This study aims to examine nurses’ leadership orientations, patient-centered care practices and the relationship between the two.
Descriptive research design was used in this study. The study population consisted of 349 nurses working in adult wards of a university hospital in Turkiye. Data were collected between August 2021 and September 2021 using the “Individual Information Form”, “Multidimensional Leadership Orientations Scale (MLOS)” and “Patient-Centered Care Competency Scale (PCCS)” with 185 nurses who agreed to participate in the study.
The total PCCS score was 72.90 ± 8.23 and the total MLOS was 75.9 ± 10.69. A positive, moderate relationship was found between nurses’ leadership orientations and patient-centered care competencies.
The study population consisted of nurses (N = 349) working in adult wards at a university hospital. The sample consisted of nurses working in adult medical and surgical units who were selected by simple random sampling and volunteered to participate (n = 185). Nurses working in pediatric units, where a family centered care approach is prominent, were excluded from the study to focus on patient-centered care.
In practice, organizations should align patient-centered care training with unit-level leadership programs; they should standardize “participation-encouraging” behaviors through phased development models for unit managers and clinical nurses. This approach can create a sustainable foundation for improving patient experience and team functioning.
Although there are many studies on the concepts of leadership and patient-centered care (PCC) in the literature, only a limited number of studies have examined the role of leadership in the context of PCC. In existing studies, leadership has been examined from the perspective of managers or nurse educators, not nurses. Our study fills this gap in the literature by offering a different perspective for both healthcare managers and nurses. Beyond aligning with recent evidence on education and mentorship effects on PCC, this study adds novel nurse-level quantitative evidence linking structural and political leadership orientations with the “promoting patient involvement” and “providing patient comfort” patient-centered care subscales.
