Making female first‐line nurse managers more effective: a Delphi study of occupational stress

A two‐round Delphi study was conducted with a panel of 41 Canadian female nurse managers selected from hospitals with at least 100 beds, in the province of Alberta, Canada. The Delphi study examined the changing roles of First‐line nurse managers (FLNMs) and major challenges they face with the aim of identifying major stressors and presenting recommendations for senior health care administrators to effectively support FLNMs in the future. Findings underscored the need to better prepare FLNMs for their changing and challenging roles. Organizations need to provide FLNMs with the resources to ensure quality patient care and enable them to spend more quality time executing their management responsibilities. Health care organizations should consider using a more participative management style, with mentoring, to empower and effectively use the extensive experience of their FLNMs to tackle the challenges of the future.