Leadership Strategies to Increase Psychological Safety of Nurses: A Longitudinal Study

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: A work environment where employees feel comfortable taking chances without fear and with sufficient protection from retaliation is psychologically safe. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of leader training for nurse managers on psychological safety of clinical registered nurses. METHODS: The study was designed a longitudinal outcomes approach to assess nurse leader intervention (classes on leadership methods and psychological safety) with pre- and post-intervention measurement of nurse psychological safety at each time point. RESULTS: The intervention and nurse leader rounding were shown to increase individual psychological safety climate scores of clinical nurses. CONCLUSION: Psychological safety is an important component to consider in a nursing leadership role. Leadership interventions that focus on the tenets of psychological safety and include methods of being present, such as nurse leader rounding, can foster a sense of a psychologically safe environment for clinical registered nurses.