For Nurses

As a nurse, you can make a unique contribution to achieving the goals of improved health and efficient and effective health care systems at the local, state and national levels. Our goal is to build healthier communities in America by increasing nurses’ presence on corporate, health-related, and other boards, panels, and commissions. The following are resources to help you on your journey to becoming board ready!

Helpful Documents

Board Core Competencies
Preparation and Education Resources
Getting on board – created in collaboration with the American Nurses Foundation, funded in part through the generous support of the Rita and Alex Hillman Foundation
Boardroom Basics – What Every Healthcare Trustee Needs to Know – Healthcare Trustees of New York State
Board Readiness Assessment – Nurses on Boards 2020 Council and North Carolina Nurses Association: This is an assessment tool for nurses to use in identifying areas of strength in leadership skills and potential areas for growth.

Articles

Benson, L. (2018, August 23). Diversity in the boardroom: Consider a nurse. Directors & Boards.
Benson, L., & Harper, K. J. (2018, September). Leading Change: Holistic Nurses in the Board room. In Nurses on Boards.
Benson, L. (2018, September). Nurses: Consider raising your leadership voice [Electronic version]. Today’s Wound Clinic, 12(9).
Benson, L., Weston, M., & Harper, K. (2018, August). Making an impact through serving on a board [Electronic version]. Insider: Infusion Nurses Society, 1(4), 12-15.
Board Source. (2016, June 7). Joining a nonprofit board. In Board Source.
Burnes Bolton, L. (2014, January 3). My leadership journey. In Campaign for Action.
Campana, D. (2018, February). ENA-NOBC partnership encourages nurses to get involved [Electronic version]. ENA Connection.
Capella University. (2017, June). Nurses on board: The time for change is now. In Nurses on Boards Coalition.
Fauteux, N. (2018, December 21). Mayor Jean Stothert: A first for Omaha. In Campaign for Action.
Hachten, R., & Mershon, K. (2017, January 11). Hospital impact: In uncertain times, healthcare boards have even more reason to embrace nurse leaders [Electronic version]. Fierce Healthcare.
Harper, K. J., & Benson, L. S. (2019, August). The importance and impact of nurses serving on boards. Nursing Economics, 37(4), 209-212.
Hassmiller, S. B. (2012, March). Nurses on boards: Competencies required for leadership. American Journal of Nursing, 112(3), 61-66.
Hassmiller, S. Taking the first steps to serving on a board. American Nurse Today, 7(11), 18-20.
Mayer, D. K. (2016, September). Nurses on boards: My experience with the moonshot [Electronic version]. Oncology Nursing Forum, 43(5), 539-540. doi:10.1188/16
McMahon, E. (2019, October 2). ISU’s Mennonite College of Nursing paves the way with nurses on local boards initiative. Illinois State University.
Mulliniz, C., Lee Walton, A., & Ruiz, D. (2017, July). From the bedside to the boardroom: Are you ready to serve? American Nurse Today, 12(7).
Nevidjon, B., & Benson, L. (2017, April 11). Serving on boards allows nurses to improve the nation’s health. In ONS Voice.
Nurses on boards: Bringing holistic perspective to academic health systems. (2018, September). The Governance Institute’s Academic Health Focus, 1-3.
Reinhard, S. (2017, March 13). Getting nurses on board [Electronic version]. Trustee Magazine.
Sundean, L. J. (2018). Everyday advocacy: Nurses serving on boards. In American Nurses Association.
Sundean, L. J., & McGrath, J. M. (2016). A Metasynthesis Exploring Nurses and Women on Governing Boards. Journal of Nursing Administration, 46(9), 455-461.
Sundean, L. J., Polifroni, E. C., Libal, K. & McGrath, J. M. (2017). Nurses on health care governing boards: An integrative review. Nursing Outlook, 65(4), 361-371. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.outlook.2017.01.009
Sundean, L. J., Polifroni, E. C., Libal, K., & McGrath, J. M. (2018). The rationale for nurses on boards in the voices of nurses who serve. Nursing Outlook, 66(3), 222-232. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.outlook.2017.11.005
Swensen, S., & Robel, S. M. (2018, December 6). Leadership survey: Nurses as leaders: Broad acceptance, room to grow. In New England Journal of Medicine Insights.
Sundean, L. J., White, K. R., Thompson, L. S., & Prybil, L. D. (2019, April 5). Governance education for nurses: Preparing nurses for the future. Journal of Professional Nursing. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.profnurs.2019.04.001
The Governance Institute. (2019, March). Nurse Leadership at Mayo Clinic: Integrating Nursing, Clinical Practice, and Interdisciplinary Education. In The Governance Institute’s Academic Health Focus .
The nurses on boards coalition: The goal is to have 10,000 nurses on boards by 2020 [Electronic version]. (2017, September). The Research Journal of the National League for Nursing, 38(5), 293-294. doi:10.1097/01
Thew, J. (2016, June 6). 4 strategies for nurses who want to enter the boardroom. In Health Leaders.
Werrlein, D. (2018, August 24). Nurse brings big picture mindset to school board. In Campaign for Action.
Weston, M. (2018, June 13). Why it’s time to add nurses to leadership boards. In America’s Health Insurance Plans.
Wray, R. (2018, January 17). Answering the call for nurses on boards [Electronic version]. The Chamberlain.
Zimmerman, B. (2016, September 28). From the bedside to the board room: 2 nurse leaders on getting 10k nurses on boards by 2020 [Electronic version]. Becker’s Hospital Review.

