How Do Charge Nurses View Their Roles in Long-Term Care?

Abstract

This article explores how registered nurses (RNs) in long-term care (LTC) understand their role as charge nurses. Data are derived from 16 charge nurses employed in 8 facilities in Ontario, Canada. Qualitative methods are used to analyze audiotapings of interviews. The findings reveal a range of dimensions and subdimensions. Charge nurses experience their work as highly complex and unpredictable. Themes that captured the following dimensions of the supervisor role in LTC include (a) against all odds, getting through the day; (b) stepping in work; and (c) leading and supporting unregulated care workers. In addition, analysis within each category reveals a complex intersection between the nurses' perceptions of the context and their consequent work strategies. The emerging demands placed on supervisors due to the growing complexity of residents, increasing government regulations, and staffing shortages have caused the role of the charge nurse to evolve with little reflection on its impact.

An Integrative Review of the Structures and Processes Related to Nurse Supervisory Performance in Long‐Term Care

“…NAs expressed the importance of supervisors being sensitive, flexible, considerate, and understanding to the needs of the staff they lead while considering multiple perspectives (Burke et al, 2001;Cooper & Mitchell, 2006;Dellefield, 2008;Eriksson & Fagerberg, 2008;McGilton et al, 2009;Tyler & Parker, 2011). Good supervisors demonstrated humility (Eriksson & Fagerberg, 2008) and were friendly and easy to talk to (Erickson-Lidman et al, 2013;McGillis Hall et al, 2005).…”

“…Support was often operationalized by NAs as hands-on assistance during direct resident care (Burke et al, 2001;McGillis Hall et al, 2005;Rubin et al, 2009). Effective supervisors also used a proactive and respectful approach when sharing clinical and nonclinical information with NAs to support them in performing their daily tasks appropriately and preventing complications (Dellefield, 2008;McGillis Hall et al, 2005;McGilton et al, 2009). Charge nurses ensured NAs were "kept in the loop" about information (e.g., organizational policies) required for quality care provision (Venturato & Drew, 2010).…”

“…Being an effective supervisor required the nurse to be visible (Ericson-Lidman et al, 2013) and available to staff (McGilton et al, 2009) while "conducting a balancing act" of all their responsibilities. Supervisors anticipated unexpected emergencies (Eriksson & Fagerberg, 2008) and efficiently responded to help subordinates with clinical matters (Dellefield, 2008;Siegel et al, 2008).…”

Meningsfullt arbeid på sykehjem. Erfarne sykepleieres perspektiv

“…Man glende mulighet for å ta hensyn til en økende kompleksitet er en annen negativ faktor som frem heves (17).…”

“…Forsk ningen peker på at manglende mulighet for sykepleierne til å ta hensyn til den økende komplek siteten i sykehjemmet kan skape utilfredshet (17). I denne stu dien har vi sett at sykepleierne verdsetter kompleksiteten, fordi den gir mulighet til utvikling av spesialfelt og spesialkompetanse.…”