Editorial.

Abstract

Whilst 2020 is set to be another challenging year for the world, it has been designated by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as a celebratory one for Nurses and Midwives. This is the first time that such a designation has been made, and whilst it draws attention to those professions it also encourages individuals and organisations to celebrate the everyday work, as well as the extraordinary work, of nurses and midwives. Here at JRN we are starting our year with an issue celebrating the many ways through which care is led – be that through leading people, practice, change or insights; as a nurse, a patient/service user or a carer. The papers and commentaries cross countries and specialties; they range from a managerial perspective in Indonesia (Gunawan et al.) to a safety perspective in Korea (Kim et al.), from adherence to treatments in Iran (Zakeri et al.) to links between thriving, trusting and innovation in Pakistan (Afsar and Umrani). They conclude with a paper from the UK exploring how patients can lead care by recognising and reporting feelings of wellness and clinical deterioration (Albutt et al.). Each of these topics sheds light on some aspect of leadership. Leading effectively is vital for the provision of high-quality care and the growth and sustenance of the nursing workforce as well as the profession of Nursing, yet effective leadership, as we have often shown in JRN, is a conundrum. Leading well is complex and simple, tangible and intangible, measurable and immeasurable, sensed and experienced – it is a craft that needs skill and practice, but all too often the essence of effective leadership is elusive. Six years ago, Tony Butterworth, in his editorial (2014), asked if nursing leaders were hiding in plain sight. JRN has never provided an answer to that, so this year, to celebrate the Year of the Nurse and the Midwife, we invite leaders to come out of hiding to show us what the essence of innovative and effective leadership is and how it can make a difference. In every issue JRN can run a ‘Perspectives’ piece; this year we plan to cluster these around leadership and ask nurses (in the broadest possible sense), and people using healthand social-care services, to send us their stories of excellent leadership for inclusion in JRN. Leading takes many forms and we want to hear about them all, e.g. leading care at the bedside, in clinics or specialist units; leading teams of people through change or innovations; leading through coaching individual nurses or patients; leading through research and quality improvement; leading through policy development; political leadership and care being led by