How nurse leaders are connected internationally.

AIM: To determine whether communication networks exist in a diverse and competitively selected cohort of nurse leaders, and to identify variables that explain any patterns of connection.

METHOD: Twenty seven nurse leaders completed a form to ascertain the presence and strength of communication between participants. Data were analysed using social network analysis, generating a visualisation of the network and associated quantitative measures.

RESULTS: Participants were poorly connected. Those connections that did exist centred on geographic proximity and participation in regional and global bodies.

CONCLUSION: These results help improve understanding of how nurse leaders are connected internationally, and prompt inquiry in to how connections might be strengthened.