Strengthening Moral Courage Among Nurse Leaders

Moral distress among practicing nurses is frequently discussed in the nursing literature, along with well-developed recommendations for increasing moral courage in practicing nurses. Implementing these recommendations depends on nurse leaders being morally fit to lead and to create an environment in which moral courage actions can emerge. The literature is lacking pertaining to nurse leaders' preparation to lead in a morally courageous and transformational manner in our current corporate environments and hierarchies of healthcare. In this article, the author reviews the literature addressing moral distress and moral courage among direct care nurses; describes the development of an intervention to strengthen the moral courage of nurse leaders; reports a study that involved implementing this intervention; presents the findings of this study; evaluates the effectiveness of the intervention; and discusses the findings in terms of lessons learned and future directions. He concludes with a call for healthcare leaders to demonstrate moral courage and create environments that promote morally courageous acts that enable nurses to remain centered on the patients, families, and communities we serve.