Nursing Depts Ran by Non-Nurses?

[Reeses30135]

How do you feel about non-nursing professionals managing or directing nursing units or departments? While all of my direct superiors have been nurses (Managers, Executive Directors), I am considering employment with a healthcare organization who utilizes professionals with business degrees or health sciences degrees (with health care management experience) as Directors of nursing departments.

I'm sure they are quite capable , but I worry that the voice of the nurse may be lost or quieted. There are issues specific to the nursing profession that need to be considered whenever creating patient care policies or practices, creating protocols, revising health system processes, etc.

What do you think?

[elkpark]

I wouldn't be willing to take a job with those conditions.

[Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN]

I'm picturing leadership like this: .......

When nursing units need leadership like this:

Supremely bad idea. Like Elkpark I would never work under a non-nurse.

[SubSippi]

I currently work for a director with a business background. He is very hands off when it comes to the nurses. I think in the year I've worked for him, I've gotten a total of two emails from him.

[nutella, MSN, RN]

How do you feel about non-nursing professionals managing or directing nursing units or departments? While all of my direct superiors have been nurses (Managers, Executive Directors), I am considering employment with a healthcare organization who utilizes professionals with business degrees or health sciences degrees (with health care management experience) as Directors of nursing departments.

I'm sure they are quite capable , but I worry that the voice of the nurse may be lost or quieted. There are issues specific to the nursing profession that need to be considered whenever creating patient care policies or practices, creating protocols, revising health system processes, etc.

What do you think?

I guess it depends...

I left a position as a clinical manager working under an administrator who had no idea about healthcare and was driving the car into the ditch so to speak.

[Deepinthegame]

Business always wins against nurses

[LadyFree28, BSN, LPN, RN]

I wouldn't take a job with non-nurses running-how can someone lead nurses WITHOUT a nurse background?

Sounds detrimental to me.

[dishes, BSN, RN]

I have no strong feelings one way or the other, I have had both nurses and non-nurses as managers and the patient care policies and practices were never negatively impacted by the non-nurse managers.

[dream'n, BSN, RN]

I worked once in an OP Family Practice office with a non-nurse manager. Actually I was the only nurse in the office, the others were MAs. I had a very difficult time trying to get my manager to understand a nurse's role. She particularly didn't understand the nursing scope of practice. The MAs in the office were doing certain things that were not allowed under a nurses license and she couldn't understand why I couldn't just do whatever the doctors wanted (procedures, etc) because if the Dr ordered it "I would be protected." Needless to say I left quickly and decided I never wanted to work with a manager that wasn't a nurse and didn't understand my job.

[APRN., DNP, RN, APRN, NP]

If the managers/directors of the nursing department were Not Nurses, I would imagine that the situation would devolve into the staff having to call each other Associates”, and start wearing Hotel-esque attire, as well as making sure that the patients got the spa” experience.

[dianah, ASN]

Evaluations would be an issue. How can a non-nurse effectively evaluate a nurse, and whether the nurse is performing to nursing standards? Yes they could evaluate whether one performs to the business model/organization standards. But only a nurse can evaluate a nurse. Just my two cents.

[RiskManager]

So does the converse hold true? Would people here refuse to work in a non-nursing department that was run by a nurse?