Background

Question:

Discuss about the Research proposal on effective leadership and management for delivering proper care to the residential aged care facility users.

There has been a plethora of existence of observational evidence that concerns the implications of effective leadership and management, quality of care and work environment in the residential care facilities that is designed for the elderly population. However, no randomized trials of control have been conducted for assessing the effectiveness of the leadership interventions used in the care facilities. These care facilities need to integrate effective and efficient strategies of management and leadership interventions so that the best treatment can be provided to the users.  This proposal has been designed with the intention to leadership model that is used in such care facilities so that the ultimate purpose of their existence can be accomplished. The objective is to bring innovation to the leadership and management structure in the Australian care facilities for aged people. The research flows from the studies made on the life of the old people in various homes existing in Australia. The measures that can be played by an efficient leadership for delivering high-quality service directed towards the aged people have been an integral part of the research proposal. Various previous studies have been incorporated into the proposal so that the readers can get an insight on the present care scenario of elderly people in Australia.

The literature review that has been included in the proposal basically focus on the experience of the registered nurses as managers and leaders in the residential care facilities for the aged population so that their skills can be polished further. The research paper “Experiences of registered nurses as managers and leaders in residential aged care facilities: a systematic review.” highlights the fact that the staff, and nurses of the care system exhibit strong motivation to work in the demanding environment but they lack professional support and collaboration from the allied medical managers and leaders. At the present time, there is limited scope to learn and develop as nurses in the aged care facility. This area needs to be effectively addresses so that the ultimate service quality can get enhanced.

The fundamental aim of the research proposal is to understand the current leadership approach adopted in residential care facilities for the old population so that new approaches can be developed to enhance the service quality. The senior members including the nurses, managers and other staffs of the residential care home need to take the initiative to bring about appositive change in the current system (Bevilacqua, Mazzuto & Paciarotti, 2014). The council also recommends that the practices of age-friendly and independence enhancements are the part of life so these should be included as the future initiatives to improve the quality of life during their long stay in the care facilities. Quality of life is a term that has become increasingly popular in the current times. The usage of this term has become extensive since it covers almost all the phases of an individual’s daily living. So here in this research proposal, this term “quality of life” is particularly related to the aged residents who stay in the old age. They need to be treated with respect in the long-term care facilities and this fact must be understood by the service providers. They are considered to be the most susceptible groups in the society, due to their increase in age and the utmost level of dependency (Cazzaniga & Fischer, 2015). A sincere leadership is a key that can enhance the life quality of the aged residents when they are at a vulnerable stage of their life. An inspiring leader can bring about a much-needed improvement in the care model by using his effective leadership management skills. A lot of debate is going around the globe regarding the quality of service that is provided to the elderly facility users in the residential old age homes.

Literature Review

This research proposal has included the key elements that can add value to the prevailing system. The attempt of the proposal is to contribute to the ongoing debate in a significant manner so that the various factors that determine the quality of life of the old aged residents can be upgraded (Chen, et al., 2014). The model that will be suggested will be designed by analyzing the data that has been collected using secondary data from previous research studies and primary data. An interview process would be conducted with the care staff, managers, residents, and relatives so that the prevailing quality of care can be assessed. The different perspectives would help to identify the areas that need to be modified in order to enhance the quality of life of the old people living in the care homes (Dwyer, 2011).

Most of the publications have outlined that there is a role of the effective management in addressing the issues related to better care and improved quality of service for the aged people. A smaller number of researchers have highlighted the significance of the leadership in this delicate sector of aged care. However, in the recent times many new research studies have appeared that give high importance to the need of an inspiring and effective leader. In 2008, a report was released by the Office of Aged Care Quality and Compliance on the same topic concerning the residential care and it stated that the proactive role of the service providers is crucial to improving the living standard of the aged care residents and there is need to promote leadership traits in the facility operators (Dunn, 2016). This has strengthened the need to introduce best management and leadership skills in the aged care scenario. The Aged Care Standards and Accreditation Agency that came into existence in 2014 also focuses on these aspects so that the users can experience high-quality care service (Dwyer, 2011). The significance of this proposal is that it suggests the requirement of the visionary leadership for improving the living conditions and quality of the residents of the care home facilities (Rosato, et al., 2014).

The research proposal on the subject is a unique initiative that can bring about the needed change in the quality of service that is provided to the aged residents living in the old age homes in Australia. Both secondary data and primary data would help in the identification of the prevailing gaps in the system so that the leadership and management model could be improvised (Dwyer, 2011).

• With the manager’s leadership, the staff can feel motivated while offering service to the residents. This positive change would enhance the job satisfaction and retention of the workforce. The delivery of high quality care would ensure the overall well-being of the care users (Fitzpatrick, et al., 2014).
• The qualities that are essential for the good leadership in the aged care management include friendly approach towards the people, and expertise in professional skills, team building, and recognition model. Along with this flexibility and effective communication would enhance the care system. However, the outcomes of the management and the successful leadership are dependent on the rational and good leadership in the organization (Fortenberry Jr & McGoldrick, 2016).

Objectives

The systematic literature review and the narrative synthesis would play an active role in the research proposal. Previous research studies would help to understand the leadership and management scenario that is prevalent in the care system for the aged population in Australia. It would help in the identification of current gaps (Dwyer, 2011).  Then the primary research study with  in form of interview would be carried out in the selected residential aged care facility. It would help the objective of the research i.e. to develop intervention strategies to strengthen the leadership scenario in the facilities in the island nation. Here qualitative research is used to collect the data (Fortenberry & McGoldrick, 2016).

