Abstract: Objective: To investigate the status quo of ICU nurses' clinical leadership in tertiary grade A general hospitals in Shandong province and analyze the influencing factors. Methods: From April to July 2021, 335 ICU nurses from 18 tertiary grade A general hospitals in Shandong province were selected as the research objects by using the convenient sampling method. A cross-sectional survey was conducted by general data questionnaire, Clinical Leadership Survey and Emotional Intelligence Scale. Results: The average score of ICU nurses' clinical leadership was 4.22±0.52, and the scores of each dimension from high to low were Modeling the Way, Enabling Others to Act, Challenging the Process, Encouraging the Heart and Inspiring a Shared Vision. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that emotional intelligence, concurrent position, professional title and ICU working years were the influencing factors of ICU nurses' clinical leadership (P<0.05). Conclusion: ICU nurses' clinical leadership in 18 tertiary grade A general hospitals of Shandong province is above the medium level. The development of ICU nurses' clinical leadership is affected by many aspects, among which emotional intelligence has the greatest impact on ICU nurses' clinical leadership. Nursing managers can improve ICU nurses' clinical leadership level by improving their emotional intelligence.

Key words: ICU; nurse; clinical leadership; influencing factors