leadership and management essay in nursing

The essentials of nursing leadership: A systematic review of factors and educational interventions influencing nursing leadership

Affiliations.

• 1 Faculty of Nursing, Edmonton Clinic Health Academy, University of Alberta, 11405 87 Ave NW, Edmonton, AB T6G 1C9, Canada. Electronic address: [email protected].
• 2 Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food, School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health, Monash University, Level 1, 264 Ferntree Gully Rd, Notting Hill, VIC 3168, Australia.
• 3 Faculty of Nursing, Edmonton Clinic Health Academy, University of Alberta, 11405 87 Ave NW, Edmonton, AB T6G 1C9, Canada.
• 4 Faculty of Nursing, Edmonton Clinic Health Academy, University of Alberta, 11405 87 Ave NW, Edmonton, AB T6G 1C9, Canada; Technical High School of Campinas, State University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Barão Geraldo, Campinas - São Paulo 13083-970, Brazil.
• PMID: 33383271
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2020.103842

Background: Nursing leadership plays a vital role in shaping outcomes for healthcare organizations, personnel and patients. With much of the leadership workforce set to retire in the near future, identifying factors that positively contribute to the development of leadership in nurses is of utmost importance.

Objectives: To identify determining factors of nursing leadership, and the effectiveness of interventions to enhance leadership in nurses.

Design: We conducted a systematic review, including a total of nine electronic databases.

Data sources: Databases included: Medline, Academic Search Premier, Embase, PsychInfo, Sociological Abstracts, ABI, CINAHL, ERIC, and Cochrane.

Review methods: Studies were included if they quantitatively examined factors contributing to nursing leadership or educational interventions implemented with the intention of developing leadership practices in nurses. Two research team members independently reviewed each article to determine inclusion. All included studies underwent quality assessment, data extraction and content analysis.

Results: 49,502 titles/abstracts were screened resulting in 100 included manuscripts reporting on 93 studies (n=44 correlational studies and n=49 intervention studies). One hundred and five factors examined in correlational studies were categorized into 5 groups experience and education, individuals' traits and characteristics, relationship with work, role in the practice setting, and organizational context. Correlational studies revealed mixed results with some studies finding positive correlations and other non-significant relationships with leadership. Participation in leadership interventions had a positive impact on the development of a variety of leadership styles in 44 of 49 intervention studies, with relational leadership styles being the most common target of interventions.

Conclusions: The findings of this review make it clear that targeted educational interventions are an effective method of leadership development in nurses. However, due to equivocal results reported in many included studies and heterogeneity of leadership measurement tools, few conclusions can be drawn regarding which specific nurse characteristics and organizational factors most effectively contribute to the development of nursing leadership. Contextual and confounding factors that may mediate the relationships between nursing characteristics, development of leadership and enhancement of leadership development programs also require further examination. Targeted development of nursing leadership will help ensure that nurses of the future are well equipped to tackle the challenges of a burdened health-care system.

Keywords: Interventions; Leadership; Nursing workforce; Systematic Review.

Copyright © 2020. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

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Evidence and practice    

Developing effective nurse leadership skills, denise major deputy director of nursing, salisbury nhs foundation trust, salisbury, wiltshire, england.

• To enable you to outline the various types and characteristics of leadership

• To understand the importance of effective nurse leadership and its effect on patient care

• To identify ways to enhance your leadership skills and apply these in your everyday practice

Leadership is a role that nurses are expected to fulfil, regardless of their job title and experience. Nurses are required to lead and manage care as soon as they have completed their training. However, the development of leadership skills and the associated learning can be challenging, especially for less experienced nurses and those at the beginning of their careers. This article examines the importance of effective leadership for nurses, patients and healthcare organisations, and outlines some of the theories of leadership such as transformational leadership. It also details how nurses can develop their leadership skills, for example through self-awareness, critical reflection and role modelling.

Nursing Standard . doi: 10.7748/ns.2019.e11247

Major D (2019) Developing effective nurse leadership skills. Nursing Standard. doi: 10.7748/ns.2019.e11247

This article has been subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software

@denisemajor4

[email protected]

None declared

Published online: 07 May 2019

clinical leadership - leadership development - leadership frameworks - leadership models - leadership skills - transformational leadership

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Open Resources for Nursing (Open RN); Ernstmeyer K, Christman E, editors. Nursing Management and Professional Concepts [Internet]. Eau Claire (WI): Chippewa Valley Technical College; 2022.

Nursing Management and Professional Concepts [Internet].

• About Open RN

Chapter 4 - Leadership and Management

4.1. leadership & management introduction, learning objectives.

• Compare and contrast the role of a leader and a manager

• Examine the roles of team members

• Identify the activities managers perform

• Describe the role of the RN as a leader and change agent

• Evaluate the effects of power, empowerment, and motivation in leading and managing a nursing team

• Recognize limitations of self and others and utilize resources

As a nursing student preparing to graduate, you have spent countless hours on developing clinical skills, analyzing disease processes, creating care plans, and cultivating clinical judgment. In comparison, you have likely spent much less time on developing management and leadership skills. Yet, soon after beginning your first job as a registered nurse, you will become involved in numerous situations requiring nursing leadership and management skills. Some of these situations include the following:

• Prioritizing care for a group of assigned clients
• Collaborating with interprofessional team members regarding client care
• Participating in an interdisciplinary team conference
• Acting as a liaison when establishing community resources for a patient being discharged home
• Serving on a unit committee
• Investigating and implementing a new evidence-based best practice
• Mentoring nursing students

Delivering safe, quality client care often requires registered nurses (RN) to manage care provided by the nursing team. Making assignments, delegating tasks, and supervising nursing team members are essential managerial components of an entry-level staff RN role. As previously discussed, nursing team members include RNs, licensed practical/vocational nurses (LPN/VN), and assistive personnel (AP).[ 1 ]

Read more about assigning, delegating, and supervising in the “ Delegation and Supervision ” chapter.

An RN is expected to demonstrate leadership and management skills in many facets of the role. Nurses manage care for high-acuity patients as they are admitted, transferred, and discharged; coordinate care among a variety of diverse health professionals; advocate for clients’ needs; and manage limited resources with shrinking budgets.[ 2 ]

Read more about collaborating and communicating with the interprofessional team; advocating for clients; and admitting, transferring, and discharging clients in the “ Collaboration Within the Interprofessional Team ” chapter.

An article published in the  Online Journal of Issues in Nursing  states, “With the growing complexity of healthcare practice environments and pending nurse leader retirements, the development of future nurse leaders is increasingly important.”[ 3 ] This chapter will explore leadership and management responsibilities of an RN. Leadership styles are introduced, and change theories are discussed as a means for implementing change in the health care system.

4.2. BASIC CONCEPTS

Organizational culture.

The formal leaders of an organization provide a sense of direction and overall guidance for their employees by establishing organizational vision, mission, and values statements. An organization’s  vision statement  defines why the organization exists, describes how the organization is unique from similar organizations, and specifies what the organization is striving to be. The  mission statement  describes how the organization will fulfill its vision and establishes a common course of action for future endeavors. See Figure 4.1 [ 1 ] for an illustration of a mission statement. A  values statement  establishes the values of an organization that assist with the achievement of its vision and mission. A values statement also provides strategic guidelines for decision-making, both internally and externally, by members of the organization. The vision, mission, and values statements are expressed in a concise and clear manner that is easily understood by members of the organization and the public.[ 2 ]

Mission Statement

Organizational culture  refers to the implicit values and beliefs that reflect the norms and traditions of an organization. An organization’s vision, mission, and values statements are the foundation of organizational culture. Because individual organizations have their own vision, mission, and values statements, each organization has a different culture.[ 3 ]

As health care continues to evolve and new models of care are introduced, nursing managers must develop innovative approaches that address change while aligning with that organization’s vision, mission, and values. Leaders embrace the organization’s mission, identify how individuals’ work contributes to it, and ensure that outcomes advance the organization’s mission and purpose. Leaders use vision, mission, and values statements for guidance when determining appropriate responses to critical events and unforeseen challenges that are common in a complex health care system. Successful organizations require employees to be committed to following these strategic guidelines during the course of their work activities. Employees who understand the relationship between their own work and the mission and purpose of the organization will contribute to a stronger health care system that excels in providing first-class patient care. The vision, mission, and values provide a common organization-wide frame of reference for decision-making for both leaders and staff.[ 4 ]

Learning Activity

Investigate the mission, vision, and values of a potential employer, as you would do prior to an interview for a job position.

Reflective Questions

1. How well do the organization’s vision and values align with your personal values regarding health care?

2. How well does the organization’s mission align with your professional objective in your resume?

Followership

Followership  is described as the upward influence of individuals on their leaders and their teams. The actions of followers have an important influence on staff performance and patient outcomes. Being an effective follower requires individuals to contribute to the team not only by doing as they are told, but also by being aware and raising relevant concerns. Effective followers realize that they can initiate change and disagree or challenge their leaders if they feel their organization or unit is failing to promote wellness and deliver safe, value-driven, and compassionate care. Leaders who gain the trust and dedication of followers are more effective in their leadership role. Everybody has a voice and a responsibility to take ownership of the workplace culture, and good followership contributes to the establishment of high-functioning and safety-conscious teams.[ 5 ]

Team members impact patient safety by following teamwork guidelines for good followership. For example, strategies such as closed-loop communication are important tools to promote patient safety.

Read more about communication and teamwork strategies in the “ Collaboration Within the Interprofessional Team ” chapter.

Leadership and Management Characteristics

Leadership and management are terms often used interchangeably, but they are two different concepts with many overlapping characteristics.  Leadership  is the art of establishing direction and influencing and motivating others to achieve their maximum potential to accomplish tasks, objectives, or projects.[ 6 ],[ 7 ] See Figure 4.2 [ 8 ] for an illustration of team leadership. There is no universally accepted definition or theory of nursing leadership, but there is increasing clarity about how it differs from management.[ 9 ]  Management  refers to roles that focus on tasks such as planning, organizing, prioritizing, budgeting, staffing, coordinating, and reporting.[ 10 ] The overriding function of management has been described as providing order and consistency to organizations, whereas the primary function of leadership is to produce change and movement.[ 11 ] View a comparison of the characteristics of management and leadership in Table 4.2a .

