RAD-AID Nursing: Leaders in Global Health

RAD-AID International is dedicated to increasing radiology services to poor areas with limited resources and low-income nations (as defined by the World Bank). With the demands of global health continuing to transform, leadership in the education and empowerment of the world's nursing community will be at the forefront in guiding change for improved heath outcomes. This article will introduce RAD-AID and nursing leadership opportunities in the field of global health.     

Why Mentoring Matters for New Graduates Transitioning to Practice: Implications for Nurse Leaders

Low retention of new nurse graduates in the workplace is directly affecting the current and future nursing workforce. Mentoring is a powerful tool that can be leveraged in both academic programs and in the health care practice setting to foster an environment that supports the successful transition from student, to novice nurse, to experienced nurse. Collaborative knowledge sharing between the mentor and mentee fosters better support, resilience, increased motivation, and overall job satisfaction. These factors result in better retention rates of current students and nurses in practice, contributing to the health of the workforce pipeline and the future health of our communities.     

Transformational Leadership Meets Innovative Strategy: How Nurse Leaders and Clinical Nurses Redesigned Bedside Handover to Improve Nursing Practice

In 2000, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) published To Err Is Human: Building a Safer Health System, highlighting medical errors resulting from failure in perception, assumption, and communication. The handover process is a high-risk activity prone to the communication vulnerabilities described in the IOM report. The handover project started as a 3-month pilot with plans to expand to the entire facility. The handover education had 4 elements: questionnaire, presentation, video, and simulation. Compliance with the new process was measured using audits completed by the unit managers. Sixty-four registered nurses on 2 acute units were educated by nurse champions. After a successful implementation, the surge of COVID-19 patients in spring of 2020 required us to adjust expectations regarding bedside handover. As the number of hospitalized COVID patients began to decrease, we reinvigorated the project and re-established the expectation that handover be performed at the bedside. A post-questionnaire was completed after implementation and revealed more favorable responses toward bedside handover. We also saw improvements in our patient satisfaction scores (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems [HCAHPS]). With direct observation and a checklist, we were able to return to the practice of bedside handover following the surge of COVID-19 patients. As a direct result of the bedside RN involvement, we created and implemented a handover process that prioritized nursing needs and concerns. Our implementation of this evidence-based practice enhanced patient experience and improved safety. Through education, observational audits, and use of a checklist, we were able to re-establish the expectation and practice of handover being completed at the bedside.     

健康宣教流程对护理质量的影响

目的了解新健康宣教流程是否满足病人实际需要。方法对病人采用问卷式、口头调查、现场评议等方法评价健康宣教流程。结果新流程取得了让病人和医生都非常满意的成绩,满意度及病人的健康行为均呈现出高值。结论新流程可以适应新时期病人的健康需求。     

Public Health Nursing Interventions to Improve the Use of a Health Service: Using a Pilot Study to Guide Research

This article demonstrates how a pilot study can provide useful direction for a research project. In planning a study to improve the use of the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT) program for Medicaid-eligible children, we tested our research methods and interventions (mailed pamphlets, telephone calls, home visits) on a small scale (N = 100) prior to implementing a large-scale (N greater than 2000) project. The issues and obstacles included obtaining cooperation from many agencies involved in administering the Medicaid program, addressing informed consent, assessing feasibility of methods for random sampling and random assignment, identifying sources of Medicaid data, designing and assessing validity and reliability of research tools, and testing the feasibility of implementing interventions in the field. Our experience may be particularly helpful for public health nurses who plan to investigate approaches to improve the use of services in federally mandated health programs where cooperation from federal, state, and local agencies is required.     

Role Modeling versus Mentoring in Nursing Education

Role modeling, an accepted strategy for transmitting professional attitudes and behaviors from nursing instructor to students, and mentoring, a newer strategy in nursing education, are compared and contrasted. Possibilities for research and implications are discussed.     

The Importance of Communication for Clinical Leaders in Mental Health Nursing: The Perspective of Nurses Working in Mental Health

Communication has been identified as an important attribute of clinical leadership in nursing. However, there is a paucity of research on its relevance in mental health nursing. This article presents the findings of a grounded theory informed study exploring the attributes and characteristics required for effective clinical leadership in mental health nursing, specifically the views of nurses working in mental health about the importance of effective communication in day to day clinical leadership. In-depth interviews were conducted to gain insight into the participants’ experiences and views on clinical leadership in mental health nursing. The data that emerged from these interviews were constantly compared and reviewed, ensuring that any themes that emerged were based on the participants' own experiences and views. Participants recognized that effective communication was one of the attributes of effective clinical leadership and they considered communication as essential for successful working relationships and improved learning experiences for junior staff and students in mental health nursing. Four main themes emerged: choice of language; relationships; nonverbal communication, and listening and relevance. Participants identified that clinical leadership in mental health nursing requires effective communication skills, which enables the development of effective working relationships with others that allows them to contribute to the retention of staff, improved outcomes for clients, and the development of the profession.     

Utilizing Innovative Technology to Improve Health Care

Staff expectations of leaders to recruit and retain nonexistent nursing personnel is an impossible task. In an effort to ease the burdens of an increasingly complex health care environment, caring, transformational nurse leaders can harness the power of innovative technology to improve health care. This article provides examples of several technological innovations as solutions to each of the Institute for Health Care Improvement’s Quintuple aims. Consideration is given to the importance of envisioning, inspiring, and supporting environments of curiosity, adaptation, and creativity necessary to advance the vision of sustainable, quality health care.     

Nursing Leaders as Visionaries and Enablers of Action

ObjectivesThe engagement of nursing leaders is critical for the future of the cancer nursing profession, quality cancer care, and the overall health care system. The field of cancer care is facing enormous challenges, requiring strong nursing leadership. Cancer nursing leadership is needed to overcome the challenges caused by workforce shortages, restricted resources, historic and ongoing under-recognition of nursing, unsafe working conditions, and unequal access to education. The aim of this article is to contribute to the discussion about how cancer nursing leaders can act as visionaries and support transformation of cancer nursing for the future.Data SourcesAuthor experience, journal articles and organizational position papers were used.ConclusionTo improve the state of cancer nursing and the working conditions of the cancer nursing workforce, nursing leadership practices need to be embraced on all governance levels in clinical practice and academia. When effective and high-quality nursing leadership is enacted, positive outcomes for people affected by cancer, nursing, and health care systems can be achieved. Cancer nursing leadership needs to be supported through nursing scholarship, influencing national and global policies and strategies and by active involvement in national and international health care management.Implications for Nursing PracticeNursing leadership and governance is critical to strengthening the cancer nursing workforce. Strong nursing leadership is required to realize the vision for transforming the health care systems and cancer care. Therefore, collaboration among multidisciplinary leadership, health care organizations, academic institutions, professional organizations, and policy-making structures is warranted.