Before I can help lead us to re-designation, I need to truly understand UAMS. That understanding starts with the people driving patient care in every unit, every clinic, every department. From the moment I walk onto a unit or into a staff meeting, I’m met with pride, energy, and a deep commitment to excellence. Each area is unique, yet they all share something powerful: great efforts in continuing to improve upon nursing-sensitive indicators and a willingness to share their stories.
What I’ve witnessed in these conversations is shared governance in action, even if it doesn’t always carry that label. When a nurse speaks about a quality improvement initiative their team implemented, that’s shared governance. When leaders can speak about the best ways to communicate and keep their staff engaged, responding with thoughtful, personalized strategies that’s shared governance. When environmental services, pharmacy, lab, and nursing collaborate to solve a patient safety issue, that’s shared governance. It’s not a buzzword or a checkbox it’s the framework that turns your expertise into action.
So, what exactly is shared governance? According to the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), shared governance is a leadership model that uses structure and process for partnership, equity, accountability, and ownership. It puts the responsibility, authority, and accountability for practice-related decisions into the hands of the individuals who will operationalize the decision. In other words, it ensures that the people closest to the work have a voice in shaping it.
Shared governance is the foundation of Magnet designation because it ensures that the people closest to the work have a voice in shaping it. It recognizes that frontline staff nurses, respiratory therapists, lab technicians, unit secretaries, environmental services, and everyone in between; hold the wisdom, innovation, and solutions that drive excellence. Your unit-based councils are already doing incredible work, and the investment I see from leaders is clearly reflected in their teams. This is what makes UAMS special.
As we embark on Magnet 2.0, we’re strengthening this foundation through the expanded roles of Magnet Ambassadors and Magnet Champions. I want to take a moment to thank those who served in these roles during the first Magnet designation. Your dedication as hosts during appraiser visits and your representation across various areas were instrumental in our success. You set the stage for what we’re building now.
For our encore, these roles will be the bridge between shared governance structures and everyday excellence. Ambassadors and Champions will amplify voices, share stories, support initiatives, and ensure that nursing-led truly means organization-wide. Because remember Magnet is not nursing-exclusive it’s a collective commitment to excellence that requires every department, every role, and every person to participate fully.
Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing, reminds us to “keep this simple question in our head (not, how can I always do this right thing myself, but) how can I provide for this right thing to be always done?” That’s what shared governance is creating the structures and empowering the people so that excellence happens consistently, not because one person does it all, but because everyone is equipped and empowered to contribute. That’s what Ambassadors and Champions embody.
If you received the call to join us as a Magnet Ambassador or Champion, I encourage you to step forward. Your expertise, your voice, and your courage are exactly what we need for this journey. Together, we will showcase the excellence that already exists here and build an encore worthy of this incredible team.
The torch is lit. Let’s keep it burning bright.
