Director of nursing effectiveness. DON and CEO perspectives and implications for education

As part of a study, directors of nursing (DONs) and chief executive officers (CEOs) were asked what makes an effective nurse executive and were questioned about their educational and experiential backgrounds. More than four-fifths of the DONs and four-fifths of the CEOs said that effective DONs need knowledge about general and fiscal management and about nursing and the health-care field. The second most frequently mentioned factor was human management skill. DONs tended to view their positions as more political than did CEOs. DON and CEO perspectives on what makes DONs effective have implications for educational programs preparing nurse administrators.