A uniform experience? Reflections on implementing rules into practice

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the appropriateness of the term “implementing into practice” when describing the way nurse managers attempt to ensure staff compliance with hospital policy.

Design/methodology/approach

A narrative exploration of an unexpectedly difficult interaction with a nurse concerning their non‐adherence to uniform policy, drawing on the theoretical frameworks of writers such as Mead, Stacey and Elias.

Findings

Personal and shared reflections on this surprising interaction have uncovered many layers of complexity, not only in an individual's adherence or non‐adherence to policy, but also in the whole process of determining and communicating the need for behavioural changes.

Originality/value

Though “implementing into practice” is commonly used in reference to the nurse manager's responsibility for compliance with hospital policy, the term is misleading and appears to derive from taken‐for‐granted assumptions about organisational systems and models of communication. The nurse manager cannot control staff behaviour; and while their intervention does have some influence on the outcome, they in turn are also influenced by ongoing processes of interaction and reflective adaptation that cannot be predicted. This article demonstrates how the behaviour of staff within an organisation is not directed by the nurse manager, but co‐created in continuous interactions through which every participant contributes to the shaping of complex factors that have the potential to influence the development of a policy as well as its degree of acceptance.

Citation

Norman, K. (2012), "A uniform experience? Reflections on implementing rules into practice", International Journal of Leadership in Public Services, Vol. 8 No. 4, pp. 191-200. https://doi.org/10.1108/17479881211323580