Jennifer Wray
November 2023
Jennifer
Wray
,
RN, MSN, NE-BC
Wendel 3
Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital
Charlottesville
,
VA
United States
Jennifer sets goals for herself to continue her own professional development and is a shining example of a lifelong learner. She is a true servant leader who inspires the staff to achieve excellence and sets the bar high in every way.
1. Role model for compassion and exemplary practice: Feedback from team members includes statements such as: “She touches base with her staff on a daily basis. When she is made aware of a staff member who has had a difficult time with a patient, she reaches out to that person, offers them space to feel their feelings, then reminds them of all the great interactions they have had with patients, helping them as they brought new life into the world. She encourages us to be supportive of each other and reminds us that we are a family.”
This leader has had a couple of very tragic patient deaths occur on her unit that left her team emotionally impacted. She has demonstrated the compassion she has for her team to help get them through some long-term challenges associated with these events. She has worked to ensure that staff have the emotional support they need to process. This included listening sessions, ongoing discussion/check-ins with team members, facilitated Intentional Caring offerings, and encouragement of further training and EAP resources to help with long-term management.
She is also a role model for exemplary practice by participating in system-level shared decision-making and has an active role in projects/EBP initiatives. She remains up-to-date and engaged in the recommendations set forth by professional organizations. She stays late on many occasions to interact with the night-shift staff.
2. Role model behavior perceived as extraordinary: Feedback from team members includes statements such as: “This leader displays professionalism, gratitude, humility, and a commitment to excellence in absolutely everything she does. In more than twenty years of working with her, I have never heard her raise her voice or speak an unkind or unfavorable word about another person. She never asks a team member to do something she herself is not willing to do. Her work is impeccable and detailed, whether she is working clinically or performing the myriad of duties she holds as a manager. She uses data to drive performance improvement as well as the strategic goals of the department, and to advocate for the material and human resources needed to keep the department operating safely and efficiently." She remains poised and professional in all interactions with providers, other leaders, and team members. She is able to communicate difficult messages with tact while being compassionate to others.
3. Creates an environment that fosters care & compassion: Feedback includes statements such as: “During staff meetings, this leader frequently addresses topics such as self-care, resilience, gratitude, and maintaining a healthy work-life balance. Following a safety story, every staff meeting begins with recognitions for staff, where she reads aloud from letters or notes received from patients. She encourages discussion of ways in which we, as staff members, can help each other accomplish these things. She is an active supporter of the Intentional Caring initiatives throughout the hospital and encourages staff to take part in things such as mindful movement and chair massages on the unit. When a staff member experiences a personal loss or illness, or when they have reason to celebrate, this leader always takes the time to have the unit send a card, signed by as many as possible, as a sign of our support and love for that individual. One of her first comments to employees when they must be out sick or for leave is always, “Take care of yourself and get well soon.” Her message to others is, “You are important, and I value you first and foremost as another human being.”
Beyond encouraging staff to care for themselves and one another, she openly values the power of nursing presence at the bedside. She advocates for appropriate nurse: patient ratios to afford bedside RNs the time required to remain present with patients as much as possible.”
4. Creates an environment where attributes of trust, compassion, mutual respect, continued professional development, and ethical behavior are modeled and supported: “This leader encourages her team to work on professional development and gives us space to do that, fully supportive of off-site classes, simulations, Journal Club, and conventions.”
5. Motivates staff with shared vision and enthusiasm to achieve better outcomes for themselves and for their patients: “When posed with a question, Jennifer doesn’t just give a simple “yes” or “no” answer. She walks the person through the rationale for her answer and so gives that person the ability to problem solve similar situations when they arise in the future.”
6. Is a mentor to others: This leader has had several new unit-level leaders over the past year. She has worked to help them grow and tap into potential that they may not have seen in themselves without her encouragement. New leaders state things such as: “As I have stepped into the role of TC and Jennifer has worked with me through learning my job roles, she is so patient with me when I have so many questions! She encourages me to step out of my comfort zone to take on new responsibilities.”
7. Accessible, available, and responsive to the needs of others, encouraging critical thinking and problem-solving for individuals and with the context of teams: “Jennifer is on the unit many times after the night shift arrives, and she will touch base with them before she leaves. She makes it very clear to her team that if anyone needs to set aside time to talk with her, she is open to that and will accommodate being able to meet with them.”
