Leadership Practices in Nursing: Florence Nightingale

This presentation analyses the importance of leadership attributes in nursing profession and identifies the appropriate leadership style for career development in nursing through the example of Florence Nightingale. It explores her achievements and effective leadership styles such as transformational and charismatic leadership. The presentation also highlights the qualities of Nightingale that can inspire nurses to develop high values and morale for nursing profession.

Leadership practices in
Nursing
Florence Nightingale

Objectives
• To analyse the importance of leadership attributes in nursing
profession
• To identify the appropriate leadership style for career development in
nursing
• To develop high values and morale for nursing profession

Identification of Nurse leader
Name of my Nurse leader – Florence
Nightingale
Birth year – 12th May 1820
Nationality – British
Achievements – Royal Red Cross award (1883)
Order of Merit award (1907)
Source: Verwonderenenontdekken.nl 2018

Biography
• Florence learned classical education, mathematics as well as Italian, French
and German.
• In the year 1850, Nightingale joined in the Harley Street Hospital as a nurse.
Due to her polite nature she was appointed as superintendent (Hardy, Winship
and Bray 2018).
• she performed as the volunteer at Middlesex hospital, dealing with unsanitary
condition and Cholera outbreak

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• Leadership quality of
Nightingale got developed when
she received the letter from War
Secretary for organizing the
group of nurses for providing
medical service to the fallen and
sick soldiers in Crimea war
(Girvin and Maxwell 2018).
• Soldiers called Nightingale as
“the lady with the Lamp” and
“the Angle of Crimea”. Source: Verwonderenenontdekken.nl 2018

Continue..
• Nightingale established St.
Thomas hospital in 1860.
• nursing training school
• Nightingale wrote her observation
regarding the Crimea war through
“Efficiency and Hospital
Administration of the British
Army” and “Matters Affecting the
Health” (Koffi and Fawcett 2016). Source: Ichef.bbci.co.uk 2018

Reason for choosing
The simplicity and humbleness in Nightingale’s nature have attracted me
towards this profession. She had the quality to deal with the challenges.
With her effective leadership quality she developed a nursing team as well
as she inspired large number of women towards this profession

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I believe, she helped me to understand nursing profession is not only
about the patient care but also it focus on quality and safety
improvement. Her tireless devotion towards preventing the disease for
the suffering and poor people have influenced me to improve my
practice

Attributes of the Leader
• Integrity
• Honesty
• Out- standing interpersonal skills
• Commitment and Passion
• Creativity
• Motivational skills

Effective leadership style
• Transformational leadership style
• Charismatic leadership style
(Source: Justscience.in 2018)

Transformational leadership style
In the case of transformational
leadership practices the leader
gain the ability to face the risks.
In order to share the vision,
collaboration and commitment of
the leader is very important.
(Source: Free-management-ebooks.com 2018)

Charismatic leadership style
Charismatic leadership style is one of the rare leadership quality that
indicates the emotional relationship between the leader and the team
members (Graham, Ziegert and Capitano 2015). The charming
personality of the leader helps to develop strong feelings of leaders’
commitment and beliefs.

Achievement of Nightingale
• In the Crimean war, she saved large number of soldiers.
• She is being considered as the founder of modern nursing
• She is famous for her substantial contribution in the health statistics
• Florence earned the name “The lady with the Lamp”
• She introduced the Environmental theory

What I have learned?
In the above study, I have analysed that leadership practices are very
important in the case of dealing with different types of situation in the
organization. In this study, I have identified that in order to be a strong
leader I need to focus on developing my motivational skills so that I can
inspire to my team members. As per my understanding, transformational
leadership can be beneficial in terms of being an effective team leader.
Analysing the qualities of Nightingale, I believe I need be more active
towards accepting challenges so that I can develop solutions.
Developing my interpersonal skills I will be able to develop both the
personal and professional skills of mine.

Reference and bibliography
• Acha.org.au 2018. Available from http://acha.org.au/
• Ahha.asn.au 2018. Available from https://ahha.asn.au/
• Crook, T., 2014. Nursing before Nightingale, 1815–1899 by Carol Helmstadter and Judith Godden. Victorian Studies, 56(2), pp.304-306.
• Free-management-ebooks.com 2018. Available from http://www.free-management-ebooks.com/faqld/leadership-05.htm
• Girvin, J. and Maxwell, E., 2018. It's time we added a 20th century page to nursing's history. Journal of advanced nursing.
• Goswami, A., Nair, P., Beehr, T. and Grossenbacher, M., 2016. The relationship of leaders’ humor and employees’ work engagement
mediated by positive emotions: Moderating effect of leaders’ transformational leadership style. Leadership & Organization Development
Journal, 37(8), pp.1083-1099.
• Graham, K.A., Ziegert, J.C. and Capitano, J., 2015. The effect of leadership style, framing, and promotion regulatory focus on unethical
pro-organizational behavior. Journal of business ethics, 126(3), pp.423-436.
• Hardy, S., Winship, G. and Bray, J., 2018. Mental health nursing and the importance of celebrating the Skellern Lecture and JPMHN
Lifetime Achievement Award 2018. Journal of psychiatric and mental health nursing, 25(4), pp.215-216.
• Ichef.bbci.co.uk 2018. Available from https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/images/ic/496xn/p02mxfgd.jpg
• Innovatenyp.org 2018. Available from http://www.innovatewar, nyp.org/daniel-barchi/
• Justscience.in 2018. Available from
http://www.justscience.in/uncategorized/effective-leadership-style-differences-demographics-leader-people-leading/2018/03/29
• Koffi, K. and Fawcett, J., 2016. The two nursing disciplinary scientific revolutions: Florence Nightingale and Martha E. Rogers. Nursing
science quarterly, 29(3), pp.247-250.
• Verwonderenenontdekken.nl 2018. Available from http://www.verwonderenenontdekken.nl/uploadedfiles/16-Florence%20Nightingale
%20Museum%20-%20Haar%20leven%20-%20Pdf.%20%2010%20blz..pdf