For this Discussion, you will contrast change champions and opinion leaders. You will consider the necessity of change for your practice problem, and explore the human impact and resources needed to support your proposed practice change.
To Prepare
Review the Learning Resources addressing change champions and opinion leaders.
Reflect on the human resources that may be necessary to support your proposed practice change.
Consider the impact of leadership styles in making this change.
By Day 3 of Week 9
Post a description of the differences between change champions and opinion leaders. Be specific and provide examples. Then, describe the human resources that may be necessary to support your proposed practice changes and explain why.
Change Champions
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliations
Change Champions
Healthcare organizations are witnessing rapid reforms due to constant changes in the complexities of diseases, discoveries of new treatment interventions, technological reforms, and new policy initiatives among other factors. According to Tappen et al. (2017), scarce resources, both human and non-human, are among the major barriers to implementing change in healthcare organizations. The authors further identify leadership support as well as persistent and visionary champion as some of the facilitators of successful change in healthcare organizations. As Nilsen et al. (2020) explain, change initiatives that are led and championed by professionals in a particular field have high chances of success and are less likely to face resistance. The purpose of this discussion is to describe the differences between change champions and opinion leaders. It will also include a description of the human resources that may be necessary to support the proposed practice change. The research question that the proposed project aims to answer states that “For adult obesity patients (P), does the implementation of a staff education on obesity management (I) as compared to lack of staff education (C) improve patient’s enrollment to weight loss program (O) over a period of 6 weeks(T)?”
Differences Between Change Champions and Opinion Leaders
While the two concepts: change champions and opinion leaders, can be used interchangeably in a change initiative, it is important to note that there is a slight difference between them. According to Hall et al. (2021), a change champion is usually a staff member who either volunteers or is assigned extra responsibilities to influence their peers to support a proposed change initiative. Unlike opinion leaders, change champions usually occupy the same level of social or work status as their peers. The roles of change champions usually revolve around advocating for a clinical practice change (Hall et al., 2021). For example, a change champion can educate his or her colleagues or peers about the importance of a new policy in order to encourage them to adhere to new clinical practice guidelines. Change champions are highly relevant in clinical practice areas that are likely to attract a high level of resistance from staff members.
Although opinion leaders influence reforms just like change champions, they normally occupy a higher social or work status than other members of the team, they are more innovative, and have a high degree of exposure to external communication strategies. As Flodgren et al. (2017) point out, opinion leaders play a crucial role in helping individuals to locate evidence that supports the recommended clinical practice change. Unlike change champions, opinion leaders often apply informal leadership approaches, shaped and maintained by technical competence and an individual’s ability to conform to social norms, to influence people to adopt certain behaviors or support change initiatives (Flodgren et al., 2017). For instance, an opinion leader can utilize published evidence to help the community to understand the effectiveness of maintaining hand hygiene in controlling the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In every change initiative, opinion leaders are key figures who occupy special positions in a communication network (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, 2019).
Human Resources for the Proposed Change
Human resources have a huge impact on the proposed practice change. The human resources that will contribute towards ensuring the successful implementation of the proposed change include the principal investigator, nurse educator, physician specializing in obesity management, the project manager, and the nursing staff. The reason for choosing these human resources is that they are professionals whose contribution to the project will ensure that the change is successfully implemented.
Conclusion
As they steer change initiatives in their organizations, doctorally-prepared nurses should understand the difference between change champions and opinion leaders. Unlike opinion leaders, change champions usually occupy the same level of social or work status as their peers. However, both change champions and opinion leaders play a crucial role in influencing clinical practice change initiatives in healthcare organizations.
References
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. (2019). Communication and dissemination strategies to facilitate the use of health-related evidence. https://effectivehealthcare.ahrq.gov/products/medical-evidence-communication/research-protocol.
Flodgren, G., Parmelli, E., Doumit, G., Gattellari, M., O’Brien, M. A., Grimshaw, J., & Eccles, M. P. (2017). Local opinion leaders: effects on professional practice and health care outcomes. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, (8), CD000125. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD000125.pub4
Hall, A. M., Flodgren, G. M., Richmond, H. L., Welsh, S., Thompson, J. Y., Furlong, B. M., & Sherriff, A. (2021). Champions for improved adherence to guidelines in long-term care homes: a systematic review. Implementation Science Communications, 2(1), 85. https://doi.org/10.1186/s43058-021-00185-y
Nilsen, P., Seing, I., Ericsson, C., Birken, S. & Schildmeijer, K. (2020). Characteristics of successful changes in health care organizations: an interview study with physicians, registered nurses and assistant nurses. BMC Health Services Research, 20, 147 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-020-4999-8
Tappen, R. M., Wolf, D. G., Rahemi, Z., Engstrom, G., Rojido, C., Shutes, J. M., & Ouslander, J. G. (2017). Barriers and facilitators to implementing a change initiative in long-term care using the INTERACT® quality improvement program. The Health Care Manager, 36(3), 219–230. https://doi.org/10.1097/HCM.0000000000000168