DNP (Doctor of Nursing Practice) is a terminal degree in nursing and is the highest level of education that students in this field can get. Most of DNP programs emphasize areas that support nursing leadership such as quality improvement, data-driven decision making, and systems management. Microsystems, mesosystem, and macro system are some of the systems that nursing leadership deals with in daily duties.
Micro system: The clinical micro system in healthcare system comprises of the health professionals who work directly with patients and their families. It is the smallest unit where most medical errors and mistakes occur due to poor communication among the care providers.
Mesosystem: Mesosystem is a level that interacts with a micro and macro system. It is the mid-range where a population size such as communities and organizations lie and determines the way other systems interact. Mesosystem links together the microsystems allowing them to move from different units to those supporting patients along with their range of care.
Macrosystem: Macrosystem is the container that holds meso and Microsystems together. Analysis at this level traces the outcomes of interaction such as economic and other resource transfer interactions. Healthcare does not function on its own but is reliant on the political and economic systems because they set the policy as well as determine the cost of providing the service.
Applying Dnp Leadership in the Microsystem, Mesosystem, and Macrosystem
DNP leadership in healthcare systems is visible from these two positions.
Nurse executive
A nurse executive delivers administrative practice in a health system, an organization, a program of a facility. The focus of nurses in this role is to provide visionary leadership and make strategic planning. A person in this role operates at meso or macro-system level usually at system, departmental, organization, program or service line level. DNP nurses learn in a program to prepare them for executive leadership enabling them to explore these areas:
Leadership style-DNP program allows exploration about the use of leadership models that fit the role and system. It could be participative or authoritarian leadership.
Evidence-based management (EBP) practices- DNP graduates have undergone preparation to implement EBP and adopt evidence-based management practices to fit the health care system in use.
Collaboration– Collaboration is one of the essential skills that DNP program imparts. Nurses in DNP executive leadership use the expertise to work within teams and achieve organizational goals. The program also prepares nurses in an executive to go beyond collaboration barriers such as competition and work-related boundaries. Deliberate collaboration strengthens the relationship between colleges as well as interdisciplinary teams to implement micro, meso and Microsystems.
Nurse Manager
Nurse Manager delivers the administrative practice (leadership management) for a microsystem usually at a unit level. Leadership at the nurse manager level focuses on execution and implementation. Leadership is one of the tools for accessing the success of a clinical microsystem. Others include patient focus, organizational support, and process improvement as well as well as performance results.
Nurse leadership implementation has a significant correlation with patient satisfaction. Nurse Manager in charge of a clinical microsystem supervises a small and interdependent group of people who regularly work together to offer care for a specific group of patients.
The small group is often part of a larger organization only that it focuses on a universal need or purpose. It can be a discrete unit of care such as a spine center, or intensive care unit. A clinical Microsystem will in addition to the nurse manager include doctors, other clinicians and administrative support staff with information, technology, and skills that make them critical participants in serving a population of patients in a healthcare facility.
A positive correlation between Nursing managers, other staff, and their collaborative care processes improve patient satisfaction with care quality. It also allows achieving of the best outcomes through collaborative implementation.
Excellent nursing education, leadership, and administration are essential in ensuring delivery of outstanding services to achieve best patient care within the healthcare systems.