Melanie Alm
Director of Sales at Wambi

There has never been a more challenging time to be a leader in healthcare, and yet strong leadership has never been more important. We turned to four healthcare executives from across the country to share their expertise and key learnings in leading through the pandemic. Here are their tips for improving workplace culture and building resilience through COVID-19 and beyond.

1. Create a Culture of Gratitude and WellbeingAll four leaders agreed that a culture of gratitude creates a thriving, resilient workforce. Bob Garrett, CEO of Hackensack Meridian Health, stressed the importance of a unified culture, especially one rooted in gratitude. He stated, “you can have the best strategies in the world but if you don’t have a culture that is unified… your strategies are going to fall flat.” Shanthi Margoschis, Chief Nursing Executive at Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center, echoed this sentiment, saying, “it’s very important for the nurses to be recognized by their peers, their managers, and the organizational leaders so that they know that everybody is in this together.” All agreed that leaders set the tone for their organizations. Their focus on gratitude has a powerful impact on the overall wellbeing of their teams.
2. Articulate Clear Values 
   Clear values and effective communication are critical, especially during a pandemic. Michelle Volpe, CEO at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center said, “communication [is] essential. We needed to up our game in terms of what we were communicating, how frequently we were communicating, keeping it simple, making it relevant, and making the information timely.” Dennis Murphy, CEO of IU Health, shared that his organization practiced “radical transparency” and repeatedly articulated the company’s core values to reinforce that they trusted their employees to do the right thing. This unified the team and drove meaning and purpose in their work.
   
3. Encourage Wellness 
   Employee wellbeing and self-care must be a top priority, as “you can’t pour from an empty cup.” Dennis Murphy shared that “…one of the very first things we came to realize is there’s something different between physical safety and emotional safety and that you had to very quickly legitimize people’s concerns about emotional safety.” Bob Garrett shared that two key roles at Hackensack Meridian Health, the Chief Culture Officer and Chief Wellness Officer, coordinated programs to support team members’ physical and emotional wellbeing. These actions validated team members’ experiences and concerns and ensured that they felt valued and safe. 
4. Create Opportunities for Social Connection
   Social ties at work are critical to employee health, happiness, and engagement. Our panelists organized daily briefings and regular town hall events to bring everyone together, fostering environments of collaboration. As a result, interdisciplinary cooperation, team effectiveness, and innovation flourished through the pandemic.
   
5. Encourage a Growth Mindset
   When the panelists were asked what they were most proud of, all of them mentioned the innovation and can-do attitudes of their teams. The pandemic necessitated creativity and action, and trust in their team members paid off in rapid frontline innovation that ultimately saved lives. These leaders empowered team members to use their unique strengths to meet challenges head-on. As a result, adversity fueled greatness. 

While there is no rulebook on how to lead effectively during a pandemic, we are incredibly grateful that these amazing leaders were willing to share their experience and expertise. It was inspiring to hear how they set the tone for their organizations and prioritize areas where they can make an impact. They empower their teams by recognizing their contributions, validating their concerns, acting with “radical transparency”, and encouraging social connections between their employees. And most importantly, they celebrate meaningful moments. In a pandemic, every small win matters. They show that giving and receiving gratitude makes people feel more valued, motivated, and resilient, and is the catalyst towards a cultural transformation that will outlast the effects of COVID-19. 

If you liked what you read today, check out the trailer for the Wambi Leadership Series: Pandemic Insights for key takeaways to support staff in mitigating stress, fighting burnout, and addressing mental health challenges. The full one-hour webinar can be accessed here.