Duties and Responsibilities of a Head Nurse: y y y y y y y y y Head nurses manage all the administrative duties of the departments which

they are assigned to work in They schedule shifts for the nurses and assign duties to them They collect work reports from all the nurses regarding their day-to-day activities and maintains a record of them They present the records collected from all the nurses to the respective doctors who are handling cases of those patients They assist and conduct training programs for the nurses who are new and need help They also solve any issues related to the patients Head nurses also come in direct contact with the patients and diagnose their health problems Inventory management is also one of the responsibilities of the head nurses Head nurses review and supervise the pre-operative settings made by the nurses in the operating room and make sure that they have provided required equipments to the doctors Head nurses often accompany the doctors when they go on their rounds to check the patients where they present the reports collected by them They provide necessary help to the doctors such as carrying diagnostic equipments, etc., to the doctors while they are on round for check-up They maintain a log of the entries of the patients in their wards and their health reports Head nurses also look for the hygiene in the hospital and in the rooms and make sure that the patients are provided with enough facilities and entertain all types of complaints from the patients

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Skills Required in a Head Nurse: y y y y y y y y y y y A head nurse should have expert management, administration and planning skills Ability to assist the nurses and manage the team properly by motivating the employees to work Should have good communication skills to understand the problems and resolve them In-depth knowledge of all the procedures used in the management of the hospital Sound knowledge of the equipments used in the surgical process Ability to use various diagnostic methods in diagnosis and provide primary treatment to the patients in emergency Good presentation skills to conduct training programs Enthusiastic, enduring, and willing to work for extra hours Should be focused and willing to help the patients Profound written skills and should have proficiency in handling basic computer programs used in hospital management Ability to prioritize tasks and good leadership qualities

Educational Qualifications Required in Head Nurse: To become a nurse one has to purse a 4 year degree program in nursing and should undergo training programs in the same. There are various nursing programs that offer licensure for the nurses. Certified and licensed nurses are in great demand these days. Head nurses should also have serviced as nurses for more than 4-5 years.

Head nurses are actually registered nurses who have undergone training as well as additional professional education in order to assume roles regarding nursing management. They are the persons in charge of the overall daily operations of the unit. In the organizational chart, the head nurse represents the administrative part. Nurses in the unit can have an access on the administration as well as on the higher ranks of the nursing services through head nurses. That is why it is very important for head nurses to be effective in terms of communication. Head nurses in general may assume similar roles but there would be roles exclusive only to each area of specialization. Some of the basic responsibilities a head nurse would do can be plot out and encourage the observance of nursing policies and services in a specific unit. He or she makes reports and other documentations about the units activities as well as expenses made. Such reports may also include observation done on the unit by the head nurse and being channelled out to the upper management. The working pattern is established by the head nurse because he or she schedules and arranges the nursing personnel to work for a particular day or may even assume the role of staff nurses when there is no enough manpower. Auditing is another vital role of a head nurse. He or she documents all the nursing personnels credibility to perform such tasks as well as foster trainings for staff nurses as part of the staff development. It is a must that head nurses are well rounded in terms of skills and knowledge regarding the units set up and work culture.

Giving performance appraisals on staff nurses and other allied nursing personnel are done by the head nurses. When a patient has a problem or something to complain, the head nurse might also step into the situation so that he or she can know the right story as well as give or counsel both parties on what is solution would be best for all. Head nurses have this power to protect his or her personnel also. If someone may report against his or her personnel, the head nurse represents the whole unit as well as the nursing subordinate. Being a head nurse, means combining leadership with nursing process in delivering safe and effective nursing care. He or she is also in contact to each patient with the unit because he or she is also liable of each action of the nursing personnel under him or her. They are even needed to communicate to doctors when something unusual to the patient or if something arises that needs collaboration between health team members. On the career ladder, anyone who aspires to be a head nurse must possess leadership skills coupled with good working experience. Hospital policies may also dictate the way head nurses are chosen among the candidates. As it is the first management position a staff nurse may encounter in his or her career, it is perhaps suitable to be prepared personally from the bumps that will come along the leadership role.

The life of the unit relies with the skills of a head nurse. He or she must be very versatile since the situation in the unit is unpredictable, aside from being a good leader, he or she must be a self-starter in order to promote improvement in the unit.