The power of partnership to shape the future of nursing: the evolution of the clinical nurse leader.

Aim(s): This article describes the evolution of the clinical nurse leader role and demonstrates the vital nature of partnerships between academia and practice in the design and implementation of this new role.

Background: The health care system as it exists in the United States may put patients at risk in terms of safety and quality of care. Nursing leadership from across the US recognized a need for nursing practice and academia to work in partnership to develop workable and effective solutions.

Opportunities for improving patient care through lateral integration: the clinical nurse leader.

Today, healthcare organizations are faced with the growing realization that functional and professional silos within the organization are counter to the provision of efficient and effective patient care and are fertile grounds for errors or sentinel events to occur. The improvement of patient care and prevention of errors require that collaboration among professionals occur at the patient care delivery level, not just within the leadership team. A new nursing role-the clinical nurse leader, the first new nursing role advanced nationally in more than three decades--currently is under development in more than 180 pilot healthcare delivery sites across the United States and Puerto Rico.