Management and Leadership Characteristics[ 12 ]

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Not all nurses are managers, but all nurses are leaders because they encourage individuals to achieve their goals. The American Nurses Association (ANA) established  Leadership  as a Standard of Professional Performance for all registered nurses. Standards of Professional Performance are “authoritative statements of action and behaviors that all registered nurses, regardless of role, population, specialty, and setting, are expected to perform competently.”[ 13 ] See the competencies of the ANA  Leadership  standard in the following box and additional content in other chapters of this book.

Competencies of ANA’s Leadership Standard of Professional Performance

• Promotes effective relationships to achieve quality outcomes and a culture of safety

• Leads decision-making groups

• Engages in creating an interprofessional environment that promotes respect, trust, and integrity

• Embraces practice innovations and role performance to achieve lifelong personal and professional goals

• Communicates to lead change, influence others, and resolve conflict

• Implements evidence-based practices for safe, quality health care and health care consumer satisfaction

• Demonstrates authority, ownership, accountability, and responsibility for appropriate delegation of nursing care

• Mentors colleagues and others to embrace their knowledge, skills, and abilities

• Participates in professional activities and organizations for professional growth and influence

• Advocates for all aspects of human and environmental health in practice and policy

Read additional content related to leadership and management activities in corresponding chapters of this book:

• Read about the culture of safety in the “ Legal Implications ” chapter.

• Read about effective interprofessional teamwork and resolving conflict in the “ Collaboration Within the Interprofessional Team ” chapter.

• Read about quality improvement and implementing evidence-based practices in the “ Quality and Evidence-Based Practice ” chapter.

• Read more about delegation, supervision, and accountability in the “ Delegation and Supervision ” chapter.

• Read about professional organizations and advocating for patients, communities, and their environments in the “ Advocacy ” chapter.

• Read about budgets and staffing in the “ Health Care Economics ” chapter.

• Read about prioritization in the “ Prioritization ” chapter.

Leadership Theories and Styles

In the 1930s Kurt Lewin, the father of social psychology, originally identified three leadership styles: authoritarian, democratic, and laissez-faire.[ 14 ],[ 15 ]

Authoritarian leadership  means the leader has full power. Authoritarian leaders tell team members what to do and expect team members to execute their plans. When fast decisions must be made in emergency situations, such as when a patient “codes,” the authoritarian leader makes quick decisions and provides the group with direct instructions. However, there are disadvantages to authoritarian leadership. Authoritarian leaders are more likely to disregard creative ideas of other team members, causing resentment and stress.[ 16 ]

Democratic leadership  balances decision-making responsibility between team members and the leader. Democratic leaders actively participate in discussions, but also make sure to listen to the views of others. For example, a nurse supervisor may hold a meeting regarding an increased incidence of patient falls on the unit and ask team members to share their observations regarding causes and potential solutions. The democratic leadership style often leads to positive, inclusive, and collaborative work environments that encourage team members’ creativity. Under this style, the leader still retains responsibility for the final decision.[ 17 ]

Laissez-faire  is a French word that translates to English as, “leave alone.” Laissez-faire leadership gives team members total freedom to perform as they please. Laissez-faire leaders do not participate in decision-making processes and rarely offer opinions. The laissez-faire leadership style can work well if team members are highly skilled and highly motivated to perform quality work. However, without the leader’s input, conflict and a culture of blame may occur as team members disagree on roles, responsibilities, and policies. By not contributing to the decision-making process, the leader forfeits control of team performance.[ 18 ]

Over the decades, Lewin’s original leadership styles have evolved into many styles of leadership in health care, such as passive-avoidant, transactional, transformational, servant, resonant, and authentic.[ 19 ],[ 20 ] Many of these leadership styles have overlapping characteristics. See Figure 4.3 [ 21 ] for a comparison of various leadership styles in terms of engagement.

Leadership Styles

Passive-avoidant leadership  is similar to laissez-faire leadership and is characterized by a leader who avoids taking responsibility and confronting others. Employees perceive the lack of control over the environment resulting from the absence of clear directives. Organizations with this type of leader have high staff turnover and low retention of employees. These types of leaders tend to react and take corrective action only after problems have become serious and often avoid making any decisions at all.[ 22 ]

Transactional leadership  involves both the leader and the follower receiving something for their efforts; the leader gets the job done and the follower receives pay, recognition, rewards, or punishment based on how well they perform the tasks assigned to them.[ 23 ] Staff generally work independently with no focus on cooperation among employees or commitment to the organization.[ 24 ]

Transformational leadership  involves leaders motivating followers to perform beyond expectations by creating a sense of ownership in reaching a shared vision.[ 25 ] It is characterized by a leader’s charismatic influence over team members and includes effective communication, valued relationships, and consideration of team member input. Transformational leaders know how to convey a sense of loyalty through shared goals, resulting in increased productivity, improved morale, and increased employees’ job satisfaction.[ 26 ] They often motivate others to do more than originally intended by inspiring them to look past individual self-interest and perform to promote team and organizational interests.[ 27 ]

Servant leadership  focuses on the professional growth of employees while simultaneously promoting improved quality care through a combination of interprofessional teamwork and shared decision-making. Servant leaders assist team members to achieve their personal goals by listening with empathy and committing to individual growth and community-building. They share power, put the needs of others first, and help individuals optimize performance while forsaking their own personal advancement and rewards.[ 28 ]

Visit the Greenleaf Center site to learn more about  What is Servant Leadership ?

Resonant leaders  are in tune with the emotions of those around them, use empathy, and manage their own emotions effectively. Resonant leaders build strong, trusting relationships and create a climate of optimism that inspires commitment even in the face of adversity. They create an environment where employees are highly engaged, making them willing and able to contribute with their full potential.[ 29 ]

Authentic leaders  have an honest and direct approach with employees, demonstrating self-awareness, internalized moral perspective, and relationship transparency. They strive for trusting, symmetrical, and close leader–follower relationships; promote the open sharing of information; and consider others’ viewpoints.[ 30 ]

Characteristics of Leadership Styles

Outcomes of Various Leadership Styles

Leadership styles affect team members, patient outcomes, and the organization. A systematic review of the literature published in 2021 showed significant correlations between leadership styles and nurses’ job satisfaction. Transformational leadership style had the greatest positive correlation with nurses’ job satisfaction, followed by authentic, resonant, and servant leadership styles. Passive-avoidant and laissez-faire leadership styles showed a negative correlation with nurses’ job satisfaction.[ 31 ] In this challenging health care environment, managers and nurse leaders must promote technical and professional competencies of their staff, but they must also act to improve staff satisfaction and morale by using appropriate leadership styles with their team.[ 32 ]

Systems Theory

Systems theory  is based on the concept that systems do not function in isolation but rather there is an interdependence that exists between their parts. Systems theory assumes that most individuals strive to do good work, but are affected by diverse influences within the system. Efficient and functional systems account for these diverse influences and improve outcomes by studying patterns and behaviors across the system.[ 33 ]

Many health care agencies have adopted a culture of safety based on systems theory. A  culture of safety  is an organizational culture that embraces error reporting by employees with the goal of identifying systemic causes of problems that can be addressed to improve patient safety. According to The Joint Commission, a culture of safety includes the following components[ 34 ]:

• Just Culture:  A culture where people feel safe raising questions and concerns and report safety events in an environment that emphasizes a nonpunitive response to errors and near misses. Clear lines are drawn by managers between human error, at-risk, and reckless employee behaviors. See Figure 4.4 [ 35 ] for an illustration of Just Culture.
• Reporting Culture:  People realize errors are inevitable and are encouraged to speak up for patient safety by reporting errors and near misses. For example, nurses complete an “incident report” according to agency policy when a medication error occurs or a client falls. Error reporting helps the agency manage risk and reduce potential liability.
• Learning Culture:  People regularly collect information and learn from errors and successes while openly sharing data and information and applying best evidence to improve work processes and patient outcomes.

“Just Culture Infographic.png” by Valeria Palarski 2020. Used with permission.

The Just Culture model categorizes human behavior into three categories of errors. Consequences of errors are based on whether the error is a simple human error or caused by at-risk or reckless behavior[ 36 ]:

• Simple human error:  A simple human error occurs when an individual inadvertently does something other than what should have been done. Most medical errors are the result of human error due to poor processes, programs, education, environmental issues, or situations. These errors are managed by correcting the cause, looking at the process, and fixing the deviation. For example, a nurse appropriately checks the rights of medication administration three times, but due to the similar appearance and names of two different medications stored next to each other in the medication dispensing system, administers the incorrect medication to a patient. In this example, a root cause analysis reveals a system issue that must be modified to prevent future patient errors (e.g., change the labelling and storage of look alike-sound alike medications).[ 37 ]
• At-risk behavior:  An error due to at-risk behavior occurs when a behavioral choice is made that increases risk where the risk is not recognized or is mistakenly believed to be justified. For example, a nurse scans a patient’s medication with a barcode scanner prior to administration, but an error message appears on the scanner. The nurse mistakenly interprets the error to be a technology problem and proceeds to administer the medication instead of stopping the process and further investigating the error message, resulting in the wrong dosage of a medication being administered to the patient. In this case, ignoring the error message on the scanner can be considered “at-risk behavior” because the behavioral choice was considered justified by the nurse at the time.[ 38 ]
• Reckless behavior:  Reckless behavior is an error that occurs when an action is taken with conscious disregard for a substantial and unjustifiable risk. For example, a nurse arrives at work intoxicated and administers the wrong medication to the wrong patient. This error is considered due to reckless behavior because the decision to arrive intoxicated was made with conscious disregard for substantial risk.[ 39 ]

These categories of errors result in different consequences to the employee based on the Just Culture model:

• If an individual commits a simple human error, managers console the individual and consider changes in training, procedures, and processes.[ 40 ] In the “simple human error” example above, system-wide changes would be made to change the label and location of the medications to prevent future errors from occurring with the same medications.
• Individuals committing at-risk behavior are held accountable for their behavioral choices and often require coaching with incentives for less risky behaviors and situational awareness.[ 41 ]In the “at-risk behavior” example above, when the nurse chose to ignore an error message on the barcode scanner, mandatory training on using barcode scanners and responding to errors would likely be implemented, and the manager would track the employee’s correct usage of the barcode scanner for several months following training.
• If an individual demonstrates reckless behavior, remedial action and/or punitive action is taken.[ 42 ] In the “reckless behavior” example above, the manager would report the nurse’s behavior to the State Board of Nursing for disciplinary action. The SBON would likely mandate substance abuse counseling for the nurse to maintain their nursing license. However, employment may be terminated and/or the nursing license revoked if continued patterns of reckless behavior occur.

