The nurse's lived experience of becoming an interprofessional leader

In the current complex health care environment, nurses in all practice settings are called on to be leaders in advocating for a healthier future. Health care reform, the rise of the evidence-based practice movement, and the proliferation of new educational options are opening opportunities as never before for nurses to expand their leadership capacity to an interprofessional level. This interpretive phenomenological study conducted with eight nurse participants describes their experience of becoming an interprofessional leader. A team of three nurse researchers interpreted the texts individually and collectively. Interview texts were analyzed hermeneutically to uncover the common shared experience of moving toward common ground with interprofessional leadership as a process, one that not only took time, but also called for self-reflection, deliberate actions, and a new mind-set. This study develops the evidence base for leadership preparation at a time when there is a strong need for interprofessional leaders and educators in health care.