Re-Imagine a World Where Nurses Are Leaders
Re-imagine:
To imagine again or anew;
Especially, to form a new conception of;
to re-create.
--Merriam Webster
The matriarch elephant competently leads as the most trusted member of the herd. She is easily identifiable since the herd gravitates to her for guidance and relies on her experience and wisdom more than any other individual elephant.
The matriarch elephant also rises as the distinctive leader during a crisis. She has earned respect from the herd through her lived examples of wisdom, confidence, intelligence, and deep connection to the well-being of the other elephants. The herd defers to her decisions and follows her lead on their next course of action which allows them to survive and thrive.
Like the elephant matriarch, nursing is in a unique position to influence, direct, inform, and lead healthcare in the 21st century as the most trusted profession in the nation. However, to lead healthcare transformation, nurses must first re-imagine themselves as leaders.
Unfortunately, the profession of nursing has lacked cohesiveness and has failed to communicate a consistent brand image which has made assuming the mantle of leadership elusive and improbable.
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The image of nursing held by the public and fed by the media is often diverse and incongruous, yet nurses have failed to respond by delivering targeted messages which create and sustain a positive brand image (Hoeve, et al, 2014).
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The absence of intentional brand management has been described as a major contributor to the public’s ongoing perception of nurses as “non-decision making caregivers” who depend upon physician orders to direct the care they provide (Cabaniss, 2011, p. 117).
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The media continues to represent nurses using symbols of caring and femininity (Kalisch, Begeny & Neumann, 2007; Hallam, 2012) rather than as intellectuals essential to healthcare (Cabaniss, 2011).
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Treiber & Jones describe a “dichotomy” between nursing (care) and medicine (cure), with medicine assuming “the more valued and prestigious half of the dichotomy” (2014, p. 152). Nurses have “steadfastly adhered to the science of caring” which may have limited their ability to evolve beyond the dualism of care/cure (p. 152).
It is critically important for nurses to understand the image their profession wishes to convey, how the image falls short, and what they can do to improve it. A re-branding strategy that does not include a focus on “caring” is not meant to imply that caring is not an integral, if not the central component of nursing practice. However, the brand position message that “nursing is a caring profession” has been successfully delivered and fully accepted by nurses and the public alike. It is time for the profession to expand upon its caring image and strategically message the characteristics of nursing that are not well known or easily apparent to the public, or even to the nursing profession itself: NURSES ARE LEADERS.
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A common misperception among nurses is that the term “leadership” implies executive functions (not a “typical” staff nurse).
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To address this persistent issue, the nursing profession needs to implement unified strategies that convey the brand image of “Nurses are Leaders” within and across all domains and levels of nursing (education, practice, leadership, administration) and differentiate their value to the public as influential decision-makers in the healthcare industry (Finkelman & Kenner, 2013; Godsey, et al, 2020a; IOM, 2011).
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A “re-imagined” approach to the Nurse Leader Brand Image could provide the framework for how Nurse Leaders apply the competencies of diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout every corner of nursing practice as they translate the social determinants of health through the ethical decision-making capacity and innovative thinking of a Nurse Leader, who has been taught not only to competently advocate for their patients but to also confidently carry the mantle of leadership for the nursing profession.
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Associations of nurses as influential leaders and expert healthcare providers would elevate nursing’s contributions as essential to the provision of local, national, and global healthcare initiatives (Godsey, et al, 2020b).
The brand position message that “nursing is a caring profession” has been successfully delivered and fully accepted by nurses and the public alike.
It is time for the profession to expand upon its caring image and strategically message the characteristics of nursing that are not well known or easily apparent to the public, or even to the nursing profession itself:
NURSES ARE LEADERS.
--Godsey, et al., 2020
Recommendations
The nursing profession has consistently struggled to communicate a brand image that conveys its complex role in a changing healthcare landscape (Cabaniss, 2011; Rezaei-Adaryani, et al., 2012). When an organization or profession fails to articulate its own brand image, others outside of the profession are in a position to fill the void with other images, frequently based on their own agendas (Gallo, 2018; Kotler, et al, 2002). For example, the media often portrays outdated or sensationalized images of nursing to fit the expectations held by audiences. The public, unaware of nursing’s advanced degrees and technical competencies, continues to acknowledge the contributions of nurses primarily based on attributes of caring and kindness, and as subservient caretakers who take orders from physicians (Buresh & Gordon, 2013; Cohen, 2007; Finkelman & Kenner, 2013).
So how do we address the persistent inconsistent brand image of nursing?
The recommendations described below are the result of many years of interprofessional research conducted with my colleague, Dr. Tom Hayes, Dean of Xavier University’s Williams College of Business, and an international expert on branding and marketing. Findings from our studies, using newly developed and empirically sound Brand Image of Nursing Scales©, are entirely consistent with decades of literature that nursing lacks a consistent brand image (Godsey, et al., 2018; Godsey, et al., 2020). Nurses in our study (2020) clearly indicated a desire to live the brand image of “Patient-Centered Caregivers”, as well as “Leaders in Practice, Education, and Research.