See Table 4.2c describing classifications of errors using the Just Culture model.

Classification of Errors Using the Just Culture Model

Systems leadership  refers to a set of skills used to catalyze, enable, and support the process of systems-level change that is encouraged by the Just Culture Model. Systems leadership is comprised of three interconnected elements:[ 43 ]

• The Individual:  The skills of collaborative leadership to enable learning, trust-building, and empowered action among stakeholders who share a common goal
• The Community:  The tactics of coalition building and advocacy to develop alignment and mobilize action among stakeholders in the system, both within and between organizations
• The System:  An understanding of the complex systems shaping the challenge to be addressed

4.3. IMPLEMENTING CHANGE

Change is constant in the health care environment.  Change  is defined as the process of altering or replacing existing knowledge, skills, attitudes, systems, policies, or procedures.[ 1 ] The outcomes of change must be consistent with an organization’s mission, vision, and values. Although change is a dynamic process that requires alterations in behavior and can cause conflict and resistance, change can also stimulate positive behaviors and attitudes and improve organizational outcomes and employee performance. Change can result from identified problems or from the incorporation of new knowledge, technology, management, or leadership. Problems may be identified from many sources, such as quality improvement initiatives, employee performance evaluations, or accreditation survey results.[ 2 ]

Nurse managers must deal with the fears and concerns triggered by change. They should recognize that change may not be easy and may be met with enthusiasm by some and resistance by others. Leaders should identify individuals who will be enthusiastic about the change (referred to as “early adopters”), as well as those who will be resisters (referred to as “laggers”). Early adopters should be involved to build momentum, and the concerns of resisters should be considered to identify barriers. Data should be collected, analyzed, and communicated so the need for change (and its projected consequences) can be clearly articulated. Managers should articulate the reasons for change, the way(s) the change will affect employees, the way(s) the change will benefit the organization, and the desired outcomes of the change process.[ 3 ] See Figure 4.5 [ 4 ] for an illustration of communicating upcoming change.

Identifying Upcoming Change

Change Theories

There are several change theories that nurse leaders may adopt when implementing change. Two traditional change theories are known as Lewin’s Unfreeze-Change-Refreeze Model and Lippitt’s Seven-Step Change Theory.[ 5 ]

Lewin’s Change Model

Kurt Lewin, the father of social psychology, introduced the classic three-step model of change known as Unfreeze-Change-Refreeze Model that requires prior learning to be rejected and replaced. Lewin’s model has three major concepts: driving forces, restraining forces, and equilibrium. Driving forces are those that push in a direction and cause change to occur. They facilitate change because they push the person in a desired direction. They cause a shift in the equilibrium towards change. Restraining forces are those forces that counter the driving forces. They hinder change because they push the person in the opposite direction. They cause a shift in the equilibrium that opposes change. Equilibrium is a state of being where driving forces equal restraining forces, and no change occurs. It can be raised or lowered by changes that occur between the driving and restraining forces.[ 6 ],[ 7 ]

• Step 1: Unfreeze the status quo.  Unfreezing is the process of altering behavior to agitate the equilibrium of the current state. This step is necessary if resistance is to be overcome and conformity achieved. Unfreezing can be achieved by increasing the driving forces that direct behavior away from the existing situation or status quo while decreasing the restraining forces that negatively affect the movement from the existing equilibrium. Nurse leaders can initiate activities that can assist in the unfreezing step, such as motivating participants by preparing them for change, building trust and recognition for the need to change, and encouraging active participation in recognizing problems and brainstorming solutions within a group.[ 8 ]
• Step 2: Change.  Change is the process of moving to a new equilibrium. Nurse leaders can implement actions that assist in movement to a new equilibrium by persuading employees to agree that the status quo is not beneficial to them; encouraging them to view the problem from a fresh perspective; working together to search for new, relevant information; and connecting the views of the group to well-respected, powerful leaders who also support the change.[ 9 ]
• Step 3: Refreeze.  Refreezing refers to attaining equilibrium with the newly desired behaviors. This step must take place after the change has been implemented for it to be sustained over time. If this step does not occur, it is very likely the change will be short-lived and employees will revert to the old equilibrium. Refreezing integrates new values into community values and traditions. Nursing leaders can reinforce new patterns of behavior and institutionalize them by adopting new policies and procedures.[ 10 ]

Example Using Lewin’s Change Theory

A new nurse working in a rural medical-surgical unit identifies that bedside handoff reports are not currently being used during shift reports.

Step 1: Unfreeze:  The new nurse recognizes a change is needed for improved patient safety and discusses the concern with the nurse manager. Current evidence-based practice is shared regarding bedside handoff reports between shifts for patient safety.[ 11 ] The nurse manager initiates activities such as scheduling unit meetings to discuss evidence-based practice and the need to incorporate bedside handoff reports.

Step 2: Change:  The nurse manager gains support from the Director of Nursing to implement organizational change and plans staff education about bedside report checklists and the manner in which they are performed.

Step 3: Refreeze:  The nurse manager adopts bedside handoff reports in a new unit policy and monitors staff for effectiveness.

Lippitt’s Seven-Step Change Theory

Lippitt’s Seven-Step Change Theory expands on Lewin’s change theory by focusing on the role of the change agent. A  change agent  is anyone who has the skill and power to stimulate, facilitate, and coordinate the change effort. Change agents can be internal, such as nurse managers or employees appointed to oversee the change process, or external, such as an outside consulting firm. External change agents are not bound by organizational culture, politics, or traditions, so they bring a different perspective to the situation and challenge the status quo. However, this can also be a disadvantage because external change agents lack an understanding of the agency’s history, operating procedures, and personnel.[ 12 ] The seven-step model includes the following steps[ 13 ]:

• Step 1: Diagnose the problem.  Examine possible consequences, determine who will be affected by the change, identify essential management personnel who will be responsible for fixing the problem, collect data from those who will be affected by the change, and ensure those affected by the change will be committed to its success.
• Step 2: Evaluate motivation and capability for change.  Identify financial and human resources capacity and organizational structure.
• Step 3: Assess the change agent’s motivation and resources, experience, stamina, and dedication.
• Step 4: Select progressive change objectives.  Define the change process and develop action plans and accompanying strategies.
• Step 5: Explain the role of the change agent to all employees and ensure the expectations are clear.
• Step 6: Maintain change.  Facilitate feedback, enhance communication, and coordinate the effects of change.
• Step 7: Gradually terminate the helping relationship of the change agent.

Example Using Lippitt’s Seven-Step Change Theory

Refer to the previous example of using Lewin’s change theory on a medical-surgical unit to implement bedside handoff reporting. The nurse manager expands on the Unfreeze-Change-Refreeze Model by implementing additional steps based on Lippitt’s Seven-Step Change Theory:

• The nurse manager collects data from team members affected by the changes and ensures their commitment to success.
• Early adopters are identified as change agents on the unit who are committed to improving patient safety by implementing evidence-based practices such as bedside handoff reporting.
• Action plans (including staff education and mentoring), timelines, and expectations are clearly communicated to team members as progressive change objectives. Early adopters are trained as “super-users” to provide staff education and mentor other nurses in using bedside handoff checklists across all shifts.
• The nurse manager facilitates feedback and encourages two-way communication about challenges as change is implemented on the unit. Positive reinforcement is provided as team members effectively incorporate change.
• Bedside handoff reporting is implemented as a unit policy, and all team members are held accountable for performing accurate bedside handoff reporting.

Read more about additional change theories in the  Current Theories of Change Management pdf .

Change Management

Change management  is the process of making changes in a deliberate, planned, and systematic manner.[ 14 ] It is important for nurse leaders and nurse managers to remember a few key points about change management[ 15 ]:

• Employees will react differently to change, no matter how important or advantageous the change is purported to be.
• Basic needs will influence reaction to change, such as the need to be part of the change process, the need to be able to express oneself openly and honestly, and the need to feel that one has some control over the impact of change.
• Change often results in a feeling of loss due to changes in established routines. Employees may react with shock, anger, and resistance, but ideally will eventually accept and adopt change.
• Change must be managed realistically, without false hopes and expectations, yet with enthusiasm for the future. Employees should be provided information honestly and allowed to ask questions and express concerns.

4.4. SPOTLIGHT APPLICATION

Jamie has recently completed his orientation to the emergency department at a busy Level 1 trauma center. The environment is fast-paced and there are typically a multitude of patients who require care. Jamie appreciates his colleagues and the collaboration that is reflected among members of the health care team, especially in times of stress. Jamie is providing care for an 8-year-old patient who has broken her arm when there is a call that there are three Level 1 trauma patients approximately 5 minutes from the ER. The trauma surgeon reports to the ER, and multiple members of the trauma team report to the ER intake bays. If you were Jamie, what leadership style would you hope the trauma surgeon uses with the team?

In a stressful clinical care situation, where rapid action and direction are needed, an autocratic leadership style is most effective. There is no time for debating different approaches to care in a situation where immediate intervention may be required. Concise commands, direction, and responsive action from the team are needed to ensure that patient care interventions are delivered quickly to enhance chance of survival and recovery.

4.5. LEARNING ACTIVITIES

Learning activities.

(Answers to “Learning Activities” can be found in the “Answer Key” at the end of the book. Answers to interactive activities are provided as immediate feedback.)

Sample Scenario

An 89-year-old female resident with Alzheimer’s disease has been living at the nursing home for many years. The family decides they no longer want aggressive measures taken and request to the RN on duty that the resident’s code status be changed to Do Not Resuscitate (DNR). The evening shift RN documents a progress note that the family (and designated health care agent) requested that the resident’s status be made DNR. Due to numerous other responsibilities and needs during the evening shift, the RN does not notify the attending physician or relay the information during shift change or on the 24-hour report. The day shift RN does not read the night shift’s notes because of several immediate urgent situations. The family, who had been keeping vigil at the resident’s bedside throughout the night, leaves to go home to shower and eat. Upon return the next morning, they find the room full of staff and discover the staff performed CPR after their loved one coded. The resident was successfully resuscitated but now lies in a vegetative state. The family is unhappy and is considering legal action. They approach you, the current nurse assigned to the resident’s care, and state, “We followed your procedures to make sure this would not happen! Why was this not managed as we discussed?”[ 1 ]

1. As the current nurse providing patient care, explain how you would therapeutically address this family’s concerns and use one or more leadership styles.

