Implementation of a Formal Charge Nurse Leadership Development Program

Purpose for the Program: What happens to a unit within a hospital setting that has no formal leaders? The unit becomes stuck in survival mode. This was the history of the women's care unit in a 105‐bed hospital, where fewer than 800 neonates are born annually. With many obstacles and traditional thinking hardwired into everyday practice, developing a formal training program for charge nurses was a new way of thinking for the unit staff and the rest of the hospital. Our program has turned into a pilot project for the rest of the hospital. There were many years during which the women's care unit was without consistent, formal leadership. Out of necessity, several senior, proactive nurses stepped into charge nurse roles. With no formal training or higher level management support, the women's care unit was the only unit in the hospital that had informal nurse leaders as frontline management. The undeveloped charge nurse role carried no authority to staff or to other areas within the hospital. Proposed Change: The Women's Care Charge Nurse Leadership Development program was created based on a review of the limited, current literature. One of the goals during the development of the program was to ensure that all training aligned with the mission, vision, and values of the hospital. The training action plan was approved by the chief nursing officer. A timeline was set up to complete the initial training within 6 months, which was a lofty but not impossible goal. Implementation, Outcomes, and Evaluation: The program included three sessions with the first used to discuss the charge nurse role, job description, competencies, responsibilities, and expectations. The second session was an obstetric medical–legal brief, which was specific to the legal aspects of the charge nurse role in the women's care setting. The final session was designed to cover a broad spectrum of topics such as team building and strength‐based teamwork, leadership styles, incident reporting, human resource scenarios, conflict resolution, patient safety, perinatal risk management, and communication styles. Implications for Nursing Practice: The effect of this training has been multifold, as each charge nurse has a sense of purpose, is aware of the expectations and has specific guidelines to follow, has been set up to succeed, and has confidently embraced the charge nurse role. © 2015 AWHONN, the Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses