Lauren Smith

Bibliography Card I
September 13, 2013
Reference
Gottlieb, L. N., Gottlieb, B., & Shamian, J. (2012). Principles of Strengths-Based Nursing Leadership for
Strengths-Based Nursing Care: A New Paradigm for Nursing and Healthcare for the 21st
Century. Canadian Journal of Nursing Leadership, 25(2), 38-50. Retrieved from:
http://scholar.google.com/scholar
Main Idea
This article describes strengths-based nursing and eight principles of leadership to support it. The
healthcare system is changing and is focusing on health promotion, primary care, and community-based
home care instead of hospitals being the primary care service. Strengths-based nursing can empower the
providers and patients by focusing on the positives and support them in creating their own solutions. This
new idea does not ignore problems or weakness, but works with those strengths to achieve those deficits.
In order for strength-based nursing to flourish, strong leaders with foundational principles must guide the
movement.
Summary
The first principle of leadership is that the leader must have a vision and be able to convey that
vision and help nurses to understand and contribute to that vision. The second principle is that leaders
must understand and embrace the differences among people and appreciate what each person brings to the
organization. The third principle is that nurse leaders need to create empowering and encouraging work
environments in order for the nurses to promote health and foster their development. The fourth principle
describes that leaders should be open-minded, strive to understand differing positions, and find common
ground among nurses. The fifth principle is that the leader should value self-determination and create
conditions that encourage the development of skills and competence by providing meaningful feedback.
The sixth principle focuses on the leader understanding that the nurse influences and is influenced by the
environment. The seventh principle states that leaders should understand that knowledge is power and
should create educational environments to encourage learning. The eighth and final principle is that nurse
leaders should invest and value collaborate partnerships to maximize talents and potentials. These eight
principles are described for the use of nurse leaders to promote the movement of the nursing field along
with the healthcare field of health promotion and prevention, namely strengths-based nursing.

Synthesis
The world of healthcare is transforming to health promotion and prevention and the nursing field
has the ability to lead the way. Strengths-based nursing is a model that can aid nurses to make this
transition by focusing on strengths and using those strengths to resolve weaknesses. As with any
transition, good leadership is pivotal to success. The principles provided for strengths-based nursing
leaders are common expectations of leaders. Leaders should provide environments that encourage
education and growth among nurses. They should also be willing to be open to differing viewpoints and
be able to create a vision with them. They should have the ability to get everyone on board and excited
about the vision. Nursing leadership is important for the field of nursing and this article provides eight
basic principles that should be incorporated into leadership roles regardless if the model of strength-based
nursing is being implemented.
Application
When thinking of a good leader, the thought of someone who is encouraging, driven, and
determined comes to mind. The idea that the leader has so much power over creating the environment,
which in turn has so much power on the nurses performance, is very interesting. The authors purpose is
to provide eight foundational principles which can be used by nurse leaders to improve healthcare by
using the strengths to overcome and improve any weaknesses. The authors assume that nurses are well
positioned to transform the healthcare system and that strength-based nursing leadership is integral for
that success. This article provides eight basic principles that can be easily incorporated into a leadership
plan and helps to provide useful literature in establishing a leadership role. As a nurse supervisor I can
implement these principles into my daily work tasks and strive to create and deliver a vision that is
accepted by my nurses and establish an environment that encourages education and growth.
Question Raised
Nightingale is referenced in this article as being someone who held leadership visions for
healthcare. I wonder if she thought of herself as a nurse leader.