This chapter explores how three successful nursing leaders, using different leadership approaches, demonstrate traditional leadership attributes such as strategic vision; risk-taking and creativity; interpersonal and communication effectiveness; and inspiring and leading change. It discusses the opportunities and implications for nursing leaders and those external to the profession to develop collaborative and transformative partnerships to advance quality health care. Pragmatic leaders demonstrate leadership excellence by effectively translating their nursing care assessment skills into the ability to approach organizational problem solving and decision making in a systematic, logical manner. In contrast to the present-needs focus of pragmatic leaders, charismatic leaders are vision-based leaders who predicate their leadership agenda on attaining future goals. Each of the three nursing leaders profiled understands the importance of being politically astute and effectively leveraging power and influence to make value-added contributions. To varying degrees, the various constituents of the nursing leaders profiled view them as socialized leaders.

Barry H. Smith’s opening is significant: that nursing care is at the core of humanity. He recounts his own experiences with nurses, when as a surgical resident he learned the value of team work, and developed a respect for the nurses who were so tuned in to the needs of the patients and families. Smith asserts that nurses must be the central point of any health care system, and yet many factors have converged to keep nurses in a subservient role within health care. Today, there are Nurses Aides, Licensed Practical Nurses, Registered Nurses, Nurse Practitioners, and those with doctorates in nursing, with an increasing premium being placed on advanced nursing clinical practice, as well as research. Nurses should achieve higher levels of education and training through an improved education system that promotes seamless academic progression.

This chapter talks about becoming a mentor-leader: Beliefs and behaviors, mentoring across cultures and generations, and mentor as Pygmalion: Believing in potential and expecting success. Nurses can learn leadership by observing good leaders, mentors, and role models; studying leadership theories and research; testing leadership behaviors through work and professional association activities; and using reflective learning to develop and fine-tune nurse’s behaviors. Mentor-leaders are present in every cultural and ethnic group and in every generation. Global, cross-cultural, and cross-generational mentoring occur when nurses are open and receptive to learning from each other and are willing to share their unique perspectives and skills. The nursing profession has an impressive track record of global collaboration and mentorship. Through mentor bonds that break down global and cultural boundaries, nurses have unprecedented opportunities for driving change in health and nursing around the world.

This chapter provides an overview of concepts that will explain both organizational and systems leadership. This knowledge helps the reader to enhance their current leadership and communication skills to more effectively provide high-quality nursing care. Describing the organizational culture and design in an organization will enable the reader to be an active, engaged member of the healthcare team. This engagement will encourage them to participate in patient safety and quality care initiatives aligned with organizational goals. The chapter discusses key concepts of an organization's professional practice model, shared governance model, and participation in strategic agenda planning that supports nursing clinical practice. These concepts support the registered nurse in gaining knowledge to promote and participate in a shared governance model. The shared governance model is often used as a strategy for healthcare organizations to ensure higher retention reorganizational test of registered nurses, increased job satisfaction, and empowerment of frontline nurses.

This teaching strategy engages students to be critical thinking nurses and understand the nursing process and its application to clinical practice. Colleges of nursing recognize and understand that it is not enough to cram nursing students with knowledge; instead, students must learn to be critical and reflective learners, be able to work in teams, and deliver high-quality nursing care. Students participate in critical thinking exercises and learn to think outside the box and look at improving the patient’s experience through the nursing process by providing patient- and family-centered care and utilizing teamwork and collaboration.

When discussing LGBTQ people, it is often assumed that people understand the differences between subpopulations. This “lumping” or broad use of LGBTQ can lead to inaccurate or incorrect beliefs about transgender people and further complicate their health and well-being. This chapter aims to highlight the distinctions of transgender people, acknowledge the diversity among trans people, define terms, and provide the reader with a deeper understanding of transgender health and nursing care.

Hormone therapy is a medical treatment process for people who are seeking to change their physical bodies to match their gender identity. Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is one of the many ways that a transgender person can transition during their gender affirmation process. This chapter will provide the nurse with the basics of hormone therapy and the implications for nursing care.

Certain conditions occur commonly in the newborn period. Respiratory alterations are among the most commonly occurring disorders in the immediate neonatal period and warrant prompt identification and intervention. Nurses working with newborns need to have a comprehensive understanding of the pathophysiological processes that put a newborn at risk for certain commonly occurring respiratory conditions. Prompt identification of adverse conditions and proper nursing care to identify specific complications and prevent further complications are required. This chapter helps the nurse to compare and contrast the differences between newborn asphyxia and hypoxia. It outlines appropriate nursing interventions for respiratory distress and describes the adverse effects associated with apnea related to prematurity. The chapter helps the nurse to identify potential long-term effects that may occur as a reperfusion injury. It discusses the potential complications related to meconium aspiration syndrome.

The quality of the lives of rural persons and the lack of empirical studies about their healthcare was of concern to Montana State University (MSU) College of Nursing researchers. A middle-range theory emerged from a recognized need for a framework that acknowledges the unique perceptions of rural persons and the generalist experience of nurses who practice in rural settings. Prior to the development of the theory, it was assumed that nursing care of rural persons was similar to the care of persons living in urban environments. This chapter provides a summary of the Rural Nursing Theory structure subsequently published in 1989 by Long and Weinert. It is followed by a review of the literature supporting or refuting the viability of the theoretical statements and concepts. Based on the review, the chapter proposes a revised rural nursing theory structure and makes suggestions for future work.

The conceptualization of nursing practice with the focus on the processes of deliberation and enactment adopted in this model can be viewed vis-à-vis the general conceptualization of action in philosophy and the conceptualization of practice as in “praxeology” in sociology. The basic assumptions regarding the processes of nursing practice are related to the definition of nursing practice, especially in terms of its goal-directed nature, specifically of its orientation to the well-being of clients in relation to healthful living. Deliberation in nursing practice refers to phenomena in the nurse-agent as she or he is mentally and intellectually addressing the clinical situation in anticipation of actual delivery of nursing services. The structure related to aspects of the client is the focal framework upon which the significance of nursing for a client is established situationally, that is, for a given situation or an event, or holistically for that client’s nursing care.