About the Book

Leading Change in Health Systems: Strategies for RN-BSN Students has been developed for practicing nurses returning to school to earn a Baccalaureate Degree in Nursing (BSN).  As a lifelong learner who has pursued advanced education while working and raising a family, I understand the challenges encountered by non-traditional students in balancing multiple priorities. After teaching RN-BSN courses for many years and utilizing a wide variety of textbook resources, I recognized most textbooks focus on the novice nurse and do not address the particular needs of nurses returning to school.  I have wanted to design a leadership textbook that is for non-traditional students as opposed to new graduate nurses and am grateful for the opportunity to author this textbook.

Kathy Andresen, DNP, MPH, RN, CNE University of West Florida

Intended Audience

Students

I hope you will find this resource engaging and relevant to your practice. Each chapter includes a Spotlight Application, which includes examples of leadership challenges in healthcare and is designed to apply chapter concepts in an unfolding case study. Applied Learning Activities are included in most chapters. These activities are intended for students to apply to real world situations experienced by practicing nurses in a complex health system. Appendices are included at the end of this book and include strategies for integration of leadership tools in a variety of healthcare systems. Appendix A includes Scholarly Writing Resources that are provided for reference to professional writing style that is often a challenge for nurses unaccustomed to these particular requirements.

Nurse Educators

I hope you will find this resource helpful and consider adopting it in your courses to support RN-BSN students as they balance work, home and many other priorities. Appendix F includes Teaching Strategies that provide suggestions on integration of various tools within the book, including Applied Learning Activities and Spotlight Applications.

Special Thanks & Acknowledgement 

to Cindy Gruwell, Asst. Librarian/Coordinator of Scholarly Communication and Health Sciences Librarian at the University of West Florida, for her patience and guidance through the process of adapting and publishing this OER book.

Attribution

This book is a combination of two different nursing Open Educational Resources.  Materials in this book are attributed to the following sources:

• “Leadership and Influencing Change in Nursing” by Joan Wagner.  Select content adapted for clarity and flow for RN-BSN students is licensed under CC BY 4.0
• “Nursing Management and Processional Concepts” by Chippewa Valley Technical College. Select content adapted for clarity and flow for RN-BSN students is licensed under CC BY 4.0

Next- Introduction