Recommendations for diffusing the Nurse Leader Brand Image within and across the profession include:
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Intentionally develop Nurse Leaders who exemplify the competencies of diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout every domain of nursing practice, and who translate the determinants of health through the ethical decision-making and innovative thinking of a leader.
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Actively manage a consistent, intentional, and desirable brand for the nursing profession across all various markets (e.g. academia, practice, administration, advocacy, research).
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Strategically “re-imagine” the education of the nursing workforce in a way that boldly targets the lack of autonomy, influence, and empowerment that persists for nursing’s professional brand image by weaving the Nurse Leader Brand Image throughout college curricula (from the first course to the last).
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Use the Nurse Leader Brand Image as the foundation of institutional strategic plans, policy/advocacy, organizational priorities, and college curricula.
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Develop a consistent brand identity for nursing which articulates the profession’s strategies for implementation across diverse media platforms.
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Competently advocate for patients while confidently carrying the mantle of leadership when advocating for the nursing profession.
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Develop nurse leaders who can effectively communicate a Nurse Leader Brand Image that conveys an influential and autonomous position that is clear, relevant, and consistently managed across all corners of the nursing profession.
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Develop a coordinated marketing strategy that consistently and accurately reflects the Nurse Leader Brand Image across all nursing specialties and organizations.
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Foster communication threads nurses as influential leaders and competent healthcare providers throughout practice, education, and professional environments.
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Translate the Nurse Leader Brand Image by competently advocating for the nursing profession in a manner that is consistent, positive, relevant, accurate, and distinctive.
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Intentionally communicate the professional contributions of nursing in the media and aggressively seek to correct inaccurate stereotypes.
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Manage the Nurse Leader Brand Image via frequent reviews and updates which accurately reflect the evolving role of the nurse leader.
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Effectively communicate a professional brand message the conveys an influential and autonomous position for nurses that is clear, relevant, and consistently managed across all corners of the nursing profession.
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Develop marketing strategies that communicate a meaningful strategy for the nursing profession while moving perceptions of the nursing profession to a more desirable perceptual landscape.
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Assess objectively the strategic issues associated with the Nurse Leader Brand Image in terms of strengths and weaknesses (internal brand issues) and opportunities and threats (external brand issues).
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Engage in public discourse in a manner that communicates a clear, strong position and articulates nurses’ essential contributions and unique value to health care.
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Conduct a comprehensive brand audit to illuminate inherent threats to the Nurse Leader Brand Image.
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Examine the role of gender and racial inequity as contributing factors to the inconsistent brand image for the profession.
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Implement brand strategies that enhance the professionalism of nurses and ensure their essential contributions to the growth and development of organizations.
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Protect the nursing brand from being controlled by outside sources, such as the media, or competitors who are external to the nursing profession.
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Actively seek the allocation of financial and institutional resources that elevate and highlight the intrinsic value of nurses.
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Ensure relevancy and currency of the Nurse Leader Brand Image through ongoing engagement and research with the patient and non-patient stakeholders alike.
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Implement intentional communication strategies within the profession that ensure nurses remain aware of the nature and importance of the relevant associations tied to the nursing brand.
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Communicate nursing’s Nurse Leader Brand Image across all the major professional nursing associations who are in a strategic position to effectively and efficiently diffuse a unified message that is accurate and desirable for the nursing profession.
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Emphasize nurses' role as equal partners with physicians and essential members of the interprofessional team.
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Translate nursing’s desired brand position to consumer and stakeholder groups (healthcare, academia, practice, research, etc) by highlighting nursing’s distinctive and essential contributions to healthcare.
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Elevate the global status of the nursing profession by equipping nurses with the resources necessary to lead innovative solutions that actively address the health challenges of the 21st Century (WHO, 2020)
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Establish clear connections between the Nurse Leader Brand Image and positive health outcomes/experiences for patients.
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Assume nursing leadership on key global issues, such as workforce development, healthcare access, and pandemic preparedness. Ensure that nursing is represented at all stages of future healthcare reforms in order to meet international challenges.
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Recruit and retain active nurse leader involvement in national, regional, and local health care boards and committees.
(Godsey et al., 2020)
…nurses will need leadership skills and competencies to act as full partners with physicians and other health professionals in redesign and reform efforts across the health care system.
--IOM, 2011
It is time for the nursing profession to re-imagine itself and
boldly assume the mantle of leadership
as they direct, inform and lead patient-centered care
as the public’s most trusted profession.
--Judi Godsey
Nurses are currently visible as leaders
on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic
where their unwavering dedication, competency, and expert contributions
are being recognized and lauded by the public and the media.
Perhaps there is no better time than now
for nurses to aggressively pursue a brand image that is
consistent, positive, relevant, accurate, distinctive, and long overdue:
Nurse Are Leaders.
(Godsey, et al, 2020)
Source: Kentucky Nurses Association, 2020
Although the public is not used to viewing nurses as leaders,
and not all nurses begin their career with thoughts of becoming a leader,
all nurses must be leaders…
--IOM, 2011