Building Leaders for an Equitable and Inclusive Future.

The Association for Leadership Science in Nursing (ALSN) 2023 International Conference was held on October 28 to 30 in Birmingham, Alabama, and sponsored by the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing. ALSN is dedicated to uniting academic and practice leaders to shape leadership science, education in nursing, and the practice of nursing leadership. The theme for the conference was Building Leaders for an Equitable and Inclusive Future.

Leadership Science in Nursing: Creating New Solutions for New Challenges.

The Association for Leadership Science in Nursing (ALSN) November 2022 International Conference was held at the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing at Case Western University. ALSN is dedicated to uniting academic and practice leaders to shape leadership science, education in nursing, and the practice of nursing leadership. One hundred fifty-one nurse leaders from the United States, Canada, and Oman gathered to discuss leadership as highlighted in this column.

ALSN 2021 Conference: Nursing Science for Leadership in the New Decade.

The Association for Leadership Science in Nursing's 2021 conference provided an opportunity to further enhance professional understanding of the difficulties facing nurse leaders as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to create unimaginable challenges. Presentations provided evidence in support of courageous caring leadership interventions.

Establishment of Nurse Manager Leadership Competencies to Support Clinicians in Evidence-Based Practice.

Objective: This 2-part study was conducted to validate nurse manager (NM) leadership competencies that support clinicians in using evidence-based practice (EBP).

Background: Numerous studies validate the critical need for NM support among clinicians seeking to engage in EBP.

Methods: In phase 1, a Delphi study was conducted to establish the validity of a set of NM leadership competencies that support EBP.

Building the Science to Guide Nursing Administration and Leadership Decision Making.

Objective: The aim of this study was to identify the challenges, barriers, and solutions for conducting nursing administration and leadership science (NALS) research.

Background: Evidence from leadership science should be at the forefront of nurse leaders' decision making. Yet, challenges remain in building the evidence and moving it into nursing administration and leadership practice.

Association of Hashimoto's Thyroiditis and Burkitt Lymphoma: A Rare Condition to Be Considered.

We present the case of a 72-year-old woman who was diagnosed with Hashimoto's thyroiditis and who developed a low-grade fever, fatigue, and weight loss that prompted to perform a thyroid biopsy to rule out an underlying primary thyroid lymphoma. This case report offers the opportunity to review the association between Hashimoto's thyroiditis and primary thyroid lymphoma. Furthermore, it underlines the importance of considering the diagnosis of lymphoma when a thyroid mass is found in patients with an underlying Hashimoto's disease, as the timely management is essential for survival with this rare thyroid condition.

Boundary Spanning Leadership in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic: Experience of Nurse Leaders in a Large Integrated Long-term Health Care System.

This article provides insight into the impact of boundary spanning for nurse leaders in a large integrated post-acute health care system in the southeastern part of the United States as they responded (not reacted) to the COVID-19 pandemic that threatened the lives of 2 of society's most vulnerable populations, the elderly and the disabled. Through illustrative examples, the authors describe the 6 strategies of boundary spanning leadership-buffering, reflecting, connecting, mobilizing, weaving, and transforming-that enabled these nurse leaders to respond effectively during this crisis. The literature informs on the merit of situational leadership, as no single type of leadership is right for all circumstances.

Nurses Taking the Lead: A Look Back to Move Forward.

In recognition of the Year of the Nurse and Midwife, the 2020 annual conference of the Association for Leadership Science in Nursing (ALSN) celebrated A Look Back to Move Forward in recognition of the 50th anniversary of ALSN. The ALSN began as the Council of Graduate Education for Administrative Nursing (CGEAN) in 1970. Today, ALSN maintains the goals of shaping graduate education and research to inform nursing leadership practice.

Nurse competencies for transitions of care: Implications for education and practice.

Although there are a number of transitions of care initiatives that address specific needs as patients move across healthcare settings, adverse events still occur during handoffs. Transitions of care create periods of vulnerability for populations with complex needs that include communication gaps, medication changes, and poorly coordinated treatment plans, often without involving patients and their families. This paper outlines what nurses need to know to provide for safe transitions of care across the healthcare continuum.

Organizational Support for Nurse Manager Role Transition and Onboarding: Strategies for Success.

Objective: The aim of this study was to provide guidance on supportive nurse manager role transition practices.

Background: The nurse manager role is increasingly more complex and the workforce is increasingly less experienced. Wide variation in nurse manager role transition exists among organizations.

Disruptive Innovation: Impact for Practice, Policy, and Academia.

The 2019 Association for Leadership Science in Nursing International Conference, Disruptive Innovation, was held in Los Angeles, California, with attendees from 30 US states, Canada, Brazil, and China. Presenters discussed the need for nurse leaders to advocate for health equity, lead evidence-based innovation, how robots and other technology are generating disruptive innovations in healthcare, and building strong academic-practice partnerships to address nursing workforce challenges. This article will report on these important insights.

