Nursing administration quarterly
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The delivery of patient-centered care is basic to a large midwestern healthcare institution's mission and highly valued by the department of nursing. Even so, nurses on one medical unit questioned whether caring behaviors were devalued in a technology-oriented environment of providing care. The nursing leadership on the unit responded to the inquiry by conducting a research study. This study explored the state of patient-centered nursing care on a medical unit as perceived by the nursing staff and patients, using Watson's Theory of Human Caring as a framework. ⋯ Both nurses and patients perceived a high level of caring on the unit. The overall theme from the focus group was that "caring begets caring," with 2 subthemes: "relationships of care" and "the context of caring." Caring for each other was identified as essential to keep staff energized and able to work lovingly with patients. Nursing leadership brought the research findings to all staff on the unit for discussion and implementation of structural support for the unit culture of caring.
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The hospital workforce environment has been recognized as an important factor for nurse retention and patient safety, yet there is ongoing evidence that inadequate communication, intraprofessional oppression, and lack of collaboration and conflict resolution continue to disempower nurses and hinder improvement of workforce conditions. ⋯ The comprehensive approach to incorporating mentor-mentee teams changes the way fellow nurses and others perceive nurses, augments support by managers and coworkers, and improves patient care outcomes.
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Nurse leaders play an important role in the shaping of healthcare policy and the care delivery models of the future. It is vital for nurse leaders to understand the role of money in politics and how donations to a candidate's campaigns can be beneficial in getting one's concerns addressed by Congress. The political action committee (PAC) is a major vehicle for campaign contributions for candidates from any party. This article will detail the following related to PACs: history and background information, government regulations, and why PACs are an important vehicle for nurse leaders to gain access and influence in Congress.
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Professional nursing organizations identify nurse manager (NM) support of staff nurses as an essential component of a productive, healthy work environment. Role behaviors that constitute this support must be identified by staff nurses. In this mixed-method study, supportive role behaviors were identified by 2382 staff nurses who completed the investigator-developed Nurse Manager Support Scale. ⋯ Through individual and focus group interviews with NM and chief nurse executives in the 8 participating hospitals, the organizational structures and practices that enabled NM to be supportive to staff were determined. The 9 most supportive role behaviors cited by interviewees were as follows: is approachable and safe, cares, "walks the talk," motivates development of self-confidence, gives genuine feedback, provides adequate and competent staffing, "watches our back," promotes group cohesion and teamwork, and resolves conflicts constructively. Supporting structures and programs identified by managers and leaders include the following: "support from the top," peer group support, educational programs and training sessions, a "lived" culture, secretarial or administrative assistant support, private office space, and computer classes and seminars.