Opinion Leadership in Intensive Care Unit Essay

It is possible to state with certainty that the concept of leadership plays an immensely important role in nearly every sphere of societal life. It is apparent that some people tend to have more impact on how other members of society behave or perceive themselves. Therefore, the role of a leader is highly important because such individuals can have a crucial influence on various processes such as work, issues within the community, politics, et cetera (Hamric, Hanson, Tracy, & O’Grady, 2014). A more particular and narrowed-down concept is an opinion leader, which generally refers to the person that does not directly command people to do something, but instead, he or she impacts what people think.Opinion Leadership in Intensive Care Unit Essay

It is evident that both of the mentioned concepts could be applied to the discussion of the issues related to the sphere of nursing (Hamric et al., 2014). The purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of an opinion leader with references to scholarly literature as well as personal working experience. As a result, a comprehensive conclusion about the characteristics of an opinion leader will be made.

General Overview of an Opinion Leader’s Characteristics

First of all, it is essential to overview the characteristics which are traditionally attributed to an opinion leader. Additionally, it is also of high importance to understand the role of leadership in the context of nursing. Rokstad, Vatne, Engedal, and Selbæk (2015) generally define leadership as “a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal,” also stating that it is a very significant process in hospital environments (p. 16).Opinion Leadership in Intensive Care Unit Essay

Further, they describe opinion leaders as people who “are individuals within the organisation who have formal or informal influence on the attitudes and beliefs of their colleagues” (Rokstad et al., 2015, p. 16). Anderson and Titler (2014) describe opinion leadership as a multifaceted and complex set of role functions which is to be carried out by opinion leaders. They are described as individuals who are a respective source of influence within a peer group.

In general, it is possible to suggest that the use of opinion leadership enhances clinical performance in numerous ways. Such aspects as being technically competent, objective, encouraging, as well as “trusted to judge the fit between the evidence base of the practice and the local situation” should be considered as primary characteristics of an opinion leader in hospital settings (Anderson & Titler, 2014, p. 137). It is possible to add that opinion leader could be also characterized as role models so that they have an influence on other coworkers’ opinions and attitudes.Opinion Leadership in Intensive Care Unit Essay