Final answer:
The DON demonstrates a transformational leadership style by forming a committee to achieve excellent patient care with compassion, motivating them to exceed expectations.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Director of Nursing (DON) is demonstrating a transformational leadership style by forming an ad hoc committee and coaching them to reach the desired outcomes for their nursing unit. This approach is characterized by motivating and transforming members of the organization to exceed their initial expectations and performance. Transformational leaders are known for being charismatic, inspirational, intellectual stimulators, and considerate, all of which contribute to their effectiveness in leading organizational change and improvement. This is in contrast to a transactional leadership style, which focuses on supervision, organization, and achieving goals through a system of rewards and punishments. Other recognizable styles are democratic, which encourages group participation and consensus-building, and autocratic or authoritarian leadership, which is more about issuing orders and assigning tasks. The DON's approach is not reflective of transactional, democratic, autocratic, or clinical consultant styles of leadership.