OSF HealthCare Saint Francis Medical Center<\/a>, she also feels like being a leader chose her, too.<\/p>\nShe began her nursing career on the east coast. But when her family moved to Bloomington, Illinois, she wanted to work for an organization respected by the community. She discovered OSF HealthCare.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a bedside nurse, I became passionate about removing barriers for nurses and finding creative ways to support them doing what they do best \u2013 taking care of the sick,\u201d Keara said. \u201cI found myself challenging processes and demanding that leaders hear my voice. Before I knew it, I was a charge nurse, then supervisor and then nurse manager.\u201d<\/p>\n
Challenges of management<\/h2>\n
Nursing managers face many challenges, including a multi-generational workforce, the business side of health care, ethics and stiff competition for talent. Keara keeps her focus simple.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy number one goal as a leader is to support nurses in their chaotic work environment by improving processes and removing barriers,\u201d Keara said.<\/p>\n
Her method for achieving this goal is equally simple.<\/p>\n
\u201cPresence. As a leader, I am passionate about understanding the processes and barriers Mission Partners experience on a daily basis,\u201d Keara said. \u201cThe only way to achieve this goal is to get out there with the frontline staff and talk to them. Their ideas are endless.\u201d<\/p>\n
Working for AMSU<\/h2>\n
After interviewing with a panel of nurses from AMSU, Keara knew this was where she wanted to be.<\/p>\n
\u201cDuring the interview, one of the Mission Partners looked me in the eyes and said, \u2018We are a team on AMSU. We all work together and our current manager listens to our voice. Will you?\u2019 I was floored,\u201d Keara said. \u201cI was so impressed that the Mission Partners wanted to not only work alongside of me as their leader, but would challenge me to do the same and shared their expectations with me.\u00a0This was exactly what I was looking for.\u201d<\/p>\n
In one year, Keara has reduced turnover and increased recruitment in the AMSU.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing a nurse is scary and new nurses are fragile.\u00a0The AMSU team will support you as you begin your career or enhance your career,\u201d Keara said. \u201cOur experienced nurses stay on AMSU because they take pride mentoring nurses and are provided with endless opportunities to achieve their goals.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even when one of Keara\u2019s nurses moves on, she is full of pride.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe celebrate nursing growth, new career opportunities and each year you are an AMSU RN,\u201d Keara said. \u201cA nurse can expect me to help them achieve their goals even if they don\u2019t involve staying on AMSU. We take pride in seeing our nurses find the perfect career opportunities and state, \u2018that is an AMSU-raised nurse.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
She loves the endless opportunities within OSF HealthCare.<\/p>\n
\u201cI tell all new nurses to hold on tight. Nursing is a journey. You will laugh, cry and make long-lasting friendships with your peers, so choose a department that you feel connected with,\u201d Keara said. \u201cAlways go with your gut and remember nursing chose you.\u201d<\/p>\n
To learn more about a nursing career at OSF HealthCare, visit osfcareers.org\/nursing<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Keara Wright has always felt like nursing chose her. And as a nurse manager in the Adult Medical Specialty Unit (AMSU) at OSF HealthCare Saint Francis Medical Center, she also feels like being a leader chose her, too. She began her nursing career on the east coast. But when her family moved to Bloomington, Illinois, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":3076,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[176],"tags":[639,336,372],"coauthors":[687],"class_list":["post-3074","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-careers","tag-mission-partners","tag-nursing","tag-osf-saint-francis"],"yoast_head":"\n
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![\"Keara](\"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Keara-Wright-20170511_0005-200x300.jpg\")
<\/p>\n