A Case for Leadership Development in Nursing Practice.

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) (2011) report, 'The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health,' was inspired by a vision to strengthen nursing leadership to help transform health care. Paralleling the IOM report, a core belief of the American Nephrology Nurses Association is to provide nurses with leadership opportunities, and encourage nurses to seize opportunities to develop and polish their leadership skills. This article discusses 'The Leadership Challenge' as one model for leadership development that can propel individuals, including nurses, toward exemplary leadership. The article presents the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership within 'The Leadership Challenge' as an effective evidence-based path to achieving the extraordinary.