
HealthStream offers performance learning management solutions to help develop your healthcare staff into leaders and reduce turnover.
View All ProductsHealthStream works with healthcare organizations to create engaging and high-quality training videos for your staff and management.
View All ProductsImprove care quality and save money by making informed decisions about your healthcare facility and staff with HealthStream's reporting analytics solution.
View All ProductsHealthStream's proven methods for the improvement and overall engagement of your healthcare staff foster a positive workplace and increase retention rates.
View All ProductsThe leadership development program from HealthStream helps mold your high-potential healthcare employees into proven leaders.
View All ProductsFulfill compliance requirements with a variety of programs and courseware designed to address critical regulatory requirements as well as educate staff to recognize and mitigate risks.
View All ProductsBy increasing your healthcare staff's focus on quality and safety with HealthStream, they can help to reduce medical errors and readmission rates.
View All ProductsLearn about what HealthStream's healthcare policy management software and how it can help aid your organization efforts.
View All ProductsHealthStream's education helps address diversity, equity, and inclusion within your organization, as well as promoting health equity in the communities you serve.
View All ProductsDeliver custom or industry designed product training directly to patient and resident care environments to reinforce proper use.
View All ProductsTeach your healthcare staff about the revenue cycle and claim management through targeted training and video tools from HealthStream.
View All ProductsNurture the skills of your nurses and medical staff to help mold them into effective leaders with development training from HealthStream.
View All ProductsIn all areas of resuscitation, from neonatal to elderly care, clinical deterioration is a risk that can be avoided with the help of HealthStream's training programs.
View All ProductsHealthStream's EMS Program offers a comprehensive, CAPCE accredited EMS course library that meets National Registry annual recertification.
View All ProductsMake sure your clinicians have the support they need to provide competent care with clinical competency training and development from HealthStream.
View All ProductsThe suite of healthcare onboarding solutions available from HealthStream aids in nurse retention and improved patient outcomes.
View All ProductsGive your healthcare staff the decision support and skills training they need with the online products available from HealthStream.
View All ProductsHealthStream's solutions allow your healthcare workforce to be confident and competent with the knowledge they are upholding the highest of standards.
View All ProductsHealthStream’s learning management system and comprehensive suite of competency management tools empower your healthcare workforce to deliver the best patient care.
View All ProductsNurseGrid and Keener - HealthStream's mobile apps built by nurses, for nurses - help nurses take control of their schedules, practice self-care, and build a more sustainable career.
View All ProductsTake the stress out of scheduling with real-time technology that engages nurses and healthcare workers from HealthStream.
View All ProductsProvide an easier way to view healthcare staff capacity insights while seeing a patient’s journey with HealthStream’s operational intelligence and machine learning products.
View All ProductsMitigate risk and elevate your quality of care. Improving both clinical and business outcomes starts with a smarter, more integrated approach to regulatory training, continuing education and quality management.
Learn MoreThe key to any organization’s success is strong leadership; this is especially true for nursing, whose leaders set the tone for how staff approach their work. Leaders can easily inspire others to strive for the best; however, they can also discourage and negatively affect morale.
In my nursing career, I have encountered many leaders with varying characteristics. I have worked with leaders who seemed to have a positive effect wherever they went, inspiring and encouraging others to work their hardest and do their best. Unfortunately, I have also worked with those in leadership positions who did not possess the characteristics that make a good leader.
Leadership is a Matter of Skill and Character
Good leaders in any profession require certain skills and characteristics. Strong communication, critical thinking, and organizational skills are common characteristics expected of any leader. In addition, a positive attitude, honesty, loyalty, and passion for their work all defines a good leader. Good nurse leaders must possess all the qualities that make a leader, but it is their ability to demonstrate these characteristics that define them as exemplary leaders.
Good Nursing Leaders Influence and Inspire Others
A good nursing leader has the ability to positively influence others because they lead by example. The standards and expectations set for their staff are the same they have set for themselves. There is an ongoing commitment to and passion for excellence. Good nursing leaders take initiative. In any field we are asked to do more with less, nurse leaders think outside the box to ensure that nursing staff have the tools needed to safely and effectively care for their patients.
Stepping in to Fill the Gap
Stepping in and being able to perform the job expected of staff is another skill that effective leaders demonstrate. Situations occur where a staff member has called in sick and a replacement cannot be found, or more patients arrive to the unit that was expected. In these challenging situations, good nurse leaders step in and actively assist in any way possible.
