Graduate-Entry Non-Nursing Students: Is Emotional Intelligence the Difference?

: Despite numerous measures of their success, nurses from graduate nursing programs for non-nurses (GPNNN) often struggle to find acceptance in the workplace. Employers frequently describe these nurses' superior psycho/social capabilities when compared to traditionally educated nurses, but little substantiating quantitative data exist to support this. This study explored nursing students' psycho/social ability by comparing measured emotional intelligence (EI) ability among students from four nursing schools, including one GPNNN program. Findings included significantly higher scores in the EI subscore "understanding emotions" for GPNNN students over two of the three comparison nursing programs, even when data were controlled for age.

Do emergency nurses have enough emotional intelligence?

A significant body of research suggests there is a correlation between measured emotional intelligence (EI) abilities and performance in nursing. The four critical elements of EI, namely the abilities to identify emotions correctly in self and others, using emotions to support reasoning, understanding emotions and managing emotions, apply to emergency care settings and are important for safe patient care, teamwork, retention and burnout prevention. This article describes 'emotional labour' and the importance of EI abilities for emergency nurses, and suggests that such abilities should be considered core competencies for the profession.

Long-term central IV access in patients with mitochondrial disease.

Mitochondrial disease results from alteration in genes that control mitochondrial function. Patients with this disease present with multisystem organ involvement that may include gastrointestinal (GI) tract dysfunction, including obstruction, pseudo obstruction, bowel infarction and malabsorption syndromes. For this reason, care of this population may require long-term central intravenous (IV) access for administration of hyperalimentation, fluid, medications and blood products. Additionally, these patients may be immunosuppressed and at risk of sepsis. With vulnerability across many organ systems, symptom exacerbation can result from any physiological, psychological, or environmental stressor. There is no cure for mitochondrial disease, and quality-of-life goals are paramount. If GI tract dysfunction develops, treatment may require high-acuity level home care that includes the use of a central IV access device. This article presents an overview of this challenging population, and a plan for safe and effective central IV access care.

Understanding mitochondrial disease and goals for its treatment.

Mitochondrial disease is a progressive, debilitating, incurable illness that results from mutation of genes that regulate mitochondrial function. The disease can manifest in utero or at birth, during childhood, or have a delayed onset in adulthood. Mitochondrial disease can be transmitted as a genetically carried mutation or develop as a spontaneous genetic mutation later in life. As a multisystem disease with a highly variable clinical presentation, mitochondrial disease can present as 'any disease with any symptoms at any age'. Consequently, all patients with progressive, unexplained multisystem illness should be evaluated for mitochondrial disease. Treatment goals include slowing of disease progression and maximising quality of life. There is no cure for this illness. Effective interdisciplinary care includes energy management, nutritional support, physical therapy and emotional support for the patient and their family.

Creating innovative models of clinical nursing education.

Although nursing care has changed significantly over the past 30 years, methods to clinically train nursing students have not. The traditional model of clinical nursing education, where a faculty member oversees a group of six to eight students on an acute care unit for a 4- to 8-hour shift, provides a haphazard approach to learning. A need exists to find innovative ways to effectively train more nursing students to better prepare them for today's health care environment. Using a change framework, seven approaches to clinical nursing education were created through academic-practice partnerships. These approaches may increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the clinical nursing education system.

The impact of emotional intelligence development on nurse managers.

BACKGROUND: The role of nurse managers has a scope and range of accountability that place them at risk for high turnover and role exhaustion. Emotional intelligence (EI) was chosen as a focus for this study because of overwhelming evidence in the literature that relates EI with leadership effectiveness, retention, and both physical and emotional wellness. PURPOSE: This pilot study was undertaken to explore the impact of a peer coaching intervention on EI abilities of nurse managers. DESIGN: An exploratory, quantitative, pre- and posttest design was utilized. SETTING AND POPULATION: The study took place at a private tertiary care medical center in Honolulu, Hawaii. From an initial sample of 31 nurse managers, 48% (15) completed the 6-month intervention and study posttest. METHOD: The intervention consisted of initial training sessions on EI and peer coaching skills, followed by weekly one-to-one peer coaching and monthly check-in group meetings. FINDINGS: All participants who completed the study perceived that the peer coaching intervention improved their EI abilities and general management performance. CONCLUSION: Participants reported peer coaching's positive effect on their EI and performance skills during a period of unusually high organizational stress, providing evidence for the positive effect of the study intervention.

Relationship Between Emotional Intelligence and Occupational Stress Levels Among Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists.

Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) are exposed to multiple job-related stressors and therefore experience high levels of occupational stress and job burnout. In healthcare systems, job burnout from occupational stress may lead to poor patient care and safety outcomes. Prior research findings suggest nurses who reported higher levels of emotional intelligence (EI) had significantly lower work-related stress and less job burnout than nurses who reported lower levels of EI. To date, the relationship between EI and occupational stress among CRNAs has not been studied. The purpose of this study was to determine if a relationship exists between EI levels and workplace stress levels among CRNAs. A descriptive survey design was used to answer the research question. Findings from the study reveal a significant relationship between the levels of EI and levels of stress in the CRNA population surveyed (r = -0.20, P = .01). CRNAs who reported higher levels of EI experienced less workplace stress than CRNAs who reported lower levels of EI. Additional findings suggest that CRNAs who have higher levels of EI are better able to cope with occupational stressors. Developing and implementing strategies to increase EI among CRNAs may be key to decreasing work-related stress and burnout.

Emotional intelligence, performance, and retention in clinical staff nurses.

BACKGROUND: Emotional intelligence has been correlated with performance, retention, and organizational commitment in professions other than nursing. A 2006 pilot study provided the first evidence of a correlation between emotional intelligence and performance in clinical staff nurses. A follow-up study was completed, the purpose of which was to explore emotional intelligence, performance level, organizational commitment, and retention. METHODS: A convenience sample of 350 nurses in a large medical center in urban Hawaii participated in this study. This article reports the findings pertaining to the subset of 193 clinical staff nurses who responded. The Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test instrument was used to measure emotional intelligence abilities. Performance was defined as ranking on a clinical ladder. Commitment was scored on a Likert scale. The following variables measured retention: total years in nursing, years in current job, total years anticipated in current job, and total anticipated career length. CONCLUSIONS: Emotional intelligence scores in clinical staff nurses correlated positively with both performance level and retention variables. Clinical staff nurses with higher emotional intelligence scores demonstrated higher performance, had longer careers, and greater job retention.

Identifying emotional intelligence in professional nursing practice.

The National Center for Health Workforce Analysis projects that the shortage of registered nurses in the United States will double by 2010 and will nearly quadruple to 20% by 2015 (Bureau of Health Professionals Health Resources and Services Administration. [2002]. Projected supply, demand, and shortages of registered nurses, 2000-2020 [On-line]. Available: http:bhpr.hrsa.gov/healthworkforce/reports/rnprojects/report.htm). The purpose of this study was to use the conceptual framework of emotional intelligence to analyze nurses' stories about their practice to identify factors that could be related to improved nurse retention and patient/client outcomes. The stories reflected evidence of the competencies and domains of emotional intelligence and were related to nurse retention and improved outcomes. Nurses recognized their own strengths and limitations, displayed empathy and recognized client needs, nurtured relationships, used personal influence, and acted as change agents. Nurses were frustrated when organizational barriers conflicted with their knowledge/intuition about nursing practice, their communications were disregarded, or their attempts to create a shared vision and teamwork were ignored. Elements of professional nursing practice, such as autonomy, nurse satisfaction, respect, and the professional practice environment, were identified in the excerpts of the stories. The shortage of practicing nurses continues to be a national issue. The use of emotional intelligence concepts may provide fresh insights into ways to keep nurses engaged in practice and to improve nurse retention and patient/client outcomes.

Could Emotional Intelligence Make Patients Safer?

: The vast majority of medical errors occurring each year involve faulty communication. For this reason, it's essential that we identify skills that support accurate communication and information transfer as well as optimum patient-centered care, team function, and patient safety. Research in nursing and other disciplines has demonstrated that emotional intelligence abilities improve communication, support constructive conflict resolution, and improve individual and team performance. Although further studies are needed, these findings suggest emotional intelligence ability can positively affect patient safety.

Correlating Emotional Intelligence and Job Performance Among Jordanian Hospitals' Registered Nurses.

PROBLEM: Emotional intelligence (EI) is an ability to recognize our and others' emotions, and manage emotions in ourselves and in relationships with other people. A large body of research evidence outside nursing shows that measured (EI) abilities correlated with employee performance, motivation, and job satisfaction; and preliminary nursing research evidence shows the correlation between EI ability and nurses' clinical performance. There is less research on the EI ability of Jordanian nurses, and the present study was undertaken to address this gap. METHODS: A descriptive, cross-sectional, correlation comparative design (nonexperimental) was employed. Six Jordanian hospitals were included in the study. Two hundred fifty questionnaires were distributed to prospective participants. One hundred ninety-four questionnaires were returned, giving a response rate of 78%. EI was measured using the Genos Instrument. Clinical performance was measured using a self-report measure. FINDINGS: Findings demonstrated significant positive relationships between all subscales of EI and job performance, ranging from r = .250, p = .000 to r = .193, p = .007. Regression analysis indicated working in medical-surgical wards, recognizing and expressing emotions scores (ß = 0.186, p = .048), and controlling emotions (ß = 0.255, p = .027) explained 19.1% of variance in nurses' job performance. CONCLUSIONS: The study findings confirm the correlation between nurse EI ability and clinical performance.

A model for the role of emotional intelligence in patient safety.

Medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the USA, resulting in over 440,000 deaths/year. Although over a decade has passed since the first Institute of Medicine study that documented such horrific statistics and despite significant safety improvement efforts, serious progress has yet to be achieved. It is estimated that 80% of medical errors result from miscommunication among health care providers and between providers and patients. There is preliminary research evidence that communication skills programs can improve safety outcomes, but a systematic theoretical framework for such programs has not been identified. Because of the connection between emotional intelligence (EI) ability and communication effectiveness, EI has been called by some "one of the largest drivers of patient safety." Little literature has explored this relationship. The purpose of this article was to present a theoretical model for the relationship between EI, communication and patient safety, with conceptual and clinical illustrations used to describe such a relationship.

Measured emotional intelligence ability and grade point average in nursing students.

BACKGROUND: For most schools of nursing, grade point average is the most important criteria for admission to nursing school and constitutes the main indicator of success throughout the nursing program. In the general research literature, the relationship between traditional measures of academic success, such as grade point average and postgraduation job performance is not well established. In both the general population and among practicing nurses, measured emotional intelligence ability correlates with both performance and other important professional indicators postgraduation. Little research exists comparing traditional measures of intelligence with measured emotional intelligence prior to graduation, and none in the student nurse population. OBJECTIVE: This exploratory, descriptive, quantitative study was undertaken to explore the relationship between measured emotional intelligence ability and grade point average of first year nursing students. DESIGN SETTING AND SAMPLE: The study took place at a school of nursing at a university in the south central region of the United States. Participants included 72 undergraduate student nurse volunteers. METHODS: Emotional intelligence was measured using the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test, version 2, an instrument for quantifying emotional intelligence ability. Pre-admission grade point average was reported by the school records department. RESULTS: Total emotional intelligence (r=.24) scores and one subscore, experiential emotional intelligence(r=.25) correlated significantly (>.05) with grade point average. CONCLUSIONS: This exploratory, descriptive study provided evidence for some relationship between GPA and measured emotional intelligence ability, but also demonstrated lower than average range scores in several emotional intelligence scores. The relationship between pre-graduation measures of success and level of performance postgraduation deserves further exploration. The findings of this study suggest that research on the relationship between traditional and nontraditional measures of academic success, and emotional intelligence correlation with postgraduation performance, is warranted.

Developing emotional intelligence ability in oncology nurses: a clinical rounds approach.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: To explore the feasibility and impact of an emotional intelligence ability development program on staff and patient care. DESIGN: A mixed method, pre/post-test design. SETTING: A tertiary care hospital in urban Honolulu, HI. Rounds took place on a 24-bed inpatient oncology unit. SAMPLE: 33 RNs in an oncology unit. METHODS: After collection of baseline data, the emotional intelligence rounds were conducted in an inpatient oncology nursing unit on all shifts during a 10-month period. MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES: Demographic information, emotional intelligence scores, data from rounds, chart reviews of emotional care documentation, and unit-wide satisfaction and safety data. FINDINGS: The ability to identify emotions in self and others was demonstrated less frequently than expected in this population. The low test response rate prevented comparison of scores pre- and postintervention. CONCLUSIONS: The staff's 94% participation in rounds, the positive (100%) evaluation of rounds, and poststudy improvements in emotional care documentation and emotional care planning suggest a positive effect from the intervention. Additional research is recommended over a longer period of time to evaluate the impact emotional intelligence specifically has on the staff's identification of emotions. Because the intervention involved minimal time and resources, feasibility for continuation of the intervention poststudy was rated "high" by the research team. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING: Research in other disciplines suggests that improvement in emotional intelligence ability in clinical staff nurses may improve retention, performance, and teamwork in nursing, which would be of particular significance in high-risk clinical practice environments. KNOWLEDGE TRANSLATION: Few research studies have explored development of emotional intelligence abilities in clinical staff nurses. Evidence from this study suggests that interventions in the clinical environment may be used to develop emotional intelligence ability. Impact from such development may be used in the future to not only improve the quality of nursing care, but also potentially limit the negative effects of high-stress environments on nurses.

Measuring the emotional intelligence of clinical staff nurses: an approach for improving the clinical care environment.

BACKGROUND: Significant correlations have been demonstrated between emotional intelligence (EI) and high levels of performance and other organizational variables related to retention and workplace environment. Although these variables are also important for safe care and healthy work relationships, there is little research on the EI of clinical staff nurses. The purpose of this study was to measure EI as related to performance level of clinical staff nurses, and to collect data on important related career/organizational variables. METHODS: Thirty-six nurses in 3 urban hospitals in Honolulu, Hawaii, participated. EI, nursing performance level, and career/organizational variables were measured. DISCUSSION: Significant positive correlations between clinical performance level and EI scores were observed. However, a large percentage of the clinical staff demonstrated below average total EI scores and subscores (perceiving emotions, experiencing emotions). CONCLUSIONS: Findings from this study offer the first evidence that the performance level of clinical staff nurses correlates positively with EI. A high percentage of nurses in this study scored below average on both total EI score and important subscores. These findings warrant further investigation. EI may offer a framework and specific skills to enhance collaboration, positive conflict behaviors, and healthy relationships in the clinical care environment.