Understanding Disaster Leadership: A Qualitative Study from the Perspective of UMKE Nurses

Introduction: Disaster environments demand rapid decision-making, interprofessional coordination, and adaptive leadership skills, particularly from frontline healthcare workers, including nurses. In Turkey, the National Medical Rescue Team (UMKE) nurses play a crucial leadership role during disasters, yet their leadership experiences remain underexplored in the literature. This study aims to explore UMKE nurses’ perspectives on disaster leadership to inform strategies for capacity building. Methods: This descriptive qualitative study employed a phenomenological approach to explore UMKE nurses’ experiences in Turkey’s 15 ^th regional unit. Data were collected via face-to-face, semi-structured interviews with 24 nurses selected through criterion sampling and analyzed using Colaizzi’s seven-step content analysis method. Methodological rigor was ensured through member checking, research triangulation, and adherence to the COREQ guidelines. Results: Three major themes and seven subthemes were identified: (1) Leadership Competencies, including personal (resilience, decisiveness, emotional control) and professional-disaster competencies (coordination, communication, task delegation); (2) Consequences of Leadership, highlighting both positive (morale, trust, effectiveness) and adverse outcomes (conflict, inefficiency, role ambiguity); and (3) Strengthening Disaster Leadership, which emphasized the need for individual/technical development, team and community-based strategies, and psychological support systems. Conclusions: UMKE nurses perceive disaster leadership as a multifaceted role that extends beyond clinical competence to encompass ethical responsibility, emotional resilience, and adaptive team coordination. Strengthening disaster leadership requires structured training, psychosocial support, and inclusive policy frameworks that recognize and develop nurses’ leadership capacities in high-pressure environments. The findings offer critical insights for disaster preparedness planning, nurse education, and leadership development initiatives in emergency health systems. Policy and Practice Implications: Formally defining individual and professional competencies in disaster leadership and making them the main criteria in leader selection and appointments; establishing merit- and talent-based, performance-driven dynamic task allocation systems in team management; and regularly evaluating leader performance through team feedback to strengthen delegation and flexibility mechanisms stand out as priority policy steps that will enhance the effectiveness of disaster leadership. Clinical trial number: Not applicable.