Increasing the intensity of nursing leadership: graduate preparation for nurse leaders.

The numbers of nurses holding formal leadership and management positions without baccalaureate preparation are disheartening. The 2008 National Sample Survey reported that approximately one-half of nurses in manager and above positions hold less than a bachelor's degree. The formal preparation of nurse leaders is critical for continued progress in advancing patient safety and quality as well as promoting innovative models of care delivery. Helping nurses in leadership positions, especially where the expectation does not already exist to have such educational preparation, is a challenge that the profession must address.