2. As the charge nurse, explain how you would address the staff involved using one or more leadership styles.

3. Explain how change theory can be implemented to ensure this type of situation does not recur.

IV. GLOSSARY

The process of altering or replacing existing knowledge, skills, attitudes, systems, policies, or procedures.[ 1 ]

Anyone who has the skill and power to stimulate, facilitate, and coordinate the change effort.

Organizational culture that embraces error reporting by employees with the goal of identifying systemic causes of problems that can be addressed to improve patient safety. Just Culture is a component of a culture of safety.

The upward influence of individuals on their leaders and their teams.

A culture where people feel safe raising questions and concerns and report safety events in an environment that emphasizes a nonpunitive response to errors and near misses. Clear lines are drawn between human error, at-risk, and reckless employee behaviors.

The art of establishing direction and influencing and motivating others to achieve their maximum potential to accomplish tasks, objectives, or projects.[ 2 ],[ 3 ]

Roles that focus on tasks such as planning, organizing, prioritizing, budgeting, staffing, coordinating, and reporting.[ 4 ]

An organization’s statement that describes how the organization will fulfill its vision and establishes a common course of action for future endeavors.

The implicit values and beliefs that reflect the norms and traditions of an organization. An organization’s vision, mission, and values statements are the foundation of organizational culture.

A set of skills used to catalyze, enable, and support the process of systems-level change that focuses on the individual, the community, and the system.

The concept that systems do not function in isolation but rather there is an interdependence that exists between their parts. Systems theory assumes that most individuals strive to do good work, but are affected by diverse influences within the system.

The organization’s established values that support its vision and mission and provide strategic guidelines for decision-making, both internally and externally, by members of the organization.

An organization’s statement that defines why the organization exists, describes how the organization is unique and different from similar organizations, and specifies what the organization is striving to be.

Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ .

• Cite this Page Open Resources for Nursing (Open RN); Ernstmeyer K, Christman E, editors. Nursing Management and Professional Concepts [Internet]. Eau Claire (WI): Chippewa Valley Technical College; 2022. Chapter 4 - Leadership and Management.
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• LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT INTRODUCTION
• BASIC CONCEPTS
• IMPLEMENTING CHANGE
• SPOTLIGHT APPLICATION
• LEARNING ACTIVITIES

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Nursing Leadership and Management

Nursing leadership and management essay examples like this one will help you write your own excellent leadership in nursing essay. We recommend it to student nurses and other healthcare workers.

Leadership in Nursing Essay Introduction

• Continuous Quality Improvement & Patient Satisfaction
• Nurse Leaders & Managers: Comparison of Perception

Personal Position and Rationale

In the past, nursing was an amorphous and unrecognized engagement that was often left at the discretion of close family members and relatives of patients. However, after the efforts of Florence Nightingale, it was recognized as a fully-fledged profession and was integrated into the healthcare system. As the profession grew in stature, concepts such as nurse leadership and nurse management emerged. A layperson may use the two concepts are interchangeable. However, within the healthcare context, these two concepts have some key differences that set them apart. This essay explores the similarities and differences between leadership and management in the nursing profession. It specifically focuses on how nurse leaders and managers perceive continuous quality improvement and patient satisfaction.

Continuous Quality Improvement & Patient Satisfaction

The quality of healthcare is a core concern of governments across the world. According to Heyrani et al. (2012), the concept of quality in the healthcare system is multifaceted. It entails resource management, personnel management, patient satisfaction, efficiency enhancement, and safety promotion, among other elements. Until recently, healthcare organizations underscored the importance of some of these elements and ignored others. This trend culminated in poorly performing healthcare systems that prompted the development of a comprehensive framework that incorporates all the tenets of quality in the healthcare system. The framework was named clinical governance. It requires every healthcare organization to commit itself to continuous quality improvement and accountability. Therefore, patient satisfaction is at the heart of this framework.

Nurse Leaders & Managers: Comparison of Perception

Stanley (2006) describes nurse leaders as individuals, who do not necessarily have delegated authority but empower, motivate, inspire, and influence their colleagues. A nurse manager, on the other hand, is an individual who is formally appointed to oversee the operations of a healthcare organization or a section within the organization (Swansburg, 2002). Essentially, the nurse manager plays a conventional managerial role, but in a healthcare context. Both leaders exhibit the following similarities in their perception of continuous quality improvement and patient satisfaction.

Firstly, both of them think on a long-term basis (Swansburg, 2002). In their leadership positions, both nurse leaders and managers think beyond the horizon because the nurses in their teams look unto them for direction and motivation. Their ability to think beyond the present makes them indispensable to the healthcare system, especially considering the fact that continuous improvement of quality in the healthcare system requires people who can envisage future trends and steer nurses towards the right direction. Without this kind of leadership, the nursing profession would not cope with the fast-changing quality standards in the healthcare system.

Secondly, both nurse leaders and managers look beyond their units to understand the relationships that exist between their units and the immediate external environment (Swansburg, 2002). For instance, within a healthcare organization, both nurse leaders and managers have a clear understanding of how their units affect or are affected by other departments. This knowledge helps them to provide leadership that enables their units to contribute positively to the objectives of the organization. This type of thinking is pertinent to the continuous improvement of quality and patient satisfaction because it is not possible to improve quality by simply focusing on one unit within a system (Heyrani et al., 2012). Rather, the head of each unit should clearly understand the role their unit plays in the quality improvement process and then lead it to discharge that role effectively.

Thirdly, nurse leaders, and managers both have the political skill to contain the conflicting requirements of the multiple constituencies that exist within the healthcare system (Swansburg, 2002). While every well-meaning nurse might want to make the health care system better, balancing the conflicts that occur between the different elements that constitute it often prove impossible. However, nurse leaders and managers demonstrate courage without necessarily being reckless as well as caution without being considered cowards (Coonan, 2007). This skill is closely tied to their ability to think beyond the present and to know what to do in any given circumstance. It helps them to show courage and determination when necessary and takes well-timed precautionary steps when certain measures prove to be counterproductive. This ability is invaluable to the continuous quality improvement process and patient satisfaction because they do require not only bold people but also diligent individuals who can detect and alter counterproductive measures (Kerridge, 2012).

Having examined some of the key similarities between nurse leaders and managers, it is important to note that they also exhibit some notable differences as discussed below. The first key difference between nurse leaders and managers is that while the leaders are concerned with affirming the values that are consistent with the nursing profession and challenging those that are not, nurse managers focus on upholding established organizational values (Coonan, 2007). Consequently, in circumstances where organizational values are inconsistent with the situation on the ground, the nurse leader can make the necessary adjustment as opposed to the nurse manager. Therefore, a nurse leader is in a better position to move with changing trends. This attribute places them in a position of advantage insofar as continuous quality improvement and patient satisfaction are concerned.

The second major difference is that the nurse leader is in a better position to achieve workable unity among nurses as opposed to the nurse manager (Coonan, 2007). The nurse leader banks on earned trust to build cohesion and mutual tolerance while simultaneously controlling emergent conflicts. The nurse manager, on the other hand, strictly focuses on ensuring that the assigned duties are discharged as required. Unity, cohesion, and trust may not be of much importance to a nurse manager as long as there is obedience. Consequently, the nurse leader is in a better position to facilitate continuous quality improvement and patient satisfaction than a nurse manager due to a better understanding of what goes on among unit members.

Several other instances of differences between the two categories of nurse leadership exist, but the two discussed examples will suffice for this essay. A point worth noting, however, is that after examining these similarities and differences, it becomes apparent that each of the leadership approaches has its merits and demerits insofar as continuous quality improvement and patient satisfaction are concerned. However, although nurse leaders lack delegated authority, their style of leadership is preferable. They are in a position to achieve their agenda without formal authority. This ability is advantageous because Stanley (2006) asserts that people prefer to be led rather than to be managed. Consequently, they may resist and resent the nurse manager, especially when the manager is high-handed. Therefore, as a nurse leader, it is possible to bring positive change to the nursing profession in a shorter time compared to a nurse manager as long as bureaucracy does not stand in the way.

In conclusion, leadership is necessary for every setting that calls for the combined effort of many people. It is even more important for the nursing profession because nurses have become indispensable to the healthcare system, and leadership ensures that they remain committed to providing quality, safe, and reliable care. As such, the best leadership approach should be adopted when leading nurses.

Coonan, P. R. (2007). A Practical Guide to Leadership Development: Skills for Nurse Managers . Danvers, MA: HCPro Incorporated.

Heyrani, A., Maleki, M., Marnani, A. B., Ravaghi, H., Sedaghat, M., Jabbari, M., & Abdi, Z. (2012). Clinical governance implementation in a selected teaching emergency department: A systems approach. Implementation Science , 7 (1), 84.

Kerridge, J. (2012). Why management skills are a priority for nurses. Nursing Times , 109 (9), 16-17.

Stanley, D. (2006). Role conflict: leaders and managers. Nursing Management, 13 (5), 31-37.

Swansburg, R. J. (2002). Introduction to management and leadership for nurse managers (1st ed.). Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.

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Models of leadership and their implications for nursing practice

S'thembile Thusini

MSc Student, Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Palliative Care, King's College London

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Julia Mingay

Lecturer, Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Palliative Care, King's College London

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Leadership in today's NHS, either as a leader or follower, is everybody's business. In this article, an MSc student undertaking the Developing Professional Leadership module at King's College London describes two leadership models and considers their application to two dimensions of the NHS Healthcare Leadership Model: ‘Engaging the team’ and ‘Leading with care’. The author demonstrates the value of this knowledge to all those involved in health care with a case scenario from clinical practice and key lessons to help frontline staff in their everyday work.

