In response to: Leadership in changing times
Dear Dr. Gelinas, Editor,
I am writing in reference to the August 2024 issue and the article “Leadership in changing times: New scope and standards of practice reflect post-pandemic realities” (Rollins, 2024). I found this article to be very informative about the changing climate of the health care arena in the post-pandemic world. I am most excited about the rebranding of “nursing administration” into “nursing leadership” as the most important change to the Nursing Leadership Scope and Standards of Practice.
Nurses are faced with daily challenges that require rapid clinical assessment and constant evolution in practice methods to surmount. The word “administration” denotes a vision of an individual sitting in an office alone doling out their knowledge to others – what an old nurse friend described as a “clipboard nurse.” These “clipboard nurses” would appear with a checklist of things the staff were doing wrong and mark down deficient practices with a punitive attitude. These practices, as well as other forms of toxic leadership, are found to be associated with increased nurse reported adverse events such as decreased quality of nursing care, increased medication errors, and increased health care associated infections (Labrague, 2020). The updated idea of nurse leadership describes the nurse who is an active member of the team, modeling behaviors that all should emulate. These nursing leaders will be leading by example through both the tribulations and triumphs faced in the daily provision of patient care. I applaud the decision to rebrand the label of nursing leaders and eagerly await the changes for the nurses of the future.
James Andries MSN, MBA-HCA, FNP-C
Lafayette, LA
Disclosure: I have no personal or financial interest
