Developing Leadership Skills of the Clinical Nurse at the Bedside

Purpose: The purpose of the implementation of the audit was to improve the quality of patient care and empirical outcomes for medical patient population, empower nursing staff to take the lead of enhancing the patient experience, and advance our patients and their caregivers’ knowledge regarding pressure injury, CLABSI, CAUTI, and fall prevention.

Methods: Implementation of the medical clinical nurse leader (CNL) enhances lateral integration of care and evidence-based care in our patient population. The clinical leader manages clinical outcomes, adherence to clinical guidelines, patient satisfaction, and quality of care. The clinical leader serves as a mentor and impacts the care
environment. The manager empowers the nurses and coordinates and facilitates the multiple services and disciplines impacting on the patient, assuring the most efficient and effective goal-directed activities are provided at the right time and in partnership with all other disciplines providing care.

Conclusions: Implementing nurses' empowerment in patient care and decision-making demonstrated a reduction in length of stay and improvement in quality measures. Our patients and family members are more knowledgeable and prepared to cope with their patient at home as well as preventative measures for liability of fall, PI, CLABSI, and CAUTI.