Analyzing and Implications for Practice of Qualitative Research:
A Qualitative Study Of Charge Nurse Competencies
Yvette Thornton
Grand Canyon University
May 27, 2011
NRS 433V

The article,” A qualitative study of charge nurse competencies” by authors Yoder, Connelly and Miner-Williams in the October 2003 issue of MedSurg Nurse, focus on the lack of formal training for charge nurses and the feedback from the staff on what competencies are necessary for a charge nurse to be effective. This qualitative study sought to identify a key set of competencies that are necessary for the charge nurse to an effective leader and through effective leadership, improve patient care.
The authors reviewed current literature while researching the topic. As stated in this excerpt from the article by Yoder, Connelly and Miner-Williams(2003) such as recent articles offer advice to the new charge nurse (Costello-Nickitas, 1997; Shermont & Russell, 1996; Sonnenberg, 1999), to managers about the role (Zimmerman, 2000), or about the legal responsibilities of the team leader and charge nurse based on litigation (Mahlmeister & Koniack-Griffin, 1999).
There are no true charge nurse development or training programs or studies that focus on this issue at all. In one of the few studies about the role, Bostrom and Suter (1992) examined charge nurse decision making concerning patient assignments. They concluded that experienced charge nurses considered more factors in making assignments and relied less on the acuity system than did novice charge nurses. Some authors have described the role of the charge nurse as multifaceted, including duties of patient care, hospital protection, and staff interaction. therefore most charge nurses develop a set of competencies based on their experience and interpersonal relationships with both management and staff. Most qualitative studies are