Chapter 5 – Case Study Questions
This activity contains 5 questions.
Staff Role in Budget Development
The nurse managers in a hospital have been asked to prepare budgets for their units. At
the same time, the managers are told that the hospital’s budget has serious problems with
being over budget last year. This is the first year that nurse managers have been asked to
participate in the budget development. At the nurse manager meeting, several nurse
managers were angry now that the hospital had serious problems they were turning over
to the nurse managers. Maybe if they had been asked to participate in the budget process
before there were problems, they might have been able to provide helpful strategies.
Many nurse managers also felt they lacked the necessary skills to do the task. The nurse
executive listened to their concerns at the meeting. After the meeting, the nurse manager
from a medical unit returned to his unit and met with team leaders to ask their advice
about the budget and the deficit.
1.
How should the nurse executive respond to the nurse managers’ concern about their lack
of skills to cope with this request?
2.
How might macro-level financial issues affect micro-level financial issues?
3.
What might be the roles of staff nurses, team leaders, nurse managers, and nurse
executives in budget development?
4.
How might cost containment be used to address the deficit of the medical unit? Consider
specific interventions or strategies that might be used.
5.
How might this be viewed as an opportunity for nursing administration?
Finkelman, Leadership and Management for Nurses: Core Competencies for Quality Care, 3e
Chapter 5 – ANSWER KEY Case Study Questions
1.
Answer will vary. Suggested response should include aspects of a budget and the
2.
Answers will vary. Information that may be included in the response:
Financial issues can be viewed from a macro or micro perspective. The macro
perspective concerns broad healthcare expenditures from a national view and
Finkelman, Leadership and Management for Nurses: Core Competencies for Quality Care, 3e
3.
Answers will vary. A sample response may include the following:
The critical need for new nurses is to understand who pays for healthcare, how this
4.
Answers will vary. Information presented in the text regarding cost containment includes:
Cost containment must be part of the budgetary process, or the HCO may not survive.
Finkelman, Leadership and Management for Nurses: Core Competencies for Quality Care, 3e
5.
Answers will vary. A sample response may include the following:
Nursing management should seek out facts to respond to budget cuts and to plan