This is a discussion board reply to the following post.

Respond to at least two of your colleagues on two different days by explaining how the leadership skills they described may impact your organization or your personal leadership, or by identifying challenges you see in applying the skills described.

Nursing leadership is vital to providing high-quality patient care and designing a favorable work environment for positive patient outcomes.  According to Boamah et al. (2018), “researchers have linked patient safety outcomes to the quality of nursing work environments and lack of effective leadership” (para. 2).  Nurses need a work environment that is satisfying and empowering to equip them with the resources to provide optimal quality of care to their patients.  A great leader sets the foundation of what a positive work environment should display so that their workers can build on the example set for them.

In the articles I researched, transformational leadership appeared to be the most influential leadership style in healthcare.  Transformational leadership is stated to positively affect the outcomes of nurses and patients and predict quality outcomes (Demir & Duygulu, 2022).  Two key insights I found in each article are that a good leader is vital in creating a positive work environment that impacts the employees and patients and subsequently impacts outcomes.  A leader must obtain four main qualities: idealized influence (attributes and behaviors), inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration (Boamah et al., 2018).

A leader I have encountered thus far in my nursing career who encompasses all those qualities is our nursing supervisor, Tanyell Thomas.  There are many instances where Mrs. Thomas displayed excellent leadership skills.  She has never asked more of her nurses than she was willing to do herself.  Mrs. Thomas is a team player and is always ready to lend a helping hand on the floor to ensure that our unit flows as smoothly as possible.  There were many shifts where she coordinated beds for inpatient stays, answered EMS calls, took on a whole assignment, and coordinated with our physicians for patient discharges.  As a new graduate in the ER, there were many tasks that I didn’t fully understand.  Mrs. Thomas never hesitated to explain what I had inquired about, and she never made me feel incompetent or less than when asking for help.  She extends the same courtesy and generosity to every employee.  Mrs. Thomas is also not afraid to speak up to administrators on our behalf when she feels that we are lacking the resources we need to perform our jobs effectively.  Mrs. Thomas has helped me, and many other nurses build autonomy within our organization.  She has also instilled in us the importance of being a team player and openly communicating when we have questions or concerns.  Her leadership skills have created a positive work environment and motivates staff to push through on some of our most challenging days in the ER.  She has become one of my most incredible mentors, and I hope to be half the leader she is one day.