The article written by Carol Huston (1) presents essential leadership competencies for nurses. One of the points listed in the research is the importance of a universal view of healthcare and nursing (1). Additionally, the article mentions appropriate technical skills, excellent decision-making abilities, and the capacity to shape organizational practices that establish patients’ safety. Moreover, the list covers proper interference in administrative processes (1). The last characteristics include cooperation skills, the balance between authenticity and expectations, as well as adaptability to changes. Overall, these eight characteristics highlight that nurses need to be global, advanced, communicative, knowledgeable, and adaptive.
The article by Kouzes and Posner (2) identifies five central leadership practices for competent nurses. The analysis includes the importance of “modeling the way, inspiring a shared vision, challenging the process, enabling others to act, and encouraging the heart” (2, p. 12). The first one highlights the importance of personal credibility (2). The second characteristic implies that leaders should have an accurate vision of what their team can be in the future. The next competency states that nurses should be seeking possibilities by exploring and being adventurous. The fourth characteristic implies effective communication that inspires other members of a facility, and the fifth one means that nurses should recognize valuable contributions made by others. Literature suggests that development in nurse leadership is essential primarily because of constant changes in the medical sphere and staffing deficiencies (3). Thus, both articles list vital leadership characteristics that can help to address these issues.
Moreover, both studies mention similar ideas. Both lists consider effective communication valuable for nurses, as impactful leadership requires mutual understanding through constant cooperation. Furthermore, they indicate the importance of personal credibility. The fourth competency in Huston’s research (1) focuses on designing a safe environment and Kouzes and Posner’s study (2), highlights the need to be an example to other colleagues. The main difference between the two lists is that Huston (1) focuses on each competency in detail, whereas the other authors (2) provide a general perspective on leadership. The former describes the roles of appropriate technological knowledge, authenticity, and other specific practices. The latter mostly present nurses’ role as an inspiration through competencies one, two, and five. In contrast to these two studies, another leadership article mentions the importance of research (4). The articles have more similarities than differences, as both consider comparable characteristics equally significant.
References
Huston C. Preparing nurse leaders for 2020. Journal of Nursing Management [Internet]. Web.
Kouzes J, Posner B. The five practices of exemplary leadership. Wiley. Web.
Miles J, Scott E. A new leadership development model for nursing education. College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications [Internet]. Web.
Sastre-Fullana P, Morales-Asencio J, Sesé-Abad A, Bennasar-Veny M, Fernández-Domínguez JC, De Pedro-Gómez J. Advanced practice nursing competency assessment instrument (APNCAI): Clinimetric validation. BMJ Open [Internet]. Web.