The Effect of Specific Nurse Manager Attributes on the Clinical Work Environment

The nurse manager (NM) is one of the most influential positions in a health care organization. The individual in this position interfaces with patients, family members, nursing and support staff, other health care professionals, ancillary department personnel, and hospital administrators. The NM has a significant influence on staff nurse satisfaction, and the clinical work environment. Patient outcomes are influenced by staff nurse satisfaction and performance, and the clinical practice environment. Effective staff nurse performance and positive patient outcomes contribute to organizational effectiveness. Thus, the NM must possess the requisite knowledge, skills, and attributes that contribute to staff satisfaction and a healthy clinical practice environment. The American Organization for Nursing Leadership’s (AONL, 2015) NM competencies provided the framework for assessment of NM attributes to include The Art, The Science, and The Leader Within. The purpose of this study was to address NM attributes in relation to Authentic Leadership ability (The Art), Graduate Academic Preparation (The Science), and level of Emotional Intelligence (The Leader Within) and the extent to which a single attribute, or combination of attributes, has on staff nurse satisfaction and the clinical practice environment. Findings revealed that NM master’s preparation provided the only statistically significant relationship with the clinical work environment.