Being conductor of the orchestra: an exploration of district nursing leadership

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to gain insight into how district nurses understand their leadership role. Data were generated through interviews and audio-journals and analysed using interpretive phenomenological analysis. Findings suggested that district nurses managing teams and caseloads experienced a burden of responsibility. Being creative problem solvers, they adopted facilitative ways of engaging with patients but directive approaches to team management. District nurses sharing leadership with multidisciplinary colleagues did not appear to experience this burden. Their leadership drew on their facilitative approaches to care-giving. If nurses enabled, rather than directed teams, they could create a context for developing autonomy and growth, easing the burden of responsibility.

Next of kin’s experiences of registered nurses’ leadership close to older adults in municipal home care in Sweden: an interview study

“…However, next of kin also experienced inconsistencies in those responsibilities related to the fact that there were nursing assistants who were providing the care most of the time. These findings are similar to previous research [38] showing that RN leadership included both being a team leader and bearing a heavy professional responsibility, such as being accountable for the work they did not perform themselves. This study also showed RNs cooperated across care levels, which included coordinating nursing measures where several professions were involved.…”

The Ambassador Project: Evaluating a Five-Year Nationwide Leadership Program to Bridge the gap Between Policy and District Nursing Practice

“…Consequently, this led to the debate about the optimal blend between ‘caring work’ and ‘ambassador work,’ where ‘ambassador work’ represents the work related to meetings about challenges in policy, politics, and regulations of the healthcare system. Different perspectives seemed to exist about an optimal blend (Dickson et al, 2020). Lalleman et al (2017b) opt for a 50–50 blend in the work of nurse managers, which is congruent with some of the opinions described in our study.…”

“…Alongside the focus on individual leadership practices, a leadership development program should concentrate on improvements within or between organizational systems (Carroll et al, 2008; Giddens, 1979). However, robust literature about the effectiveness of leadership development programs among healthcare professionals and, in particular, district nurses is scarce (Dickson et al, 2020; West et al, 2015). To better equip the district nurses for the described requirements, a nationwide leadership program by the Dutch nurses’ association was established, and it supported the development of a liaison role between policy and district nursing practice.…”