Psychiatric-mental health head nurse management concerns

Psychiatric-mental health head nurses supervise and direct patient care, and therefore, possess a critical, front-line perspective of nursing practice problems. This article explores this perspective by interviewing four head nurses about patient care, staffing, and organizational management concerns. Interestingly, some of the findings of the study, such as head nurse concerns regarding retaining, recruiting, and motivating staff, and increasing patient acuity, already have been supported in the general nursing literature. Other concerns, including the need to clarify the role of the nurse and to define areas of responsibility with other mental health professionals, seem unique to mental health nursing.