Impact of Interpersonal Conflict in Health Care Setting on Patient Care; the Role of Nursing Leadership Style on Resolving the Conflict

An interpersonal conflict is a disagreement between two persons or subgroups of an organization involving significant bitterness and dissatisfaction. Health care professionals, who understand each other’s roles and can work effectively together, have been shown to provide higher quality care and hence, to achieve desire out comes in patient care, it is essential to have good interpersonal relationship in terms of cooperation, collaboration, listen, and respect the values or positions of each other. Strong and effective leadership styles are key components to any health care success. There are certain situations which demand different leadership approaches. Historian and Burns in 1978 developed transformational leadership theory, which emphasizes the importance of interpersonal relationship. Conflict management is a complex process, which demands time and energy. The management and the subordinates must be concerned and devoted to resolving conflict among coworkers by being willing to listen and to find accurate solutions. To overcome interpersonal conflict in the health care setting requires accurate knowledge and skills for health care professionals to reduce the occurrence of conflict. This paper has implications for nurse leaders and organizations who seek to manage conflict among employees to reduce its negative consequences on working environment and organization productivity.