Working With Groups Towards Community Development PDF

WORKING WITH GROUPS TOWARDS COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PREPARED BY: BERNADETTE WYNE TOSOC LEE, RN, MAN INTRODUCTION One of the beginning nurse’s roles is the development of the competencies on establishing a collaborative relationship with colleagues and other membe...

WORKING WITH GROUPS TOWARDS COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PREPARED BY: BERNADETTE WYNE TOSOC LEE, RN, MAN INTRODUCTION One of the beginning nurse’s roles is the development of the competencies on establishing a collaborative relationship with colleagues and other members of the health team to enhance nursing and other health care services provided to an individual, family, population group, and community. This module deals with group developmental stages and how the leaders and members of the community can improve the ways their partnership works together. This module also helps the learners understand how expectations about the groups' progress and members' interactions can be managed. Overall, this material will enlighten the learners on how the community is established and how they could remain focus on the groups' purpose and goal. STAGES OF TEAM DEVELOPMENT Tuckman proposed the Forming – Storming – Norming – Performing model of group development. According to him, all these stages are important and inevitable for a team to grow, face challenges and difficulties effectively and deliver positive results. STAGES OF TEAM DEVELOPMENT 1. Forming q The forming stage involves a period of orientation and getting acquainted. q Uncertainty is high during this stage, and people are looking for leadership and authority. q A member who asserts authority or is knowledgeable may be looked to take control. q Team members are asking such questions as “What does the team offer me?” “What is expected of me?” “Will I fit in?” STAGES OF TEAM DEVELOPMENT 2. Storming q The most difficult and critical stage to pass through. q It is a period marked by conflict and competition as individual personalities emerge. q Members may disagree on team goals, and subgroups and cliques may form around strong personalities or areas of agreement. q To get through this stage, members must work to overcome obstacles, to accept individual differences, and to work through conflicting ideas on team tasks and goals. q Failure to address conflicts may result in long-term problems. STAGES OF TEAM DEVELOPMENT 3. Norming q In the norming stage, consensus develops around who the leader or leaders are, and individual member’s roles. q Interpersonal differences begin to be resolved, and a sense of cohesion and unity emerges. q Team performance increases during this stage as members learn to cooperate and begin to focus on team goals. q However, the harmony is precarious, and if disagreements re-emerge the team can slide back into storming. STAGES OF TEAM DEVELOPMENT 4. Performing q In the performing stage, consensus and cooperation have been well-established and the team is mature, organized, and well- functioning. q There is a clear and stable structure, and members are committed to the team’s mission. q Problems and conflicts still emerge, but they are dealt with constructively. q The team is focused on problem solving and meeting team goals. STAGES OF TEAM DEVELOPMENT 5. Adjourning q most of the team’s goals have been accomplished. q The emphasis is on wrapping up final tasks and documenting the effort and results. q As the work load is diminished, individual members may be reassigned to other teams, and the team disbands. q There may be regret as the team ends, so a ceremonial acknowledgement of the work and success of the team can be helpful.  INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Working together does not necessarily produce effective teamwork. Here is a simple outline made by Kenneth Benne and Paul Sheats that will guide in the understanding of the process of developing health care teamwork. Analysis of informal roles provides another useful tool for understanding the team process. There are three (3) broad sets of informal roles: Group task roles Group building and maintenance Individual roles roles Participant roles here are related to the Group building and maintenance roles. The Individual roles. This category does not task which the group is deciding to roles in this category are oriented toward classify member-roles as such, since the undertake or has undertaken. Their the functioning of the group as a group. participations denoted here are directed purpose is to facilitate and coordinate They are designed to alter or maintain the toward the satisfaction of the participants group effort in the selection and definition group way of working, to strengthen, individual needs. Their purpose is some of a common problem and in the solution regulate and perpetuate the group as a individual goal which is not relevant either of that problem. group. to the group task or to the functioning of the group as a group. Such participations are, of course, highly relevant to the problem of group training, insofar as such training is directed toward improving group maturity or group task efficiency.  INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Group Task Roles The first type of roles that individuals can take-on within a group are all centered around the tasks that the group needs to accomplish. These roles are all pro-social and help the group strive towards achieving the group or team’s goal. Benne and Sheats identified twelve different task roles that group members could take on. Remember, in smaller groups or teams individuals could take on multiple roles and it’s entirely possible that multiple group members take on the same roles as well. Initiator-Contributor § Provides new and keen insight and ideas to the group. § May help the group brainstorm new and novel ways to go about understanding or looking at a particular problem. INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Group Task Roles Information Seeker § Focuses on ensuring that the group has accurate and relevant information as it goes about problem solving. § Asks to see relevant data to ensure the accuracy of the information the group uses while attempting to problem solve. Opinion Seeker § Not concerned with the accuracy of information, but is more interested in understanding the group’s values. § When a potential solution to a problem is solved, the opinion seeker will ask for clarification of whether the solution is in sync with the group’s purported values. INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Group