Intrinsic case study comparing magnet and non-magnet facilities leadership competencies of Nurse Manager-Leaders

The purpose of this intrinsic case study was to compare the core leadership competencies of a Nurse Manager-Leader in culturally diverse veteran-patient medical facilities. A comparison of the perceived core leadership competencies of Nurse Managers in these veteran-patient facilities discovered the problem of the lack of preparation of potential Nurse Managers into a leadership role. Instead of assessing a Nurse's ability to lead, a promotion was based upon his or her technical expertise or the culture of the facility. The need for competent leaders has a direct impact on the patient safety, quality of care and employee retention. Employee turnover had a lasting effect on patient outcomes, such as mortality rates of patients, the average length of stay and impact employee turnover rates. Pre-screening potential leaders through pre-assessment might predict his or her success in a leadership role. The approach to collect the information for this intrinsic case study was an embedded designed survey of Nurse Managers employed in veteran-patient healthcare facilities. The two groups of participants consisted of a variety of current nurse managers from Magnet ANCC accredited hospitals and non-Magnet hospitals. This study was based upon a variety of leadership competencies identified in other studies and research with emphasis on the local veteran-patient hospital facilities serving the veteran.;Key words: Nurse Manager, patient-veteran, assessment, leadership, competencies, intrinsic case study.