Leveraging the Power of Board Leadership in Professional Nursing Organizations.

Nurses who aspire to lead a professional nursing organization can significantly influence the future of the nursing profession. This article describes 4 essential responsibilities required in a board leadership position as identified by a group of nurse leaders who have each served as the board president of a national or international professional nursing organization.

A Concept Analysis of Transitions of Care for Population Health.

Background: Compelling evidence indicates that gaps in quality, safety, and experiences occur when patients encounter transitions across the care continuum. Differences in the organization of healthcare services as well as disparities in health across the globe, may have a unique impact on processes associated with transitions of care for client populations.

Purpose: Increased attention to the concept of transitions of care has resulted in disparate meanings and lack of clarity about its nature.

Grassroots to Global: The Future of Nursing Leadership.

The 2018 International Nursing Administration Research Conference, Grassroots to Global, was held in Atlanta, Georgia, with attendees from 38 US states, Canada, and China. Presenters discussed the need for nurse leaders to be prepared to partner with those inside and outside of healthcare to create innovative, interprofessional care delivery models; advocate for advancements in technology to address healthcare access shortages; and lead new areas of research that can drive policy change to support nurse leaders in long-term care and the essential role of the nurse manager in creating optimal practice environments for quality outcomes. This article will report on these important insights.

Connecting Communities: The Development of an International Partnership.

Addressing health inequities and the social determinants of health for all people of the world is a primary goal of the World Health Organization. This article describes how a "Connecting Communities educational program" enabled nurse leaders from academic institutions from different sides of the globe to develop a reciprocal relationship of mutual interest around the topics of the nursing role in population health and care delivery. Grant funding resulted in the sharing of knowledge, expertise, and experiences directed toward encouraging the development of nurses as global citizens, with a broader view on what influences health and well-being.

Exploring Nurse Manager Support of Evidence-Based Practice: Clinical Nurse Perceptions.

Objective: The study identifies what constitutes nurse manager (NM) support and other resources that enable clinical nurses (CNs) to engage in evidence-based practice (EBP).

Background: Clinical nurses report that NM support enables them to use EBP but what constitutes NM support is still unclear.

Methods: Nurse managers, CNs, and EBP mentors received specialized education and use a team approach for EBP.

Excellence and evidence in staffing: a data-driven model for excellence in staffing (2nd edition).

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA, 2010) and the Institute of Medicine's (IOM, 2011) Future of Nursing report have prompted changes in the U.S. health care system.

Embarking on accountable care: preparing for the second curve.

With the advent of the Affordable Care Act, new models of care are underway. Health care experts agree that to improve care, there will need to be improved partnerships across the care continuum, finally eliminating silos of care and services. WellStar Health System, a large health care system in the southeastern part of the United States, is demonstrating its early adoption of integration and the new rules of engagement.

Evaluation of an evidence-based practice initiative: outcomes, strengths and limitations of a retrospective, conceptually-based approach.

Background And Purpose: Making evidence-based practice (EBP) a sustained reality is a difficult endeavor. This relates, among other factors, to lack of sufficient research upon which to base implementation efforts. Alternative sources of evidence therefore need to be considered, particularly where organizational level EBP is the goal.

Leadership: The RN clinical leader: one hospital's experience.

Hartford Hospital in Hartford, Connecticut made some important changes in redesigning its patient care delivery system with the development of a new role: the RN clinical leader. This role provides for RN accountabilities, such as mentoring, data management, evidence-based practice, and shared governance. This article describes the RN clinical leader and the education provided to nurses who assume this role.

Shared governance: Hartford Hospital's experience.

Shared Governance is the administration and deployment of the organization's services through a partnership model of managers and staff. A system is said to "live" where it provides service. In a health care organization this is the point of service known as the patient care unit.

Four elements of a successful quality program. Alignment, collaboration, evidence-based practice, and excellence.

The nurse's role in quality improvement and assurance is well established, but this is particularly true as hospitals engage in a culture of patient safety and view quality-related activities as important "safety checks." The role of the nurse in ensuring quality related to patient care and safety cannot be overstated. The achievement of quality and safety in patient care is the result of caregivers doing the right thing the right way the first time.

The effects of peer counseling on smoking cessation and reduction.

Objective: To evaluate a peer counseling intervention for pregnant smokers.

Methods: One hundred forty-two pregnant, predominantly Hispanic women were assigned to a peer-led smoking cessation program or to usual care.

Results: Compared with usual care, peer counseling reduced smoking (-9.

Evidence-based nursing practice, Part 2: Building skills through research roundtables.

Numerous articles describe barriers to nurses conducting research and achieving evidence-based practice as well as strategies for overcoming barriers. The Research Roundtable format is one such strategy. It is an interactive means for providing novice nurse researchers and nursing students with the skill sets required to drive application of existing evidence to nursing practice and conduct outcome studies to derive new evidence.