In today’s healthcare environment, compassionate leadership in nursing is more than a feel-good concept, it’s increasingly recognized as a strategic necessity. Nurse leaders at all levels face many pressures, from staffing shortages and burnout to rising patient complexity and constant change. This extends beyond clinical settings, as nurse leaders who serve on boards and in governance roles can help embed compassion into the policies, strategies, and decision-making structures that shape healthcare organizations.
As Dr. Paquita C. de Zulueta noted in her academic research, “compassionate health care is universally valued as a social and moral good to be upheld and sustained. Leadership is considered pivotal for enabling the development and preservation of compassionate health care organizations.” In other words, how leaders lead directly shapes the culture and outcomes of care, not just at the bedside, but also in the boardroom.
Compassionate leadership in nursing simply means leading with genuine care for others’ well-being. Some scholars further define it as a collection of leadership practices rooted in altruistic values and emotional intelligence. Going beyond simple kindness, it involves actively understanding and addressing the needs and suffering of patients, staff, and colleagues. Notably, compassion is more than a value, it’s a practice that shapes leadership, teamwork, and patient care. It’s something leaders intentionally cultivate and demonstrate daily.
In short, compassion is the “heart” of effective healthcare leadership, providing the human connection that balances the technical and strategic aspects of running a nursing unit or a health system.
Compassionate Nursing Leadership Key Traits and Behaviors
What does compassionate nursing leadership look like in action? It comes to life through specific behaviors and qualities that nurse leaders consistently demonstrate, whether at the bedside, managing a team, or shaping policy from the boardroom.
Some key traits and practices include:
- Emotional Intelligence & Empathy: Compassionate nurse leaders exhibit high emotional intelligence. They recognize and understand emotions (their own and others’) and respond with empathy. This means acknowledging the stress or pain a nurse or patient is feeling and responding in a supportive way. By staying attuned to the team’s morale and individuals’ needs, a leader can address issues before they escalate, whether in a hospital unit or across an entire system.
- Active Listening and Presence: Being fully present and listening deeply is a hallmark of compassionate nursing leadership. Being led by someone who truly listens (who is approachable and provides undivided attention) makes all the difference. Whether in one-on-one meetings, board discussions, or during rounds on the unit, compassionate nurse leaders take time to hear concerns, validate feelings, and make people feel seen and heard.
- Advocacy and Support: A compassionate nurse leader is a fierce advocate for both patients and staff. Advocacy in this context means using one’s authority to ensure safe staffing levels, healthy work conditions, and the resources nurses need to provide excellent care. In governance roles, it also means using your seat at the table to champion policies that reflect patient-centered values and workforce well-being. Compassionate nurse leaders stand up for their teams in management meetings and defend care-driven priorities in strategic decisions.
- Mentorship and Presence of Mind: Compassionate nurse leadership also shows up in mentorship and remaining calm in crises. Nurse leaders who care invest time in mentoring and developing their staff, helping them cope with stress and grow professionally. They demonstrate patience and understanding when mistakes occur, using them as teaching moments rather than occasions for blame. In high-stress situations, whether managing a clinical emergency or navigating a system-wide challenge, their compassionate presence can steady the team.
Through these behaviors, compassionate nurse leaders create a workplace and organizational climate of respect, support, and open communication.
From the Boardroom to Bedside Care
Compassionate leadership in nursing is relevant across all levels of healthcare, from the boardroom to bedside care. Nursing is a profession built on compassion at the point of care, but that same ethos can and should inform leadership in upper management and governance.
Increasingly, nurses are rising to executive roles (Chief Nursing Officers, Chief Executives) and securing seats on boards of healthcare organizations. At this level, compassionate nurse leadership entails keeping the patient and staff perspective at the forefront of high-level decision-making. Nurse executives with clinical backgrounds often remind their boards and fellow leaders about the human impact of budget cuts, staffing ratios, or policy changes. They emphasize that financial and strategic decisions must align with caregiving values. As Dr. Cole Edmonson of NOBC put it, “As nurses, our impact includes the bedside and beyond. We bring invaluable perspectives to leadership at the bedside, in the C-Suite, and in the boardroom.” In these senior roles, compassionate nurse leaders work to ensure that leadership decisions remain person-centered, balancing quality care with efficiency.
What ties all these contexts together is the conviction that compassion is not a “nice extra,” but a core leadership competency in nursing. Whether one is coordinating a single patient’s care plan or setting a hospital’s annual goals, leading with compassion creates a ripple effect of positivity, trust, and commitment. It strengthens the connective tissue between healthcare providers and the people they serve.
Conclusion: Leading with Compassion, Shaping the Future of Healthcare
Compassionate nursing leadership is more than a soft skill, it is a strategic, evidence-informed approach that strengthens healthcare systems from the inside out. For nurse leaders, compassion fuels not only how care is delivered at the bedside, but how decisions are made in boardrooms, C-suites, and committees shaping healthcare policy and operations. By cultivating emotional intelligence, listening with presence, advocating with courage, and leading with empathy, nurse leaders create cultures of respect, resilience, and excellence.
As the healthcare landscape continues to evolve, the need for leaders who can balance strategy with humanity has never been greater. From mentoring teams to influencing system-wide decisions, nurse leaders are uniquely positioned to drive transformation through compassionate action.
Register for our Nov. 5, 2025 Webinar
For a deeper exploration of this topic, join Dr. Tim Cunningham, DrPH, RN, FAAN, for ALSN and NOBC’s co-sponsored webinar, “The Epidemiology of Compassion from the Board Room to the Bedside,” on November 5th. Dr. Cunningham brings a distinct perspective on how compassion can shape leadership and organizational culture across healthcare. Register here
About The Association for Leadership Science in Nursing
The Association for Leadership Science in Nursing (ALSN) was established in 1970 as the Council on Graduate Education for Administration in Nursing as a formal organization dedicated to collegial relationships and intellectual exchange among nurse educators whose focus was nursing administration at the graduate level.
ALSN’s diverse membership includes advanced practice nurses in leadership, education, research, and those fostering an entrepreneurial spirit. ALSN’s mission and vision are grounded in the commitment to advance leadership science providing evidence to improve quality outcomes for all those served.
Through ALSN’s many on-going activities, webinars, conferences, JONA journal articles and scholarly recognition awards, ALSN claims a wide span of influence on nursing leadership research. Learn more at ALSN.info
