Be still my heart! Nursing Center is featuring Nursing Administration Quarterly this month. That means the current issue is F.R.E.E. until September 1, 2011. Head over and grab the entire journal now. You know you’re going to need something from that journal. Might as well get it for free now. I’ve already blogged about one of the current articles in NAQ, and here is my second article post from the same issue. Not to mention it is on another recently blogged topic – shared governance. Enjoy!

The Article: Barden, A., Quinn Griffin, M., Donahue, M., & Fitzpatrick, J. (2011). Shared governance and empowerment in registered nurses working in a hospital setting. Nursing Administration Quarterly, 35(3): 212-218.

Big Idea: This article studies the level of perceived empowerment among 158 acute care nurses from 13 different tertiary care units and numerous nursing specialties within an organization utilizing a new shared governance model.

Survey Says!: The authors found that as the shared governance model progressed within the organization, so did nurses’ perceived empowerment.

Quotable: “Shared governance, which gives staff nurses control over their professional practice, is an essential element of a professional practice nursing model, providing structure and context for health care delivery [references]” (p. 212).

“Nurse executives play a key role in the creation and sustenance of a professional practice environment that promotes a culture of clinical excellence, autonomy, collaborative decision making, and positive interdisciplinary relationships” (p. 216).

So What?: During our tumultuous economic times, shared governance is a method for nurses to control nursing practice, leading to higher workforce satisfaction and better patient outcomes, which both impact the bottom line. In addition to providing survey results, this article provides an excellent background and history of shared governance. I learned quite a bit reading this study.