(LIVE BLOG from Rewiring Healthcare: Foundation to Future, April 28-29, in Atlanta, GA)

At the Rewiring Healthcare conference, Regina Shupe, DNP, RN, asked a sobering question during her Well-Being + Caregiver Support (HCE Overview: Resources & Support) session: Are the demands of healthcare work now outpacing the support we provide the people doing it?

Unfortunately, the answer is yes. And she emphasized that this is a conversation healthcare leaders need to keep front and center—because the stakes are too high to ever stop talking about it.

Healthcare workers do not lack grit—but grit alone is not a support system. Nearly half of healthcare workers report burnout or at least one symptom of burnout, and the stakes are much higher than engagement scores.

“This is what is at risk: the lives of our colleagues, physicians, nurses, and healthcare workers,” Regina asserted.

That means we need to go deeper than traditional employee surveys, dashboards, pizza parties, or annual action plans.

Regina pointed to rounding as one place to start, but said leaders may need to ask different questions. Questions like “Do you have the tools and equipment to do your job?” or “What’s working?” are great. But we also need to go deeper so we can understand what people are carrying, what support they need, and what might help restore joy, safety, and stability.

She also urged leaders to know the resources already available to them. Employee Assistance Programs often include counseling, financial help, legal support, and family resources, but they must be normalized before someone is in crisis. Other supports, like Code Lavender, intentional pauses, and Schwartz Rounds, can help caregivers process trauma, reconnect, and recover.

When leaders build this kind of culture—where support is immediate, practical, and human—the impact is measurable. Turnover and vacancy rates go down. Reliance on agency staffing decreases. Patient experience and safety improve. Team resilience and stability rise. And sometimes it will even save a life.

Ultimately, Regina reminded us that such cultures are not built through strategy alone. They’re rebuilt through intentional leadership: one conversation, one pause, one act of care at a time.

Regina Shupe, DNP, RN—author of Rewiring the Emergency Department: Innovative Solutions for Modern Emergency Care—serves as an advisor, speaker, author, and thought leader for Healthcare Plus Solutions Group^®. She brings greater than 30 years of nursing leadership and healthcare operational leadership with expertise in emergency services. She is an innovative healthcare leader driven by the correlation between positive team culture and improved patient outcomes. She leads transformative organizational change by leveraging proven clinical, operational, and leadership development.

She holds a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau International and the Emergency Nurses Association. She holds a certification in LEAN for Healthcare.

Click here for speaking inquiries or to order books.