Dawn Scott has served as Franciscan Health Central Indiana Region's Chief Nursing Officer for almost 2 years. She came in at a time when there was a lot of chaos and mistrust. Dawn started her time as CNO as a blank page in an open book. She sought to understand each area that she was placed in charge of while being very open to criticism that she had not earned. In making herself visible and not shying away from hard conversations, Dawn has started to build a trusting environment where her staff feel that not only can they speak up, but that they will be listened to instead of just heard.

Dawn is instrumental in the leadership of QI and EBP initiatives in our organization through collaboration with subject matter experts who present innovative ideas to meet the needs of our patients and our staff. One example of this is in partnering with our CNS group to tackle our CDIFF infections. Dawn leads with trust and gets results that way. She gives her teams the freedom to think outside the box and then supports those efforts. One of the challenges we faced in our CDIFF issues was the lack of supplies in the room, which caused delays in collecting samples when available. Our CDIFF team, made up of CNSs and bedside staff, developed a bundle for use when a CDIFF sample was ordered. This provided the necessary supplies at the bedside so that delays occurred less often. They went a step further and provided a process for high-risk patients that provided these supplies on admission. Dawn supported this practice and even went a step further to support each area in implementation that worked for their specific population.

Dawn's perspective of standard care in meaningful practice helps each area of nursing to feel that they can accept changes without feeling like they have to be like everyone else. This sense of autonomy that this gives to our nurses shows the leadership that she provides. This allows for the staff to feel safe innovating practices and developing their own practice. Dawn also works closely with staff and leaders to ensure that knowledge of opportunities for professional development is shared, along with supporting the needs of the staff to participate in these opportunities. Recently, Dawn has helped to reinvigorate a committee that Franciscan historically had but had fallen away. This committee, the Specialty Certification Promotion Committee, is focused on how to incentivize, support, and encourage nurses to seek out certification as professional development. This team helps to mentor the other leaders and bedside staff on the benefits of certification to our patients and our profession. Dawn is an instrumental part of these discussions and the support that the committee provides.

Recently, our health system has been hit by legislation that has made it more difficult to sustain current practices. Instead of hiding this information and asking her direct reports to change, she is very open about how the political, economic, and societal changes happening around us affect our overall practice. She is well informed and involved in speaking with our legislators to help them understand the intricacies of nursing care while also understanding the reality in front of us. She never asks her staff to do something that she does not believe in and advocates for what is best for the patients first and foremost. I have been blessed to work with a diverse group of staff and care for a growing diversity of patients. Central Indiana has a large population of Burmese people that we are blessed to care for from the southside of Indianapolis. I have often heard Dawn speak of the need to make sure that we provide care to all people and make our facilities inclusive of everyone who walks through the door.

She is currently working with our Service Excellence Department to help in providing the best interpreting service possible so that communication is not a barrier for those patients who may not speak English. I have been a part of the first nurse who was sponsored by Franciscan in working on a TPS visa while getting her green card. This is normally done for other occupations, and this was the first nurse we have had go through this process. This cannot happen without the support of our leadership. Ethical practice is extremely important to Dawn, and she supports our staff in speaking up whenever they feel that there is an ethical issue. Our robust Ethics team is on call 24/7 and is comprised of staff from all areas of clinical practice. This team helps our staff to work through ethical issues and helps to get them the resources they need to provide the best care for our patients. Dawn supports this team as well in staff by making an environment that trusts its subject matter experts to make the right calls.

One of the most admirable things about Dawn is how important her team is to her. No subject is off the table. She makes herself available through rounding on days and nights, holding a CNO council with bedside staff members, coming to manager meetings, providing virtual nurse town halls, and so many other ways that she makes herself available to the people who report to her. She does not shy away from hard conversations and takes on concerns and complaints as if they were her own. She also does not shy away from giving answers that staff may not like. This transparency sets the tone for her leadership staff and shows the bedside that she will tell the truth even if it is hard. This is how she shows empathy and helps to manage anxiety in our team. She is a respected member of our upper leadership and navigates working with all areas of the organization well. I feel blessed to work with a CNO who cares about me and the work I do. Even when things are hard, I get to go home knowing that doing my best is still recognized, even if it is not perfect. Simon Sinek says Leadership is about integrity, honesty, and accountability. All components of trust. I think that this quote effectively describes the type of leader that Dawn is.