By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, FAAN In his best-selling leadership book on communication, Simon Sinek notes, "All great leaders communicate in the same way. They always start with the Why.”  He notes that people won't buy into what you ask them to do without knowing the rationale behind a change. He describes this as upending the conventional path that many leaders use to … [Read more...]

By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN A nurse manager recently asked me on a program why no one talks about the impact of FMLA use on nurse staffing. She reported the following problem: "Twenty percent of my full-time staff are out right now on FMLA, and most plan to take the entire three months. By union contract, these staff keep all their benefits during this time … [Read more...]

By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN A CNO colleague recently shared that health systems tolerate terrible behavior from patients and families because they are worried about their HCAHPS scores. She noted, "We are being held hostage because these scores impact our reimbursement. It seems crazy because the demand for healthcare far exceeds our ability to supply it. … [Read more...]

By Rose O. Sherman, EdD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN During a recent leadership development program, nurse managers discussed the importance of touchpoints, recognition, and feedback to keep their younger staff engaged. One manager explained, "No news has been good during my career, but this does not work with younger staff. Today's newer nurses want a lot of feedback (especially … [Read more...]