Task Roles Information Giver § Someone within a group that has some kind of authoritative understanding or specific expertise that can help inform a group’s decision making process. § Often use her or his own knowledge or personal experiences to help inform a group’s decision making process. Opinion Giver § Concerned less with the facts surrounding a specific problem, but is more concerned with ensuring the group sticks to its values. § Offer suggestions and insight on how the group can employ its values while making specific decisions. INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Group Task Roles Elaborator § Takes the ideas that other people have had within a group and tries to flesh out the ideas in a meaningful way. § The evaluator can also help a group understand specific rationales for the decisions it has made, or think through how the implementation of a specific decision would practically work. Coordinator § Find the common links between the various ideas that group members have and combine them in some kind of succinct package. § Coordinate the various activities that the group or team must accomplish along the way. INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Group Task Roles Orienter § The orienter is akin to a group or team’s mapmaker. § Show where the group has been in an effort to understand where the group is right now. § This person will point out when the group has gotten completely off topic and try to refocus the group back to the decision at hand. Evaluator-Critic § Help assess the actual functionality of the group and the decisions that it makes. § Ensures that the group is meeting predetermined standard levels and not just “getting by” with quick and easy solutions to complex problems. § Seeks out to hold the group to a clear standard of excellence by evaluating or questioning “practicality,” the “logic,” the “facts” or the “procedure” of a suggestion or of some unit of group discussion.” INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Group Task Roles Energizer § Primary role is to help pull groups out of a rut and encourage them to make decisions or take action. § Attempts to help groups reach a higher quality of decision making. Keep going!!! Procedural-Technician § All groups have simple tasks that someone needs to take care of. Whether it’s rearranging a room into a circle or photocopying the agenda and minutes from the previous meeting, the procedural- technician ensures that the routine tasks of the group get accomplished INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Group Task Roles Recorder § Often called a group or team’s secretary, is the individual who takes copious amounts of notes in an effort to help a group or team understand its own decision-making process. § Recorder must be skilled in taking notes and can quickly transcribe those notes into some kind of formalized minutes. INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Group/Team Building or Maintenance Roles Group/team building roles are roles that help build a group-centered identity for the members, while maintenance roles are roles that help keep that group-centered identity over the lifecycle of the group or team. Encourager § Functionally the group or team’s cheerleader. § Encourages people to come up with new ideas and then praises group or team members for the ideas they generate. § Encourages the group to seek out alternative ways of seeing a problem and fosters an environment where alternative ideas and suggestions are welcomed. INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Group/Team Building or Maintenance Roles Harmonizer § Ensure that the group effectively handles conflict. § However, when conflict becomes person-focused instead of task- focused, the harmonizer will help alleviate the tension of the group and help conflict parties solve their conflicts pro-socially. Compromiser § Someone who realizes that her or his ideas are in conflict with another person or faction of the group or team. § Instead of holding her or his ground refusing to budge one inch in her or his ideas, the compromiser tries to seek out a compromise between her or himself and the conflict parties. § Compromising is a strategy to help groups build better, more informed decisions. INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Group/Team Building or Maintenance Roles Gatekeeper § Ensure that all participants are freely and openly involved in the group’s decision-making. § Encourage people who are on tangents to bring it back to the decision at hand while encouraging those who are more reticent in their communication to actively participate in the decision-making. Standard Setter § The standard setter or ego sets out to ensure that the group or team’s decision-making processes meet a certain quality level. § Specifically focused on how the group goes about making decisions and then holds the groups to those standards. INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Group/Team Building or Maintenance Roles Group-Observer and Commentator § The group-observer and commentator watch how the group goes about completing its purpose. § Take notes about the group’s functioning and then periodically inform the group about how well it is working as a group or team. § Ensure the group or teams’ processes for decision making do not leave out minority voices, prevent poor brainstorming, or jump to decisions too quickly. Follower § This person is often passive and just observes the group’s decision processes. § Instead of being an active participant in the group’s decision-making, he or she will serve as an audience for the decision-making process during group discussions. INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Self-Centered Roles/Individual roles The final category of group roles identified by Benne and Sheats are generally very destructive and can harm the group decision-making process. Benne and Sheats called these roles self-centered because the roles focus on the individual desires of group members and not necessarily on what is best for the group or its decisions. According to Benne and Sheats, when self-centered roles are noticed by group members, it’s very important to quickly diagnose why these roles are appearing within the group. INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Self-Centered Roles/Individual roles Aggressor § The aggressor tends to be an individual who feels the need to improve her or his own standing within the group by taking others down. § Aggressors can enact a number of behaviors that ultimately impact group morale and the basic