Essentials of Nursing Leadership and Management 6th Edition by Ruth Tappen, Sally Weiss

Exercise 2

A not-for-profit hospice center in a small community received a generous gift from the grateful family of a patient who had died recently. The family asked only that the money be "put to the best use possible."
Everyone in this small facility had an opinion about the "best" use for the money. The administrator wanted to renovate the old, rundown headquarters. The financial officer wanted to put the money in the bank "for a rainy day." The chaplain wanted to add a small chapel to the building. The nurses wanted to create a food bank to help the poorest of their clients. The social workers wanted to buy a van to transport clients to health-care provider offices. The staff agreed that all the ideas had merit, that all of the needs identified were important ones. Unfortunately, there was enough money to meet only one of them.
The more the staff members discussed how to use this gift, the more insistent each group became that their idea was best. At their last meeting, it was evident that some were becoming frustrated and that others were becoming angry. It was rumored that a shouting match between the administrator and the financial officer had occurred.
What kind of leadership actions are needed to prevent the escalation of this conflict?