Frank G. Ricci
Published: 2015
Total Pages: 0
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"Healthcare organizations with the highest employee engagement scores report elevated patient and staff satisfaction, as well as low numbers of patient safety incidents (Gallup, 2013). Engagement can also be influenced positively once shared governance is developed and utilized throughout a nursing department. This manner of leading a team, in which frontline staff and managers work together to exhibit shared decision-making and improve their practice, is a structure that allows direct care providers the ability to own their workflow and improve patient, staff, and organizational outcomes (Porter-O'Grady, 1991). A critical care department of an inpatient facility in which employee engagement was in question and shared governance was not being utilized, reviewed the literature and began to develop and utilize such a model through the implementation of an evidence-based practice (EBP) initiative. Engagement levels were quantified before and after the introduction and usage of the structure, with the purpose of the project being to increase nursing engagement, and therefore improve outcomes for all stakeholders. In addition to multidisciplinary staff education regarding EBP, work engagement, and shared governance, as well as small group and steering committee development, the initiative was realized in the department. A discussion regarding the process for developing, implementing, and evaluating the shared governance model, as well as its positive impact on employee engagement and stakeholder outcomes, is included. Implications for advancing nursing practice through shared governance, including its impact upon policy-making and interdisciplinary collaboration, are also discussed. Keywords: nursing, engagement, shared governance, evidence-based practice." -- Abstract.