Blogs

5 Strategies to Help Break the Stigma of Mental Illness. (2019, May 15). In Capella University.
American Journal of Nursing. (2017, April). A gold bond to restore joy to nursing: A collaborative exchange of ideas to address burnout.. In American Journal of Nursing Blog.
Bonsall, L. (2017, May 30). Confidence and Truthfulness. In NursingCenter.
Bonsall, L. (2017, December 15). Influence with storytelling. In NursingCenter.
Bonsall, L. (2017, April 12). Nurses- Get on board!. In NursingCenter.
Bonsall, L. (2017, September 17). Take an ethical stance!. In NursingCenter.
Campaign for Action. (n.d.). Talking points for action coalitions on nurse leadership. In Future of Nursing.
Campaign for Action. (n.d.). Tips and tools: Leadership. In Future of Nursing.
Citrin, J. (2016, February 18). The market for board talent is changing: Here is what you need to know. In LinkedIn.
Groenwald, S. (2017, May 5). Strategic partnership aims to get more nurses on boards. In Nurse.com.
Hilton, L. (2018, May 14). Woodhull study finds nurses still missing from media healthcare coverage. In Nurse.com.
How nurses on boards impacts health care decision making. (2017, June 5). In Capella University.
Jones-Schenk, J. (2018, April 26). Resources for current and aspiring nurse leaders. In Western Governors University.
Lippincott Solutions. (2017, November 13). A Nurse’s place in the boardroom. In Wolters Kluwer.
Lipincott Solutions. (2018, October 25). Have you considered an academic voice? Nurses on boards: Building a healthier america. In Lippincott Solutions.
Lippincott Solutions. (2018, June 12). The art of being gracious. In Lippincott Solutions.
Mahoney, D. (2017, September 20). Getting nurses on board with serving on boards. In Press Ganey.
Sundean, L. J. (2016, November 28). Courageous Conversations for Nurse Board Leaders. In Sundean RN.
Sundean, L. J. (2017, January 24). Nurses on Boards and Healthy Communities. In Sundean RN.
Williamson, E. (2018, November 28). Our nation needs more nurses on boards. In Nurse.com.
Wojciechowski, M. (2019, March 21). NOBC wants more nurses serving on boards: Here’s why. In Minority Nurse.

Podcasts

Bonsall, L. (2018, October 16). Nurses – The keepers of patients’ stories: An interview with Angela Patterson DNP, FNP-BC, NEA-BC [Podcast]. In NursingCenter.
Bonsall, L. (2017, July 26). Preparing nurse leaders: An interview with F. Patrick Robinson, PhD, RN, FAAN. In NursingCenter.
Bonsall, L. (2018, January 15). Nurses and the business of caring: An interview with John Bluford. In NursingCenter.
Bonsall, L. (2019, April 25). Nurses – Natural Leaders and Collaborators: An Interview with Mike Singer. In NursingCenter.
Bonsall, L. (2018, November). The ability to influence: An interview with Mary Beth Kingston, RN, MSN, NEA-BC [Podcast]. In NursingCenter.
Bonsall, L. (2019, August 30). The power of informal conversations and bold relationships. In NursingCenter.
Bonsall, L. (2018, September 24). The unique perspective of nurses: An interview with Mary Ann Fuchs, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN. In NursingCenter.
Improving health – Making an impact through service on boards (n.d.). In INS Learning Center.

