Catholic Health

Susan Brooks leads nursing teams at Catholic Health, ensuring patient-centered care and operational excellence. With experience from direct patient care to executive leadership, she integrates clinical excellence with sustainable practices, fostering environments where both patients and staff thrive.

Clinical Excellence and Business Performance

Over the course of my career, I have had the privilege of serving in roles that spanned both direct patient care and executive leadership. I began my journey as a bedside nurse, where I learned the fundamentals of patient-centered care: listening carefully, responding compassionately and ensuring clinical decisions were guided by evidence and safety. Those early years shaped my view that excellence in nursing is not measured solely by clinical outcomes but also by the human connections we form with patients and families.

As I moved into leadership positions, I encountered the other side of healthcare: the responsibility to manage resources wisely, balance budgets and ensure organizational sustainability. Early on, I had to reconcile what sometimes felt like competing priorities—maintaining the highest quality of care while also meeting financial performance goals. Over time, I discovered that these priorities are not in conflict but are, in fact, deeply interdependent.

My clarity about this balance came through lived experience: seeing the costs of turnover when staff were unsupported, witnessing the downstream impact of inefficiencies in processes and learning how data could illuminate both care quality and financial performance. Today, I view my role as one of integration—ensuring that every business decision considers its clinical implications and every clinical initiative is examined for sustainability.

Operationalizing Evidence-Based Practices

Evidence-based practice (EBP) is the gold standard in nursing, but it does little good if it exists only in electronic policy manuals. For EBP to have real impact, it has to be translated into the daily rhythm of nursing practice. This requires moving beyond simply disseminating information to actually changing the culture and infrastructure of care delivery.

At Catholic Health, we take a multifaceted approach. First, we embed evidence-based protocols directly into our electronic health record systems. For example, clinical pathways, order sets and documentation templates are designed to reflect best practices.

Second, we ensure nurses at all levels understand the "why" behind changes. Education is not just about telling staff what to do differently; it's about engaging them in the evidence, discussing the rationale and empowering them to question and adapt practices as new data emerges.

Third, we focus on real-time measurement. Data on compliance with evidence-based measures—such as central line bundles, pressure injury prevention or falls reduction—is shared transparently with staff. When teams can see their performance and connect it to patient outcomes, they are more motivated to uphold the practices.

Sustainable Cost Improvements

The most sustainable cost improvements have never come from across-the-board cuts, which can erode both safety and morale. Instead, they come from creating efficiency, reducing variation and investing in retention.

One area where we have seen a significant impact is in standardizing supplies and processes. When different units use multiple types of the same product, it creates waste and increases cost. By aligning supply choices across the organization, we reduce expenses while also simplifying workflows for staff. Another example is optimizing workflows through lean methodologies. By carefully mapping processes— such as medication administration or discharge planning—we identify redundancies and barriers that waste time and resources.

However, the most powerful lever is workforce stability. Nursing turnover is extraordinarily costly, not just financially but in terms of patient outcomes and team cohesion. Protecting safety and quality while pursuing cost improvements requires a guiding principle: patient safety is nonnegotiable.

Building Psychological Safety with Accountability

In my experience, the best teams are those where staff feel safe to speak up and, at the same time, are committed to the highest standards. Psychological safety and accountability are not mutually exclusive; in fact, they are mutually reinforcing.

I draw heavily on principles of servant leadership and transformational leadership. Servant leadership means that my role is to support, empower and advocate for my teams. Transformational leadership, on the other hand, is about inspiring staff to see the bigger picture, connecting their daily work to the organization's mission and motivating them to strive for excellence.

Creating psychological safety requires consistency. Staff must know they can raise concerns, share new ideas or admit mistakes without fear of punitive action. This openness fosters a culture of learning rather than blame. At the same time, accountability is maintained by setting clear expectations, measuring performance and recognizing both successes and areas for improvement.

Trends Shaping Healthcare Operations

Healthcare is undergoing a profound transformation, and nursing leaders must stay ahead of the trends shaping the industry.

First, workforce dynamics. The nursing shortage is not a temporary crisis but a long-term challenge that will reshape how care is delivered. We will need to innovate in staffing models, leveraging interprofessional teams, technology and new roles to extend nursing capacity.

Second, patient expectations are changing rapidly. Patients today are informed, connected and demanding of transparency, convenience and personalization. They want digital access to their health information, seamless communication with providers and care that respects their preferences and values.

Keys to Leadership Success

My advice to rising leaders is to view clinical excellence, culture and business results not as competing priorities but as interdependent pillars of success. You cannot achieve one without the other.

Clinical excellence must always be the foundation. Without safe, evidence-based, patient-centered care, no amount of financial performance or cultural strength will matter. Leaders must cultivate the ability to see how these elements interact. For example, investing in staff development may appear as a cost on the balance sheet, but in reality, it drives retention, builds a culture of growth and enhances clinical competence.

Above all, lead with humility, clarity of purpose and an unwavering commitment to the mission of healthcare. If you keep the patient at the center of every decision, balance will follow.