators of followership, identified as effective leadership, followership training, communication skills, positive relationships, respect, collaboration, understanding of roles, commitment, and flexibility. These findings elucidate the complex landscape of followership within the nursing profession in Saudi Arabia, revealing both the challenges and pathways to fostering effective followership in healthcare settings.
This study reveals a widespread lack of awareness about followership among nurses in Saudi Arabia, highlighting significant challenges related to hierarchy and the undervaluation of the follower role in nursing practice and education. It underscores the need for educational and training interventions that redefine and elevate the role of followership in clinical settings to enhance collaboration, assertiveness, and decision-making skills. Moreover, the study advocates for the re-evaluation of leadership practices to better acknowledge and value followership, promoting a more flattened hierarchy that encourages active participation in patient care and organizational development. Implementing these changes could improve patient outcomes and increase nurse satisfaction by effectively addressing the identified barriers related to hierarchy and leadership.
追随者角色被定义为个人在支持、促成并实现其领导者设定的愿景和指令方面所发挥的作用。这一角色在医疗保健领域不可或缺，有助于形成有效的团队动态并推动医疗服务的提供。在护理领域，它涵盖护士在医疗服务提供中的积极参与，确保安全、促进团队合作并改善患者治疗效果。尽管其意义重大，但在沙特阿拉伯护理背景下对追随者角色的探索仍然有限。
本研究旨在探讨在这种独特的文化和专业环境中，护士如何看待和践行追随者角色，以及其对医疗服务提供的影响。
我们进行了一项定性研究，涉及七名在沙特阿拉伯卫生部下属医院工作的注册护士。开展了半结构化访谈，并采用主题分析法提取关键发现。
我们的主题分析确定了四个主要主题和几个子主题，概括了参与者对追随者角色的看法。这些主题包括：（1）对追随者角色的理解，观察到对这一概念普遍缺乏清晰认识，常将其与团队合作混为一谈；（2）追随者参与决策，强调由于层级制和独裁式领导结构，护士在决策过程中的参与有限；（3）追随者角色的障碍，包括领导不力、对追随者角色的低估、缺乏培训和发展机会、协作挑战以及语言障碍等问题；（4）追随者角色的促进因素，被确定为有效的领导、追随者培训、沟通技巧、积极的关系、尊重、协作、对角色的理解、承诺和灵活性。这些发现阐明了沙特阿拉伯护理专业中追随者角色的复杂情况，揭示了在医疗环境中培养有效追随者角色的挑战和途径。
本研究揭示了沙特阿拉伯护士对追随者角色普遍缺乏认识，突出了护理实践和教育中与层级制度及对追随者角色低估相关的重大挑战。它强调需要进行教育和培训干预，重新定义并提升追随者角色在临床环境中的作用，以增强协作、自信和决策技能。此外，该研究主张重新评估领导实践，以更好地认可和重视追随者角色，推动建立更扁平化的层级制度，鼓励积极参与患者护理和组织发展。实施这些变革可以通过有效解决与层级制度和领导相关的已确定障碍来改善患者治疗效果并提高护士满意度。
