Nurse leaders have an important role in supporting the NHS to achieve its 'net zero' ambitions, yet sustainability initiatives are often perceived as challenging to balance with operational pressures, patient safety and infection prevention and control (IPC) requirements. This article presents a nurse-led case study from Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, England, describing the replacement of single-use pulp kidney dishes with reusable alternatives using a Sustainable Quality Improvement (SusQI) approach. Implemented in partnership with IPC, procurement and operational teams, the project delivered measurable environmental and financial benefits while maintaining compliance with IPC standards. Key lessons include the value of visible nurse leadership, interdisciplinary collaboration and embedding sustainability in existing governance and quality improvement processes. The case demonstrates how nurse-led sustainability initiatives can reduce environmental impact and support organisational change while maintaining safe, high-quality care.
ABSTRACT A health care system's approach to integrating the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses Healthy Work Environment (HWE) standards across organizational levels demonstrates a replicable pathway for aligning bedside expertise with boardroom strategy, an essential linkage in organizational strategic planning. Partnership between the nurse executive team and direct care nurses is critical to achieving nursing excellence. The HWE framework can be operationalized into the nursing strategic plan through nursing professional governance structures and performance improvement initiatives, promoting scalability and transferability across multiple service lines and departments. This strengthens the relationship between clinical staff and executive leadership, driving transparency and mutual accountability for resource allocation and outcomes. This article describes one health care system's 3-year journey in embedding the HWE framework throughout the deployment of the nursing strategy. Following operationalization of HWE as a component of the nursing strategic framework, the health care system achieved sustained improvement across all domains of the Healthy Work Environment Assessment Tool (HWEAT), bolstering an organizational commitment to continuously improve and measure practice-environment health. This transparent, high-visibility approach emphasizes accountability from the Chief Nurse Executive to frontline nurses, underpinning a shared commitment that aligns clinical practice with organizational strategy. Organizations that embed HWE into their nursing strategic plan empower nurses at every level to shape and share ownership of the practice environment.
Abstract: Nurses have up to four times more patient contact than physicians, positioning them as central drivers of communication in health care. Effective communication directly influences patient outcomes, teamwork, staff engagement, and the overall care experience. Today's nurses operate within a highly diverse environment that includes four generations in the workforce and up to eight generations of patients, each with distinct values, expectations, and communication preferences. This article examines how generational differences shape communication across three key relational domains: peer-to-peer, nurse-to-patient, and nurse-to-leader interactions, and offers insights to strengthen collaboration, engagement, and quality of care.
