The public nursing system in Jamaica: a management perspective

ABSTRACT

This dissertation examines the principles on which the public administrative system in Jamaica has been structured, and the impact which application of these principles has on the management process of planning, organizing and controlling in the nursing service which is administered by the Ministry of Health. The view taken in the analysis is that the structures and processes which have been influenced by the classical theories of management are inadequate for the purpose of management of human resources in underdeveloped countries such as Jamaica that the assumptions on which the classical models of "authority structure decision-making, leadership styles, communication patterns"; "the system of reward", and "the management conflict" are premised do not have generalized applicability in underdeveloped societies nor among all categories of employees in a public administrative/management system. The study critically examines the effects of these structural variables on the motivation and morale of nurses and develops a paradigm for a public administrative structure which is more relevant to management needs in a developing country (AU)