The Ely inquiry into the systematic brutal treatment of patients in a Cardiff mental institution was the first formal inquiry into NHS failings ( Department of Health and Social Security, 1969 ). Since that time there have been more than 100 inquiries with inadequate leadership persistently identified as a major concern ( Sheard, 2015 ). National responses have included the NHS Healthcare Leadership Model, delivered by the NHS Leadership Academy and its partners (2013) . A range of online and face-to-face programmes aim to increase an organisation's leadership capacity by developing leaders who pay close attention to their frontline staff, understand the contexts in which they work and the situations they face and empower them to lead continuous improvements that enhance patient outcomes and safety ( NHS Leadership Academy, 2013 ).

At King's College London, ‘Developing Professional Leadership’ is a core module of the Advanced Practice (Leadership) pathway. The module critically appraises theoretical and professional perspectives on leadership and supports participants to take up leadership roles with attention to ethical practice. Both national and college leadership activities promote an understanding of vertical transformational leadership (VTL) and shared leadership (SL).

Vertical transformational leadership

VTL is a hierarchical leadership model that describes an individual leader who, through various influences and mechanisms, elevates himself or herself and followers towards self-actualisation ( Pearce and Sims, 2000 ). VTL values collaboration and consensus, integrity and justice, empowerment and optimism, accountability and equality, and honesty and trust ( Braun et al, 2013 ). A vertical transformational leader inspires others by interpreting complex data, creating a vision and formulating a strategy for its attainment ( Avery, 2004 ). They aim to create an organisation that is agile, responsive, open to learning and future ready through innovation and creativity. They do this by appealing to followers' emotions and internal motivations, and by building rewarding relationships and raising morale. They use delegation, consultation and collaboration to engage followers but retain power so that responsibility and accountability for a vision and its strategy rests with the leader ( Avery, 2004 ).

Behaviours associated with this leadership style have been classified by Avolio et al (1991) as the four ‘I's: idealised influence, individualised consideration, inspirational motivation, and intellectual stimulation:

• ‘Idealised influence’ represents the charismatic part of VTL. Leaders model integrity, optimism and confidence, and act with courage and conviction demonstrating their intellectual and technical skills
• ‘Individualised consideration’ requires self-awareness and an appreciation of the values, aspirations, motivations, strengths and weaknesses of others. From this perspective leaders need to be able to listen and communicate effectively, and may be called upon to teach, coach, mentor or counsel
• ‘Inspirational motivation’ necessitates a clearly communicated vision and belief in a team's abilities to achieve a desired goal
• Through ‘intellectual stimulation’ leaders support and facilitate independent thinking, encouraging followers to be more rational, creative and innovative in their decision-making and problem-solving.

Tse and Chiu (2014) have advised that leaders adopt a balanced approach to the use of the four Is that is contingent upon their followers' orientation. For example, if group cohesion is required then idealised influence and inspirational motivation are appropriate leader behaviours. However, if greater creativity is needed from staff, then a leader is advised to exhibit individual consideration and provide intellectual stimulation. Conversely, mismatching leadership behaviour to follower orientation can have detrimental effects. For example, providing intellectual stimulation with high expectations but offering insufficient individualised consideration.

During times of large-scale dramatic organisational change an effective vertical leader is necessary for recalibrating and reviving an organisation ( Binci et al, 2016 ). They can provide clarity, motivation and empowerment. There are several examples of positive VTL outcomes in NHS trusts that have managed to improve their Care Quality Commission ratings. This was achieved through measures to revive cultures and empower staff with open communications and active support ( Health Foundation, 2015 ). Critics argue that VTL dependence on a single figure can be futile for an organisation, especially if the individual is prone to dysfunctional behaviour ( Wang and Howell, 2012 ). In response, an ‘authentic leader’ is proposed ( Jackson and Parry, 2011 ); this is someone with a ‘high socialised power orientation’, who is humble, modest, deflects recognition for achievements, who celebrates the team, and exhibits vertical and shared leadership behaviours. Through self-awareness and reflecting on actions a VTL leader can exhibit authentic leadership behaviour.

VTL overlaps other leadership approaches including authentic, servant, charismatic, inspirational and visionary ( Avery, 2004 ). What often differentiates VTL is its motivation or focus, which is typically on achieving organisational goals. VTL is also associated with pseudo-transformational and transactional leadership. The former is a dysfunctional form of charismatic leadership, characterised by narcissistic behaviours associated with dictators and sensational political and corporate leaders. Transactional leadership is practised by positional managers whose job it is to set expectations and engage in corrective or autocratic measures that aim to maintain efficiency. Transformational leaders do utilise some transactional methods to achieve goals and the two leadership styles can be complementary. However, VTL is two-way leadership with follower influence whereas transactional leadership represents one-directional hierarchical leadership.

Shared leadership

SL is a non-hierarchical leadership model that describes leadership that emerges within a group, depending on the context and skills required at a given time ( D'Innocenzo et al, 2016 ). SL values openness and trust, engagement and inclusiveness, reciprocity and fluidity, democracy and empowerment, and networking and support ( Jameson, 2007 ). Shared leaders are peers who possess no authority over the group outside the context of their shared contribution. Individual leadership is de-emphasised and a vision and its strategy are created and owned by the group. Open discursive engagement is favoured for mutual sense making through the pooling of diverse skills, knowledge and experience. SL is dynamic, multidirectional and collaborative. Power is shared so that responsibility and accountability for a vision and its strategy rests with the group ( Avery, 2004 ).

SL is often associated with, but different conceptually from, co-leadership, distributed leadership, and self-managing teams. Carson et al (2007) suggested that these all lie on a continuum with co-leadership at one end and shared leadership at the other. Participation, consultation and delegation are used in SL as are the four Is of transformational leadership. SL has been described as a type of group transformational leadership as transformational behaviours within a shared leadership model achieve similar results to VTL ( Wang and Howell, 2012 ). SL necessarily exists in organisations such as the NHS where different professional groups with their own leadership structures need to collaborate. Transforming a culture through shared leadership requires patience and investment. It is an iterative process involving cycles of learning and reflection that require trust, personal and professional maturity, and organisational support.

SL leadership behaviours can become widespread within teams, lessening their dependence on one leader and the potential effects of rogue single leaders ( The King's Fund, 2011 ). This is vital in environments where problems are increasingly complex and leaders are required to possess multiple problem-solving skills. Cost efficiencies can result from diminishing hierarchical leaders' workloads and a consequent reduction in their posts among highly skilled cohesive groups ( Tse and Chiu, 2014 ). Critics argue that SL efficiency is influenced by group dynamics, which may be prone to relationship conflicts that lead to decision paralysis ( Pearce and Sims, 2000 ). Additionally, the emergence of a vertical leader who could manipulate the workforce for political or corporate gain may be an unintended consequence of SL.

Both VTL and SL are moderated by internal and external factors. VTL is influenced by levels of trust, follower receptiveness, personality traits, task complexity and urgency. Stress and burnout can lessen leadership benefits while trust can enhance performance outcomes ( Robert and You, 2018 ). SL is moderated by trust, time, group size and cohesion, skill mix, confidence, task complexity and interdependence ( Nicolaides et al, 2014 ). Trust, sufficient time, a balanced skill mix and group cohesion have a positive influence, while task complexity, especially at formative stages, hinders effective SL.

The two approaches are complementary. During the formative stages of shared leadership, a vertical leader is crucial to guide and sustain shared leadership. Some final decisions will need to rest with the hierarchical leader. As the team gains confidence, a vertical transformational leader's role evolves to consultant, mentor, facilitator and, at times, recipient of group leadership. A significant body of evidence associates VTL and SL with positive individual, group and organisational outcomes ( Wang and Howell, 2012 ; Nicolaides et al, 2014 ; D'Innocenzo et al, 2016 ). VTL predominantly influences individual and organisational outcomes while SL is more influential at the group and organisational levels. Table 1 summarises some of the differences between the approaches, although they share much more in common.

VTL and SL are both appropriate in healthcare contexts and can be complementary under the right circumstances. The key is being able to recognise appropriate opportunities to develop and utilise each as either a leader or follower ( Binci et al, 2016 ). Familiarity with the models, their methods and uses are important in these respects. It is equally important to recognise and engage in any cultural change that may be necessary for leadership to be effective. Transformational change does not have to be revolutionary or top-down. Minor changes at the frontline can deliver significant benefits if team members are engaged and led with care.

• Whether you are a leader or a follower, leadership is at the heart of NHS activity and all nurses have a responsibility to ensure it is effective
• Vertical transformational and shared leadership models are promoted by national leadership programmes that support the development of NHS staff
• The two models are complementary, and it is important to be aware of opportunities to develop and utilise each as either a leader or follower
• Leading with care can inspire and motivate teams to engage in transformative change
• Familiarisation with leadership models and their application in practice is important for the development of nurses and the organisations in which they work, and for the assurance of patient safety

CPD reflective questions

• What can you do to demonstrate leadership within your own capacity in your clinical setting?
• Considering that ‘followership’ is an integral part of NHS leadership, what can you do to demonstrate responsible followership?
• Reflect on a time where you demonstrated leadership or observed leadership in your clinical area; what leadership qualities can you recognise from that scenario?

Inspiring Leadership in Nursing: Key Topics to Empower the Next Generation of Nurse Leaders

This article was written in collaboration with Christine T. and ChatGPT, our little helper developed by OpenAI.

Nursing leadership plays a crucial role in the healthcare industry, influencing the quality of patient care and the overall performance of healthcare organizations. As the nursing profession continues to evolve, aspiring nurse leaders must stay informed about the latest developments and best practices in nursing leadership. This comprehensive guide explores essential nursing leadership topics, offering valuable insights and strategies for success.

The Importance of Nursing Leadership

Impact on patient care.

Effective nursing leadership directly impacts patient care, ensuring that nurses provide safe, high-quality, and evidence-based care. Nurse leaders play a critical role in developing and implementing policies, protocols, and standards of practice that promote positive patient outcomes.

