You Can Do It! A Practical Approach to Building a Strong Perinatal Leadership Team

Purpose for the program: Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center, EIRMC, recognized the need to grow the charge nurse team and create a succession plan that allowed this rural, regional center to have a wealth of skilled nursing leaders who, in the future, could move into high level management positions, thus ensuring the future success of the hospital's nursing staff. The purpose of this abstract is to break down the process utilized to move a charge nurse team from ordinary leaders to extraordinary clinical supervisors through a combination of focused education around key leadership values and the practical steps utilized to move the team forward.

Proposed change: The development of the "Perinatal Leadership Council" at EIRMC started in June 2012 with a proposed change in the job description of the clinical supervisor. Previously, the job description and daily responsibilities of the clinical supervisor mirrored that of a charge nurse. The delineation of the role of a charge nurse versus a clinical supervisor was predominately by title only and the clinical supervisor was on a different pay scale than a charge nurse. With the proposed change in job description and clearer delineation of role, including a B.S.N., certification in their specialty, Crucial Conversations training and accountability beyond their scheduled shifts, the role was implemented.

Implementation, outcomes and evaluation: Fourteen perinatal clinical supervisors are currently participating in the updated role. A self-assessment was the first tool utilized to identify the current status and health of each member of the team. This initial assessment consisted of questions that helped them to recognize their strengths and weaknesses, as well as determine both personal and professional goals. Utilizing the results of the questionnaire, a focused education plan was developed for each team member through a one on one coaching session with the nursing director. The education plan includes biweekly meetings as a team, quarterly hospital-wide leadership education, one-on-one coaching sessions and individual safety-focused projects to assist with improving the outcomes of the department. 

Implications for nursing practice: Data  will be analyzed in the spring of 2013 through questionnaires, focused interviews and overall hospital ratings including patient satisfaction scores, core measure data comparisons and physician satisfaction scores.  The team anticipates it will be able to clearly identify the course for developing leaders at the staff level who have the key skills required to manage the day to day activities of their department, support and promote peer development, and improve patient outcomes and experiences.

Keywords: perinatal, leadership, development, growth, team