The Voice Abstract: Creating Structures to Nurture Leaders

Candice Alford, BSN, RN, NE-BC
Brooks Spivey, BSN, RN, MS-BC

Nurse managers across the country face the dual challenge of sustaining high-quality care while preserving personal well-being. Burnout, turnover and role overload threaten both unit outcomes and morale. This article describes how a 41-bed medical-surgical unit at WakeMed Cary (N.C.) Hospital implemented a budget-neutral leadership restructuring. It was rooted in delegation, collaboration and succession planning. This model improved staff satisfaction, reduced turnover and restored joy in leadership.

When passion meets exhaustion 

I entered management to make a difference. But I found myself chasing down missing equipment, fixing computers, ordering supplies and filling every gap. By busying myself with a plethora of small fixes, I not only burned myself out, but also kept myself from having the impact that led me to take a management job in the first place. At the end of the day, there was nothing left for my family or myself.

Countless nurse managers know this feeling well. We are accountable for everything on our units: physical space, budget, quality outcomes, staff satisfaction, patient experience, staffing, culture, turnover and morale, among other responsibilities. While we strive to finish our work, overtime takes a toll on our physical and mental health.