Topic Examples

• The role of nurse leaders in reducing hospital-acquired infections
• How nurse leaders can improve patient satisfaction
• The effect of nursing leadership on patient safety initiatives
• Combating health care-associated infections: a community-based approach
• Nurse leaders’ impact on the reduction of medication errors
• Promoting patient-centered care through nursing leadership
• The role of nurse leaders in implementing evidence-based practices to improve patient outcomes
• How transformational leadership can positively impact patient satisfaction
• The impact of nurse leaders on patient safety and error reduction initiatives

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Influence on Organizational Performance

Nurse leaders contribute to the overall performance of healthcare organizations by guiding and supporting nursing teams, managing resources, and participating in decision-making processes. Their leadership helps create a positive work environment, reduce staff turnover, and improve patient satisfaction.

• How nurse leaders can contribute to reducing staff turnover
• The role of nurse leaders in improving the hospital’s financial performance
• Nurse leaders as drivers of organizational culture
• The integral role of nurses in healthcare systems: the importance of education and experience
• The relationship between nurse leadership and hospital readmission rates
• How nurse leaders can contribute to reducing healthcare costs
• The role of nurse leaders in promoting interprofessional collaboration to improve organizational performance
• Strategies for nurse leaders to foster a positive work environment
• The impact of nursing leadership on employee engagement and satisfaction

Advancement of the Nursing Profession

Nurse leaders advocate for nursing, promoting professional development, innovation, and research. They also work to elevate the nursing profession’s status, fostering collaboration and interdisciplinary partnerships.

• The role of nurse leaders in shaping the future of nursing education
• How nurse leaders can advocate for the nursing profession
• The impact of nurse leaders on the development of nursing standards and policies
• Encouraging research and evidence-based practice among nursing teams
• The role of nurse leaders in promoting interprofessional collaboration
• Encouraging the pursuit of advanced nursing degrees and certifications among nursing staff
• The impact of nurse leaders on shaping healthcare policies and regulations
• How nurse leaders can advocate for improved working conditions and fair compensation for nursing staff

Essential Nursing Leadership Skills

Communication and interpersonal skills.

Effective communication and interpersonal skills are crucial for nursing leaders. They must listen actively, express themselves clearly, and demonstrate empathy and understanding when interacting with colleagues, patients, and families.

• Active listening skills for nurse leaders
• Developing emotional intelligence in nursing leadership
• The role of nonverbal communication in nursing leadership
• Strategies for nurse leaders to improve communication with their teams
• How nurse leaders can facilitate open and honest feedback
• The importance of emotional intelligence in nurse leadership
• Strategies for nurse leaders to improve their communication skills with diverse populations
• The role of nurse leaders in fostering effective communication within interdisciplinary healthcare teams

Decision-Making and Problem-Solving Abilities

Nurse leaders must be skilled in making informed decisions and solving complex problems. They should be able to analyze situations, weigh the pros and cons of various options, and choose the best course of action.

• Critical thinking skills for nurse leaders
• Ethical decision-making in nursing leadership
• The role of evidence-based practice in nursing leadership decisions
• Strategies for nurse leaders to develop effective problem-solving skills
• The importance of collaboration and teamwork in decision-making for nurse leaders
• The role of nurse leaders in crisis management and emergency preparedness
• How nurse leaders can develop effective problem-solving strategies to address complex healthcare challenges

Time Management and Organization

Managing time and resources effectively is essential for nurse leaders. They must be able to prioritize tasks, delegate responsibilities, and balance competing demands to ensure the smooth operation of their teams and organizations.

• Prioritization techniques for nurse leaders
• The role of delegation in effective time management for nursing managers
• Strategies for nurse leaders to manage workload and reduce stress
• Balancing clinical and administrative responsibilities as a nurse leader
• Time management tools and techniques for nurse leaders
• The importance of delegation in nurse leadership
• Strategies for nurse leaders to effectively manage their workload and prioritize tasks
• The role of nurse leaders in creating efficient workflows and processes within nursing teams

Embracing Diversity and Inclusivity in Nursing Leadership

The value of a diverse nursing workforce.

A diverse nursing workforce brings unique perspectives, experiences, and skills to the healthcare environment, benefiting patient care. By embracing diversity, nurse leaders can foster a more inclusive and supportive work environment that encourages collaboration and innovation.

• The benefits of diverse nursing teams for patient care
• The role of nurse leaders in recruiting and retaining diverse nursing staff
• Addressing health disparities through a diverse nursing workforce
• The impact of cultural competence on nursing practice and leadership
• Encouraging diverse perspectives and experiences in nursing teams
• Global health learning in nursing and health care disparities
• The benefits of having a diverse nursing workforce on patient outcomes and satisfaction
• Addressing health disparities through culturally competent nursing leadership

Strategies for Promoting Diversity and Inclusion

Nurse leaders can promote diversity and inclusion by implementing hiring and promotion practices that support equal opportunities, offering cultural competency training, and actively addressing discrimination and bias within their organizations.

• Overcoming unconscious bias in nursing leadership
• The role of nurse leaders in fostering an inclusive work environment
• Strategies for promoting diversity and inclusion in nursing education
• The impact of diversity and inclusion on nursing team performance
• Encouraging cultural competence and sensitivity among nursing staff
• Implementing diversity and inclusion training programs for nursing staff
• The role of nurse leaders in fostering a culture of respect and inclusivity within nursing teams
• Strategies for nurse leaders to address unconscious bias and promote equity in the workplace

Developing and Mentoring Future Nurse Leaders

Identifying and nurturing leadership potential.

Nurse leaders play an essential role in identifying and nurturing the leadership potential of their staff. By offering guidance, encouragement, and opportunities for growth, they can help prepare the next generation of nurse leaders.

• Recognizing leadership potential in nursing staff
• Strategies for nurse leaders to develop their team’s leadership skills
• The importance of succession planning in nursing leadership
• Encouraging a growth mindset among nursing teams
• The role of mentorship and coaching in nurturing future nurse leaders
• Strategies for nurse leaders to identify and develop emerging nurse leaders within their teams
• The role of nurse leaders in creating leadership development programs for nursing staff

Mentorship and Coaching

Mentorship and coaching are invaluable for aspiring nurse leaders. By sharing their knowledge, experience, and insights, experienced nurse leaders can help guide and support those looking to advance in nursing.

• The benefits of mentorship for both mentors and mentees in nursing
• Developing effective mentoring relationships in nursing
• The role of nurse leaders in fostering a mentoring culture
• Strategies for providing constructive feedback and coaching to nursing staff
• Encouraging professional growth and development through mentorship
• The benefits of mentorship relationships for both mentors and mentees in nursing
• Strategies for nurse leaders to establish effective mentorship programs within their organizations
• The role of nurse leaders in providing coaching and feedback to nursing staff for professional growth

Promoting Teamwork and Collaboration in Nursing

The importance of teamwork in healthcare.

Teamwork is crucial for delivering safe, high-quality patient care. Nurse leaders must foster a culture of collaboration, encouraging open communication, mutual support, and shared decision-making among their teams.

• The role of nurse leaders in promoting effective teamwork
• Strategies for building trust and collaboration among nursing teams
• The impact of teamwork on patient care and safety
• The benefits of interprofessional collaboration in healthcare
• The role of nurse leaders in fostering a positive team culture
• The role of nurse leaders in promoting collaboration and teamwork among nursing staff
• Strategies for nurse leaders to address and resolve conflicts within nursing teams
• The impact of effective teamwork on patient outcomes and staff satisfaction in healthcare settings

Strategies for Building Effective Nursing Teams

Nurse leaders can build effective nursing teams by promoting shared goals and values, providing clear expectations and feedback, and recognizing and celebrating team achievements. Additionally, they should facilitate team-building activities and opportunities for professional development, which can strengthen team cohesion and performance.

• The importance of clear communication and expectations in nursing teams
• Strategies for addressing and resolving conflicts within nursing teams
• The role of team-building activities in fostering collaboration and trust among nursing staff
• The impact of shared decision-making on nursing team performance
• Encouraging a culture of continuous improvement and learning within nursing teams
• The role of nurse leaders in selecting and retaining top nursing talent
• Strategies for nurse leaders to create a positive work environment that fosters teamwork and collaboration
• The importance of team-building activities and exercises for nursing staff

Advocating for Nursing and Improving Patient Care

Policy and advocacy.

Nurse leaders are responsible for advocating for policies and initiatives that support the nursing profession and improve patient care. They should be informed about healthcare legislation, engage in advocacy efforts, and encourage their teams to participate in policy-making.

• The role of nurse leaders in shaping healthcare policy
• Strategies for nurse leaders to advocate for the nursing profession at the local, state, and national levels
• The impact of nursing leadership on the development and implementation of healthcare policies and regulations
• Engaging nursing staff in policy discussions and advocacy efforts
• The importance of staying informed about current healthcare policy issues for nurse leaders
• The role of nurse leaders in advocating for policies that improve patient care and support the nursing profession
• Strategies for nurse leaders to effectively engage with policymakers and stakeholders
• The impact of nurse leaders on shaping healthcare policies at the local, state, and national levels

Driving Quality Improvement and Innovation

Nurse leaders must be committed to continuous quality improvement and innovation in patient care. By staying informed about evidence-based practices and encouraging their teams to adopt innovative approaches, they can drive positive change within their organizations and the healthcare industry.

• The role of nurse leaders in promoting a culture of continuous quality improvement
• Strategies for nurse leaders to identify and address areas for improvement in patient care
• The impact of nursing leadership on the implementation of evidence-based practices and innovations
• Encouraging a culture of creativity and innovation among nursing teams
• The role of nurse leaders in driving change and improvement in healthcare organizations
• The role of nurse leaders in leading quality improvement initiatives within their organizations
• Strategies for nurse leaders to foster a culture of continuous improvement and innovation among nursing staff
• The impact of nurse-led quality improvement projects on patient care and organizational performance

Fostering a Positive Work Environment

Creating a supportive and respectful culture.

A positive work environment is essential for nursing staff satisfaction, retention, and performance. Nurse leaders should foster a culture of support and respect where staff feels valued, empowered, and motivated to provide the best possible care.

• The role of nurse leaders in fostering a positive work environment
• Strategies for nurse leaders to promote a culture of support and respect among nursing staff
• The importance of addressing and preventing workplace bullying and incivility in nursing
• Encouraging open and honest communication within nursing teams
• The role of nurse leaders in promoting work-life balance and well-being among nursing staff

Addressing Workplace Challenges and Conflicts

Nurse leaders must be proactive in addressing workplace challenges and conflicts. They can maintain a healthy and productive work environment by developing and implementing strategies to manage issues such as workload, burnout, and interpersonal conflicts.

