[The organizational projects management led by head nurses: qualitative study from an educational device.]

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Nursing Leadership
• Organizational Change

Background:

• Head nurses' (HN) role in operational coordination is well-documented, but their capacity for driving organizational change and practice innovation is less explored.
• HN initiate and lead diverse organizational projects, impacting their teams, institutional hierarchy, and inter-departmental collaborations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the nature and outcomes of organizational projects led by head nurses.
• To identify key success factors for HN-led change initiatives in healthcare settings.

Main Methods:

• An intervention study was conducted over one year, following 17 organizational projects led by HN.
• Qualitative analysis focused on HN's strategies for managing inter-actor relationships and negotiations.

Main Results:

• Mutual understanding among stakeholders is the primary condition for successful HN-led projects.
• Engaging healthcare teams in solution development leads to sustainable results.
• HN employ relationship-building with hierarchy and integrative negotiation with other departments.

Conclusions:

• Formalizing organizational projects and fostering open discussions on work organization are crucial.
• HN-led initiatives demonstrate significant potential for improving healthcare practices and work environments.
• Training HN in operational auditing is a relevant professional development activity.