The leaders of an innovative Vanderbilt leadership development program have received a Health Equity and Nursing Innovation Fund award from AARP, the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, and the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, initiative of the AARP Foundation, AARP and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Vanderbilt University School of Nursing Associate Dean for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Rolanda Johnson, PhD, RN, FAAN, ADLN, and Vanderbilt University Medical Center Senior Director, Nurse Diversity and Inclusion, Mamie Williams, PhD, MPH, APRN, were awarded a $25,000 grant for “The Utilization of the Academy for Diverse Nurse Leaders: Pathway to Health Work Environments.”
“We are excited to continue important work for the Academy for Diverse Nurse Leaders,” Johnson said. “Equity in health care and academia is crucial, and this grant will help us develop more training to ensure nurses from underrepresented groups find success in health care leadership while promoting healthy work environments.”
Johnson and Williams’ project focuses on the expansion of two programs created by VUSN and VUMC to foster the diversification of the nursing workforce, increase the retention of diverse nurse leaders, and promote cultural awareness and sensitivity within nurse work environments. The programs, the Academy for Diverse Emerging Nurse Leaders and the Academy for Diverse Aspiring Nurse Leaders, provide opportunities for nurses from underrepresented groups in health care leadership and academia to gain leadership skills and knowledge for success.
“The program is unique in that it focuses on developing all aspects of effective leadership,” Williams said. “We are giving participants the space to develop themselves personally and professionally, which will better equip them to have the vital leadership skills needed to lead in diverse environments.”
The new grant will incorporate a two-hour training session into the academies that focus on an aspect of health work environments and health equity. Each participant will design and incorporate a component of a leadership project to create or enhance a healthy work environment.
The grant was awarded as part of a larger AARP, AACN, and Robert Wood Johnson initiative to strengthen and diversify the nursing workforce through innovative nurse recruitment and retention strategies that establish and sustain healthy, equitable work environments.