• The role of nurse leaders in conflict resolution within nursing teams
• Strategies for nurse leaders to address common workplace challenges, such as staffing shortages and burnout
• The importance of developing a proactive approach to addressing conflicts and challenges in nursing
• Promoting a culture of accountability and responsibility among nursing staff
• The role of nurse leaders in providing support and resources for nursing staff facing challenges and conflicts
• Conflict resolution strategies for nurse leaders
• The role of nurse leaders in mediating and resolving interprofessional conflicts within healthcare teams
• Strategies for nurse leaders to prevent and address workplace burnout among nursing staff

Lifelong Learning and Professional Development

Commitment to continuing education.

Lifelong learning is essential for nurse leaders to stay current with healthcare and nursing practice advances. They should pursue continuing education opportunities, research, and stay informed about industry trends and best practices.

• The importance of lifelong learning for nurse leaders and nursing staff
• Strategies for nurse leaders to promote a culture of continuous education and professional development within their teams
• The impact of continuing education on nursing practice and leadership
• Encouraging nursing staff to engage in professional development opportunities
• Transforming advanced nursing practice: embracing IOM recommendations and higher education
• The role of nurse leaders in staying informed about current nursing research and best practices
• The impact of continuing education on nursing practice and patient outcomes
• Strategies for nurse leaders to support and encourage continuing education among their nursing staff
• The role of nurse leaders in staying up-to-date with the latest nursing research, guidelines, and best practices

Encouraging Professional Development in Nursing Teams

Nurse leaders should support and encourage the professional development of their nursing teams. By providing resources, opportunities, and encouragement, they can help their staff grow professionally and contribute to advancing the nursing profession.

• The role of nurse leaders in identifying professional development opportunities for nursing staff
• Strategies for nurse leaders to create individualized professional development plans for their team members
• The importance of fostering a growth mindset among nursing staff
• Encouraging nursing staff to participate in conferences, workshops, and other professional development activities
• The role of nurse leaders in providing mentorship and guidance for nursing staff seeking career advancement
• The benefits of ongoing professional development for nursing staff and healthcare organizations
• Strategies for nurse leaders to create professional development opportunities within their organizations
• The role of nurse leaders in developing and implementing career advancement pathways for nursing staff

The Power of Inspiring Leadership in Nursing

Nursing leadership is a critical component of the healthcare industry, impacting patient care, organizational performance, and the advancement of the nursing profession. By mastering essential leadership skills, embracing diversity, promoting teamwork, and fostering a positive work environment, aspiring nurse leaders can make a meaningful difference in the lives of their patients, colleagues, and organizations. Committing to lifelong learning and professional development will ensure that nurse leaders remain at the forefront of their field, inspiring and empowering the next generation of nursing professionals.

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Crafted with Care:

Nursing Essays!

Precision, Passion, & Professionalism in Every Page.

Leadership and Management in Nursing Essay

One of the major impacts that the current American government has brought up is in the field of healthcare. The Healthcare Bill 2010 has had a huge impact on society. Every American citizen can now access free medical services from any part of the country. This is a positive achievement that the society of America should be proud of. Having access to free medical services for everyone is a major milestone for the country. However, some factors should be considered to ensure that this noble gesture benefits all the stakeholders involved. It is a fact that with free healthcare for all Americans, there is increased pressure on the nurses. All public hospitals will be receiving an increased number of patients who will need the attention of the nurses. The government of the United States has made an effort to ensure that there is increased funding to all the public hospitals in the country. However, the government is yet to meet the standard nurse staffing ratios that will ensure that all the patients get the right attention they need when they visit these health facilities.

It is important to note that nurses all over the country have been struggling to meet the demand from clients. It may not be possible for the nurses to work effectively with their current population, and they have made this very clear in their recent protests. Their protest, through their unions, may be justified because the government is yet to hire enough employees who will be able to meet this huge demand for medical attention. This research focuses on how leadership can be applied to manage this situation.

While the government is trying to solve this problem of staffing of the nurses, the leadership of the nurses must attempt to come up with a mechanism through which the unrest can be brought to an end. According to Thomson (2010), understanding organizational behavior theory can help these leaders deal with the situation in a successful way. It will start with the leaders understanding the claims brought up by the nurses. In this approach, the leaders will act as part of the nurses. They will address the issues as the victims of the predicament. In this situation, therefore, they will be coming up with strategies that will help them arrest the situation while the government is looking for a lasting solution. In this strategy, transformational leadership will be important in making the employees understand and appreciate the current predicament. Through the principle of transformational leadership, these leaders will be able to appeal to the nurses and convince them that they have to do their best to salvage the situation as the government plans to come up with a permanent solution. These leaders must develop some form of propellant force that will make all the nurses feel that they have a responsibility of performing an extra job to achieve the best in their profession.

Buerhaus (2009) calls this strategy ‘the tactic of transferring responsibility. The responsibility of ensuring that patients are taken care of depends on having enough nurses, and therefore, it is the responsibility of the government. In this strategy, however, the leaders will try to overshadow the government, and make the nurses feel that they have the responsibility to take care of the patients irrespective of their numbers. This way, it will be easy to find nurses who can sacrifice themselves and work for extra time just to get their patients the best service that is within their capacity.

The above approach may need leaders who have a high sense of appeal to the workers, and therefore, can achieve the result described above.

Another approach can be taking up issues with the government while ensuring that the working environment for the available nurses is improved. In the United States, some people work for over 17 hours a day. This is equivalent to two shifts, therefore two employees in a day. Some work for more hours, just to get an extra earning that will improve their living standards. This means that management can double, if not increase the current population to double, by just increasing the working hours of employees. The management can develop a mechanism where employees can decide to voluntarily enter a contract where they will be working for a specified extra hour for additional pay (Goleman, 2009). This extra funding can come from the proceeds of the hospitals, or government and nongovernmental agencies. The management will also improve other factors within the firm that will make employees feel valued within the firm to encourage them to work even if their population is low. The rationale of this strategy is to ensure that any discomfort on the side of employees is eliminated. This way, the employee may not feel the weight of having to work for extra hours.

The first approach of motivating nurses to work despite their lower ratios to that of the patients is the best strategy that I, as a professional nurse, can consider taking. As a nurse, it is important to note that this profession is a calling. Taking care of a sick person may not be easy if one does not feel a special call to do that task. This is one of the most sensitive professions in the world. It deals directly with the health of people. Americans are hospitalized in thousands daily in various health centers around the country. This means that any form strike that involves downing of the tools by the nurses will have a direct negative impact on the patients. This may lead to mass deaths in various hospitals in this country (Kurzman & Buerhaus, 2011). This will be beating our mission of reducing the number of preventable deaths around the country.

The main objective of a professional nurse is to see a patient who came to the hospital with health complications going back to a healed person who sees life ahead of him or her. When such a person gets out of the hospital worse than he or she previously came, then some sense of guilt may not fail to develop, especially if this is caused by a deliberate act of refusing to help. I recommend this leadership style and approach to handle this situation because I feel that I have a responsibility as an American to make a difference. Society needs me as a nurse, and I have to avail myself. I have to demonstrate to society that I am responsible, and therefore, will not look back and demand that I have to work only in the presence of more nurses.

Buerhaus, P. (2009). Recent trends in the registered nurse labor market in the U.S: Short-run swings on top of long-term trends. Nursing Economics, 25(1), 59-66.

Goleman, D. (2009). Working with emotional intelligence. New York: Bantam Books.

Kurzman, E. T., & Buerhaus, P. I. (2011). New Medicare payment rules: Danger or opportunity for nursing? American Journal of Nursing, 108(5), 30-35.

Thomson, P. (2010). Guiding principles. Hospital and Health Networks, 78(7), 86-112.

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Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Leadership and Management in Nursing." May 14, 2022. https://ivypanda.com/essays/leadership-and-management-in-nursing/.

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How a DEI Rebrand Is Playing Out in K-12 Schools

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Should school district mission statements explicitly mention diversity, equity, and inclusion? If a district ensures that all students feel a sense of inclusion and belonging, does it matter how it brands that work? Do all districts need to examine how inequities play out within and outside of school buildings?

These are some of the questions district and state leaders and researchers are grappling with as national debates on the role of DEI initiatives in public education continue, and as DEI more generally sustains a barrage of political attacks that have led some universities to cut DEI jobs and corporations to downplay their embrace of DEI principles .

In public schools, at least 18 states have imposed bans or restrictions on instruction about race, gender, and other related topics. These efforts stem from a September 2020 executive order signed by then-President Donald Trump, which banned certain types of diversity training in federal agencies. President Joe Biden revoked the order, yet momentum for such prohibitions has continued in Republican-led states.

In a 2023 analysis of more than 1,300 mission statements from districts nationwide, the Pew Research Center found that only 34 percent of these documents directly referenced DEI.

Of all the topics in these statements, DEI proved to be the most politically divided. Fifty-six percent of districts in Democratic-voting areas mentioned DEI efforts in their mission statements, compared with only 26 percent in Republican-voting areas.

This complicated political landscape has led some district and state leaders to focus less on explicit references to DEI and more on promoting and supporting work focusing on inclusion and belonging for all students.

Yet even under a rebrand, education leaders need to think carefully about the work involved in making sure their schools actually fulfill the ideals of inclusion and belonging, said Decoteau Irby, an associate professor of educational policy studies and qualitative researcher at the University of Illinois, Chicago.

“In the perfect world, inclusion would be really changing the conditions of the school, a learning environment, such that students know when they walk into a building that they belong there … not only them individually as a person, but that belonging becomes exemplified through the kinds of educational resources and opportunities that are there,” Irby said.

Education leaders in Illinois and Kentucky offer some insights into how they can engage in such holistic efforts while keeping them as broadly politically palatable as possible.

How a mission statement’s terminology matters

Matthew Montgomery, superintendent of the Lake Forest district in Illinois, and a group of fellow district leaders and community members spent weeks poring over the draft language of the district’s updated mission statement earlier this year.

They examined “every single word,” Montgomery said.

There were more than a dozen iterations, trying different words and phrases to get the district’s statement just right, and avoiding any potential political trigger words that could have “distracted from the intent and mission” of the exercise.

