Nurse execs reshape patient care during the pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic is altering the nursing profession, and nurse executives are seizing the moment to strengthen the profession. Two AONL members recently discussed their experiences with HealthLeaders magazine. Natalia Cineas, DNP, RN, senior vice president and system chief nurse executive at NYC Health + Hospitals in New York City, emphasized the importance of interprofessional teamwork. The all-hands-on-deck approach to patient care in her city sent notions about specialty boundaries “out the door” and “solidified the fact that we’re all one profession,” she said. Sheila Kempf, PhD, RN, chief nursing officer, Penn Medicine Princeton Health in Plainsboro, N.J., described the many steps her organization took to address nurses' mental health during the pandemic and urged health care leaders to view this as a long-term issue. (HealthLeaders Media article, 10/16/20)