I have worked with nurse leaders who do something as simple as pass out patient meal trays. I have also worked with leaders who came in during a night shift to serve as the code responder when staffing is a challenge. Simple actions like these are what prove to staff that their leader is there for them and is willing to do anything necessary for their staff.
Download HealthStream’s eBook about Nursing Leadership Development: Fast Track to Employee Improvement: Development Through Learning.
About the Author
Nicole Kraut is a nurse working in Chicago, Illinois, who writes for us regularly about her experiences as an early-to-mid career nurse. She has been a RN for over five years.
Nicole graduated with her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Loyola University Chicago and recently obtained a Master of Science in Nursing with an Emphasis in Nursing Education from Grand Canyon University. She “was inspired to become a nurse because I wanted to work in a career field in which I could make a difference in people’s lives on a daily basis. I feel nursing is my vocation and am passionate about sharing my knowledge and experience in order to positively influence others.”
HealthStream’s learning management system and comprehensive suite of competency management tools empower your healthcare workforce to deliver the best patient care.
View All Learning & PerformanceHealthStream offers performance learning management solutions to help develop your healthcare staff into leaders and reduce turnover.
View All ProductsHealthStream works with healthcare organizations to create engaging and high-quality training videos for your staff and management.
View All ProductsImprove care quality and save money by making informed decisions about your healthcare facility and staff with HealthStream's reporting analytics solution.
View All ProductsHealthStream's proven methods for the improvement and overall engagement of your healthcare staff foster a positive workplace and increase retention rates.
View All ProductsThe leadership development program from HealthStream helps mold your high-potential healthcare employees into proven leaders.
View All ProductsWhen you enact HealthStream's quality compliance solutions, you can do so with the confidence your healthcare organization will meet all standards of care.
View All Quality & ComplianceFulfill compliance requirements with a variety of programs and courseware designed to address critical regulatory requirements as well as educate staff to recognize and mitigate risks.
View All ProductsBy increasing your healthcare staff's focus on quality and safety with HealthStream, they can help to reduce medical errors and readmission rates.
View All ProductsLearn about what HealthStream's healthcare policy management software and how it can help aid your organization efforts.
View All ProductsHealthStream's education helps address diversity, equity, and inclusion within your organization, as well as promoting health equity in the communities you serve.
View All ProductsHealthStream offers professional training and education on how to best optimize your reimbursement process within your healthcare organization.
View All ReimbursementTeach your healthcare staff about the revenue cycle and claim management through targeted training and video tools from HealthStream.
View All ProductsImprove the preparedness of your staff, increase survival rates, and cut costs with the advanced resuscitation training services from HealthStream.
View All ResuscitationNurture the skills of your nurses and medical staff to help mold them into effective leaders with development training from HealthStream.
View All ProductsIn all areas of resuscitation, from neonatal to elderly care, clinical deterioration is a risk that can be avoided with the help of HealthStream's training programs.
View All ProductsExpand the decision-making skills and effectiveness of your healthcare workforce with HealthStream's clinical development programs and services.
View All Clinical DevelopmentMake sure your clinicians have the support they need to provide competent care with clinical competency training and development from HealthStream.
View All ProductsThe suite of healthcare onboarding solutions available from HealthStream aids in nurse retention and improved patient outcomes.
View All ProductsGive your healthcare staff the decision support and skills training they need with the online products available from HealthStream.
View All ProductsHealthStream's solutions allow your healthcare workforce to be confident and competent with the knowledge they are upholding the highest of standards.
View All ProductsHealthStream’s learning management system and comprehensive suite of competency management tools empower your healthcare workforce to deliver the best patient care.
View All ProductsDelivers everything you need to request, gather, and validate information about a provider to create a single source of truth for downstream processes.
View All CredentialingMake sure your healthcare staff can schedule out appointments and work schedules with ease using HealthStream's line of software solutions.
View All Scheduling & Capacity ManagementNurseGrid and Keener - HealthStream's mobile apps built by nurses, for nurses - help nurses take control of their schedules, practice self-care, and build a more sustainable career.
View All ProductsTake the stress out of scheduling with real-time technology that engages nurses and healthcare workers from HealthStream.
View All ProductsProvide an easier way to view healthcare staff capacity insights while seeing a patient’s journey with HealthStream’s operational intelligence and machine learning products.
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