functioning of the gorup itself. § Some of the behaviors identified by Benne and Sheats are, “deflating the status of others, expressing disapproval of the values, acts or feelings of others, attacking the group or the problem it is working on, joking aggressively, showing envy toward another's contribution by trying to take credit for it, etc.” INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Self-Centered Roles/Individual roles z Blocker § Someone who simply either hates everything the group is doing and rejects everything the group recommends or he or she keeps rehashing group or team decisions that have been long since decided. § This person may simply say “no” to anything the group likes and is often a giant stumbling block for groups. Recognition-Seeker § The recognition-seeker seeker is all about showing how he or she is such a vital person in the group by trumpeting her or his achievements (whether relevant or not). § This person acts in this fashion for fear that the group or team will see her or him as irrelevant. INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Self-Centered Roles/Individual roles Self-Confessor § The self-confessor sees the group or team as the setting to air her or his own feelings, ideology, insight, or values. § This person sees the group or team as her or his own therapy session and has no problem self-disclosing inappropriate information to group or team members during meetings. Playboy/Playgirl § The playboy or playgirl clearly could care less about the group or team and its goals. § This person is generally quite vocal in her or his lack of caring. § He or she may simply become overly cycnical of the group/team and it’s decision-making or actively disrupt the decision-making process through horseplay or other nonchalant behavior. INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Self-Centered Roles/Individual roles Dominator § Someone who tries to control the group/team and dominate the group’s discussion and decision-making processes. § Often highly manipulative and will attempt to coerce those in subordinate status positions to her or his stance within the group. § These people will see their own position within the group or team as more superior than other group members and will make this very clear while asserting that her or his ideas are more superior because of her or his elevated position within an organization’s hierarchy. INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE GROUP GROWTH Self-Centered Roles/Individual roles Help-Seeker § The help-seeker tries to get the group to be sympathetic by stressing that he or she is insecure or confused. § The goal of the help-seeker is to downplay her or his own ability to contribute to the group by making other group/team members care for her or him. Special Interest Pleader § The special interest pleader is someone who always has a secondary agenda within a group. § According to Benne and Sheats, a special interest pleader pleads on behalf of a specific group (e.g., small businesses, labor, gender, race, etc…), but is “usually cloaking [her or] his own prejudices or biases in the stereotype which best fits [her or] his individual need” COLLABORATION AND PARTNERSHIP The ability to collaborate and interact with the health care team may be difficult and challenging, but is essential to become more effective and efficient in the delivery of quality health care to the clients. Katzenbach and Smith (1993) describe the TEAM as a small number of people with complimentary skills who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals and approach for which they held themselves accountable. COLLABORATION AND PARTNERSHIP ¡ Collaboration is defined as a joint communication and decision-making process with the goal of satisfying the health care needs of a target population. ¡ It is assumed that the contribution of each participant is based on knowledge or expertise brought to the practice rather than the traditional employer/employee relationship. COLLABORATION AND PARTNERSHIP The interdisciplinary health care team work together as an identified unit or system whose members consistently collaborate to the health care team is a group of professionals with different competencies, roles and responsibilities who need each other’s contribution to achieve effectiveness and quality patient care. The interdisciplinary health care team work together as an identified unit or system whose members consistently collaborate to provide solutions to health care problems of the clients in hospital or in community settings, which may be too complicated to be solved by one discipline. COLLABORATION AND PARTNERSHIP ¡ The multidisciplinary team involves or combines several academic or professional disciplines, formal or informal groups that meet to accomplish a specific purpose. ¡ Team structure can be seen as, in a hospital setting, for example, an attending physician requests the assistance of other professionals who communicate by writing reports and with informal conversation. On multidisciplinary teams, members practice independently of one another, each member being guided by his/her own professional standards but the leadership is determined by a profession hierarchy, usually the staff physician. In an inter-disciplinary team, members with a variety of expertise contribute, but on another hand, they view the health care services provided in a different focus. COLLABORATION AND PARTNERSHIP ¡ The interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary team collaboration involves contribution of different departments of their services and sharing of professional expertise of the different disciplines to achieve optimum health of the patient. The role of the nurse is to coordinate, communicate and document services provided by the team, as shown in the illustration: COLLABORATION AND PARTNERSHIP In a community setting, the Intra-agency, Inter- agency, multidisciplinary and sectoral collaboration Nurse are important in the effective and efficient delivery of health services to the individuals, families, population groups and the community. The nurse is Midwife Doctor responsible in maintaining harmonious relationship Effective within the health unit (intra-agency) and Health Care coordinating activities of the members of the health Delivery team (multidisciplinary) to ensure achievement of System group goals. Collaboration with other government Academe NGO and non-government agencies (Inter-agency/ sectoral) contributes to the availability of needed GO resources, facilities and services provided to the community served. END OF DISCUSSION