Clinical leadership in nursing students: A concept analysis

Abstract

Objectives: To undertake a concept analysis of clinical leadership in nursing students.

Design: Concept analysis.

Data sources: A comprehensive search was conducted using the Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Medline and PsychINFO using the following search terms: clinical leadership AND management AND preregistration OR pre-registration OR undergraduate AND nursing student* OR student nurse*.

Review methods: Nursing student clinical leadership was explored using the eight-step process of concept analysis proposed by Walker and Avant (2014).

Results: The defining attributes included effective interpersonal communication skills, contemporary clinical knowledge and being a role model to others.

Conclusion: This concept analysis provides a definition of clinical leadership in nursing students. It will support understanding of the concept and how it is enacted in clinical placement settings.

Keywords: Clinical placement; Concept analysis; Leadership; Nursing students; Pre-registration.