8. Promotes and enhances the image of nursing within the organization, the community, and the profession: Throughout her career, this nurse has held herself to the highest standards of professionalism. She is articulate and knowledgeable about everything she does and grounds her ideas and practice in evidence. If she does not know something, she turns first to the literature for insight. She is a member of multiple professional organizations, holds certification as a nurse executive, and sits on numerous hospital and system-wide leadership committees, as well as the nursing practice forum and two high-performance teams. She sets goals for herself to continue her own professional development and is a shining example of a lifelong learner. She is a true servant leader who inspires the staff to achieve excellence and sets the bar high in every way. She also participates in and leads a regional collaborative professional group that addresses a supportive need in our community.
This leader has had a couple of very tragic patient deaths occur on her unit that left her team emotionally impacted. She has demonstrated the compassion she has for her team to help get them through some long-term challenges associated with these events. She has worked to ensure that staff have the emotional support they need to process. This included listening sessions, ongoing discussion/check-ins with team members, facilitated Intentional Caring offerings, and encouragement of further training and EAP resources to help with long-term management.
She is also a role model for exemplary practice by participating in system-level shared decision-making and has an active role in projects/EBP initiatives. She remains up-to-date and engaged in the recommendations set forth by professional organizations. She stays late on many occasions to interact with the night-shift staff.
2. Role model behavior perceived as extraordinary: Feedback from team members includes statements such as: “This leader displays professionalism, gratitude, humility, and a commitment to excellence in absolutely everything she does. In more than twenty years of working with her, I have never heard her raise her voice or speak an unkind or unfavorable word about another person. She never asks a team member to do something she herself is not willing to do. Her work is impeccable and detailed, whether she is working clinically or performing the myriad of duties she holds as a manager. She uses data to drive performance improvement as well as the strategic goals of the department, and to advocate for the material and human resources needed to keep the department operating safely and efficiently." She remains poised and professional in all interactions with providers, other leaders, and team members. She is able to communicate difficult messages with tact while being compassionate to others.
3. Creates an environment that fosters care & compassion: Feedback includes statements such as: “During staff meetings, this leader frequently addresses topics such as self-care, resilience, gratitude, and maintaining a healthy work-life balance. Following a safety story, every staff meeting begins with recognitions for staff, where she reads aloud from letters or notes received from patients. She encourages discussion of ways in which we, as staff members, can help each other accomplish these things. She is an active supporter of the Intentional Caring initiatives throughout the hospital and encourages staff to take part in things such as mindful movement and chair massages on the unit. When a staff member experiences a personal loss or illness, or when they have reason to celebrate, this leader always takes the time to have the unit send a card, signed by as many as possible, as a sign of our support and love for that individual. One of her first comments to employees when they must be out sick or for leave is always, “Take care of yourself and get well soon.” Her message to others is, “You are important, and I value you first and foremost as another human being.”
Beyond encouraging staff to care for themselves and one another, she openly values the power of nursing presence at the bedside. She advocates for appropriate nurse: patient ratios to afford bedside RNs the time required to remain present with patients as much as possible.”
4. Creates an environment where attributes of trust, compassion, mutual respect, continued professional development, and ethical behavior are modeled and supported: “This leader encourages her team to work on professional development and gives us space to do that, fully supportive of off-site classes, simulations, Journal Club, and conventions.”
5. Motivates staff with shared vision and enthusiasm to achieve better outcomes for themselves and for their patients: “When posed with a question, Jennifer doesn’t just give a simple “yes” or “no” answer. She walks the person through the rationale for her answer and so gives that person the ability to problem solve similar situations when they arise in the future.”
6. Is a mentor to others: This leader has had several new unit-level leaders over the past year. She has worked to help them grow and tap into potential that they may not have seen in themselves without her encouragement. New leaders state things such as: “As I have stepped into the role of TC and Jennifer has worked with me through learning my job roles, she is so patient with me when I have so many questions! She encourages me to step out of my comfort zone to take on new responsibilities.”
7. Accessible, available, and responsive to the needs of others, encouraging critical thinking and problem-solving for individuals and with the context of teams: “Jennifer is on the unit many times after the night shift arrives, and she will touch base with them before she leaves. She makes it very clear to her team that if anyone needs to set aside time to talk with her, she is open to that and will accommodate being able to meet with them.”
8. Promotes and enhances the image of nursing within the organization, the community, and the profession: Throughout her career, this nurse has held herself to the highest standards of professionalism. She is articulate and knowledgeable about everything she does and grounds her ideas and practice in evidence. If she does not know something, she turns first to the literature for insight. She is a member of multiple professional organizations, holds certification as a nurse executive, and sits on numerous hospital and system-wide leadership committees, as well as the nursing practice forum and two high-performance teams. She sets goals for herself to continue her own professional development and is a shining example of a lifelong learner. She is a true servant leader who inspires the staff to achieve excellence and sets the bar high in every way. She also participates in and leads a regional collaborative professional group that addresses a supportive need in our community.