Ultimately, what the group landed on—and what the school board in the district located north of Chicago approved—was a statement that incorporates what can be political buzzwords, like “diversity,” “inequities,” and “inclusion,” but in a way that its members felt would appeal to everyone, regardless of political persuasion.

The statement— eight sentences in total —says the district “espouses the importance of fostering an inclusive environment for all students and staff” and that an inclusive environment “encourages the affirmation, appreciation, and exploration of multiple identities and multiple perspectives.”

“We understand that excellent and exemplary school districts foster a culture of inclusion where the lives and needs of all students are validated, recognized, and appreciated, and are centered in the educational experience provided,” the statement said. “[The district] knows that ‘every student has an incredible capacity to learn. Our responsibility is to create an environment that maximizes the possibility for each student’s growth.’”

The focus is not on explicitly referencing specific groups of historically marginalized students. Rather, it aims to encompass the views and experiences of all students, Montgomery said.

“There’s nothing here that anyone can argue is the wrong thing to do for every single student,” said Erin Lenart, the principal of the district’s high school, who helped lead the work on crafting the statement. “What we’re saying is ultimately that we are inclusive of your ideas and views until it becomes exclusive of someone else. If you say that to anyone, they can’t really argue with it.”

Focusing too heavily on making sure one group of students is included can inadvertently make other groups feel singled out or excluded, Lenart said.

“Any time you enter the world of making groups of people feel excluded, then you’re kind of defeating the purpose of some of what you’re trying to accomplish,” Lenart said.

The work to develop the districts’ vision statement is just one piece of a larger mission to fully incorporate every voice, perspective, and lived experience into guiding the schools’ work. But it is emblematic of what district leaders hope to achieve: A district whose work is reflective of every student and community member, without excluding anyone, even if they disagree with one another.

“It’s a fine line to navigate—not necessarily to get a statement approved, that’s not what it’s about—but to make sure that we really are meeting the words of seeing and hearing and valuing every single student in this building,” Lenart said.

Now that the statement is developed and approved, the real work of putting it into action begins, Montgomery said.

Any time you enter the world of making groups of people feel excluded, then you’re kind of defeating the purpose of some of what you’re trying to accomplish.

Montgomery said that will include frequently, consistently, and respectfully communicating with the community; staying focused on the shared vision for students’ success; and getting comfortable with tension, knowing it won’t always be easy work.

“If we say these are our values, that you’re going to be seen and heard and valued, how are we making sure we’re finding a way for every student to feel that as a reality?” he said.

State leadership can set an example for districts

When Thomas S. Tucker was hired as the Kentucky department of education’s deputy commissioner and chief equity officer in 2020, he was tasked with developing an office that would advance the goals set out in the state board of education’s 2019 anti-racism and equity resolution.

His first order of business was to challenge himself and others to think about the purpose of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

He and his team came to define that as: “Regardless of our political beliefs, regardless of what political aisles we represent, we want our kids to have a sense of belonging.”

“We did not make this about ethnicity alone. We didn’t make it about the nebulous term ‘race.’ It covers every aspect of what it is to be American—to respect one’s religion, ideas, and practices; to respect one’s sexual orientation; to respect one’s military or veteran status; to respect one’s socioeconomic status,” Tucker said.

Similar to the Lake Forest district, this broader conceptualization of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging, or DEIB, allowed the Kentucky state division to withstand political wars in a politically conservative state, Tucker said. The state is now among the 18 with a law restricting how teachers can teach about race, after the Republican-dominated legislature in 2022 overrode Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto to pass it.

About 17 school districts in the state have hired DEIB officers over the last several years, with some doing so prior to Tucker’s start in 2020. His team now brings these officers together to share ideas on developing and fostering DEIB initiatives across the state.

That work includes: establishing an equity dashboard that allows schools and district leaders to look at aggregated achievement data by student population to discover inequities; challenging educators to use a problem solving analysis tool to address those inequities; offering a Kentucky academy for equity in teaching where school and district staff can use online modules to learn more about self-awareness and others’ awareness of how education systems function to find solutions to inequities; and distributing grants to help schools build out infrastructure for social-emotional learning.

Tucker’s team also reviews graduation requirements that allow students to personalize their coursework in later high school years. Such a structure makes it easier for students to take courses like Advanced Placement African American Studies for graduation credit.

Regardless of our political beliefs, regardless of what political aisles we represent, we want our kids to have a sense of belonging.

One challenge Tucker has faced is helping districts whose students are predominantly from one racial or ethnic group to realize that they too need to engage in work that helps all students belong.

“Many times, folks think that if you do this work, you’re only dealing in the area of race and racism, that this is affirmative action work,” Tucker said.

But a predominantly white school can still face a situation in which schools are disproportionately suspending students with disabilities, or students from low-income households can’t access the same educational opportunities as their higher-income peers, he added.

“If you bring more people to the table, more people see that this is not just a benefit for people of color,” Tucker said. “This is about improving and saving the lives of all young people.”

True inclusion and belonging requires hard work

Irby, the University of Illinois, Chicago, researcher, understands why district and state leaders are moving toward a more generalized branding of DEI work by focusing on inclusion and belonging.

Part of the reason discussions around DEI have tended to focus on race- and ethnicity-based inequities is because “the primary goal of educational institutions specifically is to increase the learning opportunities for students who have historically not received the quality of education, the access, and opportunity that we know from the research provides them with high educational outcomes,” Irby said.

Historically, students of color have been among those underserved students.

Yet DEI work goes beyond race and ethnicity, Irby said. What ultimately matters is how willing school systems are to put in the hard work needed to enact change.

Schools can modify policies to increase the number of Black and Hispanic students taking AP courses, for example. But if the only AP history courses offered focus on European and Western history, that doesn’t necessarily foster an authentic sense of belonging and inclusion for these students, Irby said.

Schools can recognize the importance of making students with disabilities feel included, in part by ensuring students with wheelchairs can physically access school buildings as easily as their peers.

And for LGBTQ+ students, allowing students to use the restroom where they feel most comfortable is a more concrete way of fostering a sense of belonging, Irby added. Of course, this is complicated in the 11 states that have passed laws barring transgender people from using bathrooms consistent with their gender identity in K-12 schools.

While districts may face political backlash for measures aimed at fostering belonging, a silver lining Irby has found through his research is that many districts across the country, including predominantly white districts, are willing to bring about systemic changes that benefit all students.

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WEATHER ALERT

4 warnings and an advisory in effect for 12 regions in the area

‘it is outrageous:’ senior living facility abandoned by management following storm, mayor says, ‘you want to rent one money. we want to live better than where we living.’.

Christian Terry , Digital Content Producer

Gage Goulding , News Reporter , Houston, TX

Patrick Hardesty

HOUSTON – A senior living apartment complex in Houston is accused of abandoning its vulnerable residents after a severe weather outbreak in Houston on Thursday.

During an update on the recovery following Thursday’s deadly storm in Houston, Mayor John Whitmire spoke about an issue that was brought to his attention.

NOW: @houmayor John Whitmire, @houstonpolice & @HoustonFire responding to a senior apartment complex in the Northside where seniors were left without power since Thursday. Many are wheelchair bound & were stuck in their apartments. Several people taken to the hospital. @KPRC2 pic.twitter.com/NK8nXgxiYJ — Gage Goulding - KPRC 2 (@GageGoulding) May 20, 2024

Whitmire said the city was informed about an assisted living facility, Independence Hall on Burress Street, whose management allegedly abandoned those living at the facility after the storm hit Thursday.

Houston Firefighters responded and immediately transported at least two people to the hospital on Sunday, according to Fire Chief Samuel Pena.

“They haven’t had energy, they haven’t had food, their insulin has been ruined,” Whitmire said. “We were notified of this and I can’t begin to tell you the response was so impressive by Houston Fire, Houston PD, the Health Department, the Salvation Army, the Red Cross, all the stakeholders ran to Independence Hall and that’s where I’m headed at the conclusion of this press conference.”

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Whitmire said they are going to hold the management accountable.

“We’re going to hold the management responsible. If they want to do business and be licensed in the state of Texas in the City of Houston, they’re going to have to care for their clients,” he said.

The mayor visited the site on Sunday evening alongside Houston Fire Department Chief Samuel Pena and acting Houston Police Chief Larry Satterwhite.

He took KPRC 2′s Gage Goulding and Photojournalist Patrick Hardesty into one of the worst impacted units. The ceiling has collapsed in and many of the belongings inside were soaking wet.

“This is not just from the storm. The units 260, have been neglected for years,” Mayor Whitmire said. “You have an absentee owner placing a manager that doesn’t have the resources to address these life safety issues.”

Residents echoing the words of the Mayor. They say staff at Independence Hall left them high and dry after weather moved through the area on Thursday.

Gage Goulding: “Did they do anything to help you? Did they bring you ice? Did they bring you food?”

Wanda Fitzpatrick: “No. No food, no ice, no nothing. You need to come and see about us. You want our rent money. We want to live better than where we living.”

Calling the situation deplorable, Whitmire said they haven’t been able to contact everyone living there. Houston Firefighters and police officers were going door to door and they weren’t leaving until every last resident was accounted for.

• ‘Help is here:’ Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo provides update after Thursday’s damaging storms

Whitmire said there are approximately 260 units at the assisted living facility.

The City of Houston already flagged Independence Hall in April, placing a red tag on the front of the building. Issues with electrical permits for several buildings was the cause and it appears the issues were never corrected.

The Mayor now says he’s working with law enforcement to potentially pursue criminal charges.

“We’re discussing the HPD, the criminal neglect, abandonment of the owner and leaving people living in these conditions,” he said.

KPRC2 asked the management of Independence Hall for comment on this story. We have yet to receive a response.

Copyright 2024 by KPRC Click2Houston - All rights reserved.

About the Authors

Christian terry.

Christian Terry covered digital news in Tyler and Wichita Falls before returning to the Houston area where he grew up. He is passionate about weather and the outdoors and often spends his days off on the water fishing.

Gage Goulding

Gage Goulding is an award-winning TV news reporter and anchor. A native of Pittsburgh, PA, he comes to Texas from Fort Myers, FL, where he covered some of the areas most important stories, including Hurricane Ian.

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