Clinical Nurse Leadership Paper

American Association of College of Nursing (2012).White Paper on The Role of the Clinical Nurse Leader Retrived from: http://www.aacn.nche.edu/publications/white-papers/cnl

Nursing leaders are crucial to any nursing organization. They motivate, empower, influence, and communicate the organization’s vision to create change within the organization. Great nursing leadership depends on great nursing leaders. This paper will define nursing leadership and describe leadership characteristics. It will further depict the democratic style and transformational theory of nursing leadership. While exploring leadership in action, this paper will illustrate the aspects of nursing.

Slide 1: The expectations of nurses today are higher than ever with goals such as achieving top percentiles in nursing and patient satisfaction, to being among the top leaders in quality outcomes, and to build productive work relationships and environments. Nursing leaders serve as the primary link between staff, physicians, and the community. They are expected to be innovative, highly skilled, possess a certain degree of nursing knowledge, and produce qualified individuals to care for the growing population. According to Lorber, Treven, and Mumel (2016) “nursing leadership is pivotal because nurses represent the most extensive discipline in health care”. Because of this growing need for diversity in leadership and my background in the military, I decided to focus on the MSN Executive Track at Chamberlain College of Nursing.

Future nurses and the future of the nursing practice can positively benefit from having a revolving new nurse- nurse leader cycle. With a profession as dynamic as nursing, the involvement of positive leaders and role models is essential for the practice to grow and inspire a nursing force that not only adapts and changes with the profession, but leads and strives for promoting the improvement

Now, the graduate level nurse’s leadership attributes have been described in scholarly sources. Based on the documents of the American Association of College of Nursing (AACN) (2013), essentials of graduate nursing must be skilled in organizational and systems leadership role. Specifically, they are supposed to assume leadership roles in quality improvement and patient safety initiatives while working in the interprofessional team context. APN must use communication in an effective way, with regards to speaking, scholarly writing, and group interaction. Nurse leaders should also demonstrate the working knowledge of the current healthcare system and its essential components, including delivery and payment models, sites of care, roles of various stakeholders in the process of care delivery (AACN, 2013).

Leadership at times can be a complex topic to delve into and may appear to be a simple and graspable concept for a certain few. Leadership skills are not simply acquired through position, seniority, pay scale, or the amount of titles an individual holds but is a characteristic acquired or is an innate trait for the fortunate few who possess it. Leadership can be misconstrued with management; a manager “manages” the daily operations of a company’s work while a leader envisions, influences, and empowers the individuals around them.

CNP’s role requires leadership qualifications. Therefore, advance practice nurses should be knowledgeable and demonstrate critical thinking skills. Leadership skills should help foster collaboration, while providing improvements for cost effective health care. It’s important for leaders to be able to initiate change and have communication skills. Collaboration

There are many skills, traits, and behaviors one must possess in order to be an effective leader. The American Organization of Nurse Executives (AONE) has compiled a list of competencies and skills that nurse leaders should be proficient in. The five competency domains identified by AONE (2011) are “communication and relationship building, knowledge of health care environment, leadership skills, professionalism, and business skills” (p. 3). The competency domain I believe is essential for one to possess in order to be an effective executive nurse leader is communication and relationship building. The competencies AONE (2011) listed under the domain communication and relationship building are “effective communication, relationship management, influence of behavior, ability to work with diversity, shared decision-making, community involvement, medical staff relationship, and academic relationships” (p.3). I will discuss how Tom (nurse manager of a psychiatric unit) did not meet these specific characteristics under that domain.

Health care is a necessity and a service utilized by all persons at some point in their lives. It is essential for individuals to receive the best quality of care with best outcomes possible. However, this is not always the case. According to Jukkala, Greenwood, Motes and Block (2013), the health care system is not perfect and still presents the opportunity for medical errors and inequities that place patients at avoidable risk. The Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL) although a fairly new role to nursing was created by the American Academy of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) to help alleviate the unnecessary errors or disproportions that many clients face (Stavrianopoulos, 2012).

(2004, December). Working statement comparing the Clinical Nurse Leader and Clinical Nurse Specialist roles: Similarities, differences and complementarities. Washington, DC: American Association of Colleges of Nursing.

The Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL) serves in a critical capacity to improve hospital systems and patient outcomes through the role of advocate and communicator. The CNL achieves these aims by valuing collaboration and “fiscal stewardship” and efficiently utilizing communication and resource management skills (Harris, Roussel, & Thomas, 2018; Wilson et al., 2013). CNLs have the challenge and opportunity to improve staff and patient care satisfaction by streamlining the healthcare delivery system, utilizing their precise skills and training. CNLs serve as patient advocates and, “act as lateral integrators and advocates for those patients who are most vulnerable” (Wilson et al., 2013, p.180). At-risk patient populations, like children, can experience

Leadership may mean different things to different people, the consensus opinion of experts in this field is that leadership is using power to direct and influence activities of people to achieve set goals or targets. Nursing leadership is all about every nurse providing, facilitating and promoting the best healthcare services to client and to the public. Leadership is a shared responsibility. (CNO 2012). The nursing profession need leaders that can build the capacity of nurses through mentoring, coaching, supporting, developing the expertise and management skills of nurses to make a difference to the quality of patient care at all levels of the profession ( McIntyre & McDonald, 2014 ). At the core of every leadership either political or managerial is power and how the leader uses it. While it is practically impossible to lead without power, how the nurse leader uses this power not only determine the leadership style but also the results or outcomes of what is achieved through the process.

Clinical nurse specialists wear many hats in their day-to-day work setting. The five major components of the CNS role comprise of: expert clinical practice, educator, researcher, consultant, and leadership/management (Fulton, Lyon & Goudreau, 2014). Working as part of a multi-disciplinary team, CNSs can effect change by improving patient care, mentoring junior staff and colleagues, and refine organizational processes through improved standards of care. In addition to fulfilling the five major role components, the CNS integrates care across three spheres of influence: patients/families, nursing staff, and the organization/system of care.

Leadership does not always come with a title or prestige. Every nurse has within themselves qualities that make them a great leader. Leadership by definition, “is a combination of intrinsic personality traits, learned leadership skills, and characteristics of the situation (Cherry& Jacob (2013 p. 335). A leader is one who has the capacity and skills to direct or encourage others in efforts to achieve an outcome. I recently completed a self-assessment on my perceived leadership abilities. The survey was called the Nurse Manager Skills Inventory (Nurse Manager Leadership Partnership, 2008). It consists of four content areas of which I will address and identify my strengths and weaknesses.

Nursing is a very complex career that at many times requires one to be a leader. Nurses can be leaders in formal roles and also on the unit during any given shift. Nursing is a career that truly tests the character and attributes of those who choose to enter this career. Leadership in nursing is vital in creating a successful environment for patients. According to Stichler (2006), “effective leadership is essential to transforming organizations into environments that are safe for both patients and staff” (p. 422). Therefore, it is vital that as new nurses start out his or her careers that they learn from great leaders who are already in the profession. There are several great leaders working in the field who have a plethora of