LEADERSHIP BEHAVIORS AND ROUNDING TO INFLUENCE SAFETY
Issue: Healthcare organizations strive to implement new strategies to improve leadership development, quality and safety. Leadership behaviors during interactions with direct reports have been shown to influence patient safety improvements. Developing safety behaviors is part of the work required to become and maintain a highly reliable organization. How to develop these leadership behaviors is an area of interest in healthcare. Rounding by leaders has been shown to have a positive influence related to quality outcomes. While many studies have shown the influence of both leadership behaviors and rounding on developing and sustaining safety behaviors in direct reports, there has been little research on the effect of rounding on the leader.
Project Description: This poster describes a research study using a descriptive, non-experimental design with survey, self report and focus group methodology to examine if the leadership activity of rounding to influence staff safety behaviors results in a change in the leader’s self-assessment of leadership behavior. Instruments utilized for data collection included the “Leadership Behaviors and Rounding to Influence” survey along with the “MLQ Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (5x Short)”.
Results: A convenience sample of nurse leaders with direct reports employed at a Midwestern freestanding pediatric hospital were recruited from a pool of 37 possible candidates. 16 completed the pre-survey and 12 (male = 6.3%; female = 93.8%) completed the post-survey. Sample demographic characteristics included a mean age of 48.7 years, mean time in current role of 3.4 years, mean time in leadership position with direct reports of 9.8 years and highest level of education completed of bachelor degree (50%) and master degree (50%). While results showed no statistically significant differences in the self-reported leadership behaviors; practical differences were identified. When Pre and Post MLQ (5x) Short responses were compared after the rounding intervention, the study sample was found to be more transformational, more transactional and less passive-avoidant with higher outcomes of leadership compared than the norm.
Lessons Learned: Rounding to influence safety behaviors has the potential to serve as a measurable activity to empower transformational leadership. This pilot study provides data on the leader’s rounding activities and experience including quantity of time, frequency of rounding, and number of direct report interactions during rounding. These results support that rounding to influence for safety behaviors is a best practice strategy to improve quality, safety and patient satisfaction and could be a practice strategy in the development of positive leadership behaviors in nurse leaders.
Submitters:
Aris Eliades, PhD, RN, CNS
Director of Nursing Research and Associate Director of the Rebecca D. Considine Reearch Institute
Akron Children’s Hospital
Email:
Judy Dawson-Jones, RN, MPH
Director of Nursing
Akron Children’s Hospital