1. Which leadership theory do you most identify with or feel you utilize the most?
2. When you graduate and start working as an NP, what kind of practice role do you see yourself seeking? Which leadership theory do you feel will be most beneficial for you to utilize as an NP in the role you previously outlined? Provide rationale.
3. After reading the case study that starts on page 1, what do you think about Caroline's plan of action? What would you do different or add? What leadership theory would you use to implement the plan?

Here is the case study:

Caroline Smart FNP, CNS, RN was a hospital nursing educator until her recent graduation from a NP program. Upon graduation, the VP promoted her to the position of Director of Medical Surgical Nursing Division. This division included a 45-bed medical telemetry floor, a 60-bed telemetry surgical floor, and a 32-bed step down Medical/Surgical ICU. Caroline was excited about the promotion, but knew she would have a steep learning curve. She was delighted to discover that each of these units had an assistant director who was responsible for the staffing and day-to-day operations. Caroline would be responsibile for budgets, hiring and firing decisions, quality assurance, purchasing and employee evaluations.

The VP did have one immediate concern: there had been numerous complaints about quality of patient care (patient complaints), low staff morale, high call out rates, and difficulty recruiting new staff. The hospital had to bring on a small number of agency nurses to meet the demands of these units. This agency was a tremendous financial drain on the hospital and it could not continue. Carolyn was given 6 months to evaluate the units to determine the root cause of the problem and take corrective action.