The topic that has been considered for the research proposal is quite sensitive and it relates to the quality of service that is provided to the old population that lives in residential care facilities in Australia. Both sources of data have come into play in the process since the older research studies would help to identify the flaws and loopholes that exist in the system and the primary model would throw light on the key areas that can be improved in order to enhance the quality of leadership and management (Green, 2016). The methodology has been designed so that the best recommendations can be designed in relation to the context of the issue. Hence, the research studies that already exist on the topic play a major role in this research proposal (Seid & Aydagnehum, 2013).

The random sampling technique would be used to collect primary data from the different sections of the care facility system. Since the interview process would be conducted on the managers, staff, patients, relatives, the sampling technique on each sub-group would help to collect sufficient amount of data that must be analyzed. All the processes of the research process would be explained to the involved parties so that there would be no chance of biases in the research process.  (Hassona, et al., 2017). A total of 30 interview responses would be selected on a random basis from all the respondents covering all the participant groups. The interview process would be kept short and simple so that the activity could be wrapped up quickly (Fortenberry & McGoldrick, 2016).  This research design would be adopted since there would be a one-on-one interaction between the interviewer and the interviewee so there would be limited chances of confusion. (Singh & Lillrank, 2015).

Methodology

The interview process has been selected for the data collection process. The interviewer would have a direct conversation with the participants relating to various aspects of the care facility and its operations. The answers would be written by the interviewer while the interviewee would be providing his input. Once the process would be finished, the respondent could review the sheet and sign on it (Hassona et al., 2017). The signature would be necessary to show the authentication of the interview responses. Even though this approach could lengthen the process but it would ensure fairness and originality of the approach (McGregor et al., 2017).

This qualitative research technique would act as a framework for the research process since it would highlight the views of different facility members on the leadership and management model of the old age home. The data from the literature review would play a vital role in this process so that the current gaps could be addressed in the best possible manner (Huppertz, et al., 2014). The advantage of conducting the interview is that it would allow the participation of all the members of the facility. They could offer their views and give responses to the directed questions without being influenced by an external element (Zeng & Yang, 2013).

The content data analysis would be adopted on the collected qualitative data. A number of predetermined categories would have been set prior to the data collection process so that once the same has been collected; the leadership and management behaviour of the care staff members including the managers and leaders could be effectively assessed. It would positively contribute to the effectiveness of the research study (Kim, et al., 2014). This analytical technique would help to make relevant comparisons in order to examine the perspective of different groups of the care facility in Australia. The data that would be saved in form of interview sheets would be kept at a confidential location so that no one other than the concerned research team would have access to it (Leggat & Holmes, 2015).

The National Health and Medical Research Council as well as the Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research (2007) would be considered so that all the ethical aspects could be effectively met while carrying out the research process. In case any requirement of ethical approval would be required in the process, the same would be considered so that no party would be negatively affected in the process (Romero et al., 2014).

Data Analysis

Sufficient confidentiality would be maintained throughout the process and respect would be given to all the privacy aspects of all the participants. All the issues relating to confidentiality, approval of ethics, and the withdrawal of participants would be taken care of (McGregor, et al., 2017). The same set of interview questions would be presented to all the participants so that the uniformity can be maintained. The privacy of the participants would be ensured at all times of the process. Once the research activity would be finished the interview responses would be destroyed after a certain point of time (McGuckin & Govednik, 2015).

This research proposal that has been highlighted focuses only on one of the residential facilities of Australia. The primary data analysis would be carried out based on the collected data from the specific care facility so it might vary for other care facilities. The availability of limited funds for the study would act the major limitation (Roberts, et al., 2016). The small fund allocated for the activity would limit the overall scope of the study. It is assumed that all the respondents were sincere while giving the interview questions. The small number of participants could also act as a key limitation in the research process (Romero, et al., 2014). As such, the outcome of the research activity would be entirely based on the primary data responses and the former research studies on the subject.

Budget plan and Timeframe	Expenses in Dollars
Personnel: Coordinator of the project (social work student) Research assistant: 37.5 hours in a week                                Number of weeks 14-25                                  29 dollars paid per hour	In-Kind 13050 $
Costs of transcription: 12 x 1 hour of interviews 15 dollars per hour For transcribing one hour of interview it takes 7 hours	1260 $
Premises: Office location	In- Kind
Tape recorder, tapes, microphone, stationery, etc	400 $
Travel: For interviewing the participants	1500 $
Contingency	1000 $
Total costs	17618 $

Conclusion

The proposal has been designed with the objective to enhance the management and leadership scenario that is currently exhibited in residential care facilities that are designed for older population in Australia. Both primary data and secondary data would form an integral part of the research process since they would allow capturing the holistic picture relating to the quality of service offered by care homes.

1. What are the issues related to leadership and management with respect to health care other than old age for instance, such as community, acute, primary health care and sub-acute?
2. What the issues related to management and leadership with respect to old aged, nursing homes, long term care, or residential aged care?
3. What do you think is the policy and the system solutions are required for building the capacity of the workforce leadership that is sustainable and for effective management in the residential aged care?
4. What are the crucial features and the impacting factors that are necessary for sustaining the effective workforce management and leadership?
5. What do you think are the best models for developing the workforce leadership within the management that is sustainable in the residential aged care?

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