The Professional Behaviors New Nurses Need: Findings From a National Survey of Hospital Nurse Leaders

Abstract

AIM The purpose of this study was to survey hospital nurse leaders throughout the United States to determine which professional behaviors they believe are essential for nursing students to learn in the classroom. BACKGROUND This study was part of a multiphase study. The survey was revised from a previous survey administered to nurse leaders in the Midwest. METHOD Participants were surveyed using 46 items in the categories of Change, Communication, Conflict, Leadership, and Self-Awareness. RESULTS The highest ranked category was Communication, followed by Self-Awareness, Change, Leadership, and Conflict. The highest rated items in each category were communication with patients, accept constructive criticism, manage change, prioritization, and conflict resolution techniques. CONCLUSION Nurse educators and leaders can use the findings to continue to refine nursing education.

Retaining new graduate nurses

“…44 Ideally, training programs should cover communication skills, conflict management, evaluating skill competencies, offering constructive feedback, and effective teaching strategies based on adult learning theory. 18,45,46 The costs associated with preceptor training are offset by turnover reduction. 47 Using a "one and done" training approach to preceptor development is counterintuitive to the preceptor, NGN, unit, and organization because it fails to appreciate organizational changes over time, NGNs' evolving needs, and preceptor development needs.…”

Outcomes of Clinical Teaching

“…Results of a study of a national sample of hospital nurse leaders' perceptions of the professional behaviors that new nurses need revealed communication and conflict-management skills to be among the most important of those behaviors (Sortedahl et al, 2020). In addition to communicating with patients, the most highly ranked skill, important communication behaviors also included listening to and communicating with families, prescribers, nursing assistants, managers, nurse colleagues, and other healthcare team members.…”

“…Important conflict-related skills included using conflict management techniques, identifying signs of aggressive behavior in patient and family members, delivering feedback about improving performance, and addressing incivility in nurse colleagues. While Sortedahl et al (2020) recommended that nursing faculty members emphasize the development of these essential competencies in the classroom, authentic clinical learning activities in real clinical settings would provide opportunities for students to apply knowledge to practice, receive guidance in reflecting on their experiences, and obtain feedback to guide improvement.…”

“…In clinical practice, students learn how to set priorities, manage conflicting expectations, and sequence their work to perform efficiently. Sortedahl et al (2020) found that hospital nurse leaders identified prioritization skills to be among the most important expectations of new nurses. It seems reasonable to expect that nurse leaders in other healthcare settings would have similar expectations.…”

“…These skills include the ability to manage the care of a group of patients, to evaluate the performance of self and others, to allocate and coordinate resources, to work as part of a healthcare team, to ensure patient safety and quality of care, and to manage one's own career development. Among a national sample of hospital nurse leaders, Sortedahl et al (2020) found that the leadership abilities in new nurses, such as proposing solutions to problems, self-confidence, taking appropriate risks, and empowering others, were rated moderately to very important.…”