WAYS OF UNDERSTANDING LEADERSHIP BY POLISH NURSES

Nowadays, when highly-educated Polish nurses are still fighting for a decent pay and for improving the status of their profession within the healthcare system, new action plans to keep them in the profession in Poland are being actively sought after. Solutions proposed to date are insufficient, as the problem is much more complex. The potential of the professional role of nurses, arising among others from the curriculum of their B.Sc. and M.Sc. studies, exceeds significantly health science and includes elements of psychology, sociology and management. Their role in the healthcare system is also special as they are required not only to provide excellent care to patients, but also to organise their own work efficiently, and in some cases also to engage in management activities. Therefore, it seems that they need a chance to have a real impact on the development of healthcare institutions to improve the system and strengthen their professional position. A chance to explore nurses' potential may be created by leadership understood as bottom-up actions based on full participation. But how do nurses understand leadership in the context of healthcare organisations? Do they see it as a chance to develop themselves, their profession and healthcare institutions? The aim of the article is to present how Polish nurses understand leadership and to identify the potential related thereto in order to improve the management of healthcare institutions. An electronic questionnaire was used, directed at professional Polish nurses. The conclusions from the study have allowed for the formulation of specific recommendations useful in healthcare organisation management. The guidance may be especially interesting to directors of healthcare institutions, heads of wards, ward nurses as well as all others interested in healthcare leadership.