Nurses' Self-Leadership in the Face of Challenging Situations, Such as Patient Deterioration

Nurses play an essential role as frontline caregivers, particularly in recognizing and responding to patient deterioration. This study addresses nurses' self-leadership in the face of challenging situations such as patient deterioration, emphasizing the importance of self-leadership skills in navigating complex patient care scenarios. Delayed recognition of subtle changes in patient's conditions has been linked to adverse outcomes, necessitating a closer examination of the role of self-leadership in nursing practice.

The objective of this research was to explore and understand the implications of self-leadership among nurses when confronted with challenging situations, specifically focusing on patient deterioration.

A qualitative, exploratory, and descriptive research design was employed, utilizing focus group discussions (FGDs) with nurses from a private hospital in Pretoria, South Africa. Semistructured interview guide facilitated the FGDs, and data saturation was achieved after the eight sessions. The sample included nurses with various qualifications and shifts, offering diverse perspectives on self-leadership in patient care. Rigorous data collection and trustworthiness measures, including member checking and verbatim transcriptions, were employed to enhance the conformability of the study.

The findings revealed six overarching themes and 15 subthemes, demonstrating the interconnectedness of self-leadership and nursing practice. Themes included responsibility and autonomy, compassion and care, support and collaboration, learning from experience, teamwork, and appreciation and recognition. These themes explained how nurses actively engaged in self-observation, constructive thought patterns, and natural reward strategies to proactively address patient deterioration.

The study underlines the significance of integrating self-leadership principles into nursing practice. Embracing self-leadership in nursing holds promise for improving patient outcomes and nurturing a resilient and competent nursing workforce.