Professional governance leverages nursing expertise during pandemic

During the COVID-19 crisis, many organizations suspended non-COVID-related meetings, including professional governance councils where practice decisions are made, but professional governance remained strong at Chicago-based Rush University Medical Center and its affiliated hospital in Oak Park, Ill. Mature professional governance models at both sites allowed front-line staff to leverage their professional relationships with administrators to respond to the pandemic challenges. The authors of an article in the March issue of the Journal of Nursing Administration described how professional governance council presidents, working with chief nursing officers at both organizations, were vital to sustaining autonomous nursing practice during the pandemic. The article highlighted mainstays of AONL's Dynamic Leadership for Shared Governance program, including effective communication, meaningful decision-making, leadership, accountability and the principle that professional governance is both a structure and philosophy.