E-Books

CNOs on BOARDS A Practical Guide – Written by Dr. Colleen Conway-Welch and Dr. Richard Oliver in cooperation with Nurses on Boards Coalition.

Useful Links

FREE Webinars

The History and Mission of NOBC
How to be an Effective Health Care Organization Board Member: Special Focus on Compliance
Nurses at the Table: Training Modules for Board Service
The Wisconsin Center for Nursing board service training modules
Nurses on Boards 101
From the PAAC-PONL Future of Nursing Webinar “Leadership and the Nurses on Boards Coalition”
Nurses on Boards in Kansas: A Kansas Action Coalition Series
Session 1: Board Basics | Session 2: Finance Basics
Special acknowledgment to the Future of Nursing Campaign for Action for the content and graphics presented on slides 16-19 in Session 1
Serving on a Corporate Board: Uncover If It’s for You & Where to Start
This webinar has been provided compliments of Women in the Boardroom
Building a Board-Ready Resume
Join the American Nurses Foundation for a “Building a Board-Ready Resume” webinar. This session, which was orginally hosted at the 2016 ANCC Magnet Conference, is intended to walk participants through the process of transforming a curriculum vitae.
Creating a Board Resume: Case Study 1
The American Nurses Foundation presents Creating a Board Resume: Case Study One, part of a free webinar series focused on skills and tools to support nurses pursuing service on boards of directors funded in part by the generosity of the Rita and Alex Hillman Foundation.
Board Resumes and Beyond: Case Study 2
The American Nurses Foundation presents Board Resume and Beyond: Case Study Two, part of a free webinar series focused on skills and tools to support nurses pursuing service on boards of directors funded in part by the generosity of the Rita and Alex Hillman Foundation.
Nurses on Boards Advancing Nursing Excellence
The American Nurses Foundation presents Nurses on Boards, Advancing Nursing Excellence, part of a free webinar series focused on skills and tools to support nurses pursuing service on boards of directors funded in part by the generosity of the Rita and Alex Hillman Foundation.
Talk the Talk: Understanding & Speaking Finance-ese
The American Nurses Foundation presents Talk the Talk: Understanding & Speaking Finance-ese, part of a free webinar series focused on skills and tools to support nurses pursuing service on boards of directors funded in part by the generosity of the Rita and Alex Hillman Foundation.

Videos

Board Meeting Simulation
Wonder what it’s like to attend a board meeting? Watch this 90-minute board meeting simulation experience provided to Ohio nurses in 2017. The board packet is available here for you to follow along. Video is courtesy of the Ohio Action Coalition.
Board Roles and Responsibilities – Active Participation
The Center for Nonprofit Excellence (CNPE), a program of United Way of Central New Mexico, offers this free video discussing board roles and responsibilities and the critical role played in ensuring sustainability.
Leading Change Through Board/Committee Appointments
At the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action’s Leadership and Legacy Summit in Phoenix, three panelists discussed the importance of nurses’ service on boards, and tips for getting appointed to a board. This hour-long conversation, facilitated by Sue Hassmiller, senior adviser for nursing at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and director of the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, is a must-watch for anyone who has considered board service and what it takes to get there.
Lessons in Leadership: The Betty Irene Moore Speaker Series
Lessons in Leadership is a collection of 13 short videos featuring nationally-recognized leaders in nursing or health care who share the strategies that shaped their career and the lessons they learned. The leaders include CEO, executive directors and board members of the nation’s leading health care and nursing organizations; several recipients of “Living Legend” awards; faculty members from top universities; and influential policy advisors. All of them began their careers as nurses.
Transforming Health Care Through Nurse Leadership
Nurses can help transform the nation’s health care system, create healthier communities, and build a Culture of Health. But what are the keys to becoming a nurse leader? Be willing to step outside of your comfort zone, seek a mentor, and more: Leaders from the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action and the 2014 Breakthrough Leaders in Nursing share their advice.

Education Offers
ANA Leadership Institute
Nurses on Boards
Nurses getting a “seat at the table” has been a long-standing issue for the profession. Serving on boards is a key component for any nurse trying to elevate their career and the profession as a whole, enabling them to make decisions and have a lasting and profound impact on issues impacting nurse safety, patient care and outcomes, and the culture of nursing as a whole. This webcast covers why it’s important to a nurse’s career and to the profession as a whole to serve on boards. It also details strategies on how to get to serve on boards – what skills nurses need to do so in order to succeed and the process for getting a board seat.
Best On Board

Resources

For Nurses

Nurses on Boards Coalition