ONL's 2026 Annual Meeting

THURSDAY, JUNE 6

Breakfast, Registration, and Vendors

Welcome

Cultivate, Coach, Connect: How Nurse Leaders Are Unlocking Social Capital

In this session, Press Ganey Thought Leader and Chief Nursing Officer Dr. Jeff Doucette will explore how nurse leaders unlock the full potential of their teams by intentionally cultivating talent, coaching for growth, and building meaningful connections. Participants will examine how social capital influences performance at the intersection of safety, quality, high reliability, and service. Drawing on the latest national nursing engagement data, he will illustrate the measurable connection between engaged nurse leaders and the outcomes that matter most. Attendees will gain a renewed perspective and practical insights to translate engagement into tangible performance improvements across their organizations, strengthening both team culture and results.

Jeff Doucette, DNP, RN, FACHE, NEA-BC, FAAN
Senior Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer, Press Ganey

As Press Ganey’s Chief Nursing Officer, Dr. Jeff Doucette is responsible for helping clients transform the patient and caregiver experience. In this role, he works to develop nursing leaders at client organizations, improve clinical quality and efficiency, and improve employee and caregiver engagement by playing an integral role in the company’s safety, clinical, and workforce initiatives. Dr. Doucette is a widely recognized and accomplished nurse leader with 30 years of experience spent largely in leadership and executive nursing roles. Throughout his career, he has focused on enabling the delivery of exceptional patient and family experiences through innovation, education, and nursing excellence. Most recently, D.r Doucette served as senior vice president and chief nursing officer at Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals in Philadelphia, where he led the strategic direction and leadership of the Division of Nursing and Patient Care Services and played a critical role in cultivating and sustaining nursing excellence. Prior to joining Jefferson Health, Dr. Doucette served as the inaugural vice president of the Magnet Recognition Program® and Pathway to Excellence® Programs at the American Nurses Credentialing Center. He is a Robert Wood Johnson Executive Nurse Fellow, a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives, and a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing. He also serves on the editorial advisory board for Nursing Management and The Journal of Nursing Administration.

Break and Vendors

Call to Action: Blueprint for Change Toward Patient-Focused Outcome Measures

As the complexity of care within health systems continues to increase, it is essential that nurses fully describe, quantify, and demonstrate their impact on patient and family outcomes. Because traditional measures associated with hospital nursing practice remain narrow and largely focused on patient harm, this session will introduce a broader, more meaningful framework drawn from the Blueprint for Change in Acute and Critical Care Nursing. Dr. Martha Curley will review the nine domains of clinical practice and explore how each can be aligned with patient-focused outcome measures that inform regulatory, accreditation, and credentialing benchmarks. Attendees will leave with greater clarity on how advancing more comprehensive outcome measures can elevate nursing’s visibility, strengthen accountability, and demonstrate the profession’s value to patients, families, and health systems.

Martha A.Q. Curley, RN, PhD, FAAN
Ruth M. Colket Endowed Chair in Pediatric Nursing, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia; Professor, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing

Dr. Martha Curley is a pioneering leader in nursing practice transformation and a relentless force in advancing clinical care throughout her distinguished career. Her substantial accomplishments as an international leader in pediatric critical care research have transformed the delivery of care for critically ill children and forever changed and elevated the scope of pediatric nursing and nursing science on a global scale. Dr. Curley has led numerous international multisite clinical trials funded by the National Institutes of Health (USA), and her findings have established first-ever pediatric-validated instruments for assessing patient status and health risk, provided evidence to support nurse-led interventions that meet essential child and family needs in the pediatric ICU, and undergirded standards of care and practice guidelines for critically ill pediatric patients and their families. She is internationally recognized for instituting standards for the design and execution of clinical trials and for her prolific and seminal publications.Currently, Dr. Curley is a Professor at the University of Pennsylvania and serves as the Ruth M. Colket Endowed Chair in Pediatric Nursing Science, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia where she is the executive sponsor for Nursing Data and Analytics. She is a member of the National Academy of Medicine, the recipient of major awards from the Society of Critical Care Medicine and designated a Living Legend by the American Academy of Nursing for her impact on the practice and science of critical care.

Lunch and Vendors

Return on Investment in Nursing Human Capital: Evidence from the INVEST (Invest in Nursing Value: Evidence for Sustainable Transformation) Study

In this session, economist and professor of nursing Dr. Olga Yakusheva will present findings from the most recent INVEST (Invest in Nursing Value: Evidence for Sustainable Transformation) study. Drawing on anonymized data reports from Chief Nursing Officers and Executives nationwide, Dr. Yakusheva examines the impact of investments in nursing human capital and the financial returns these investments generate for hospitals. During this session, participants will review key data from the study, uncover evidence-based strategies for nursing workforce development, and explore how targeted investments in nursing can drive organizational and financial performance in acute care settings.

Olga Yakusheva, PhD, MPSE, FAAN
Economist; Professor of Nursing, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing; Economics Editor, International Journal of Nursing Studies

Dr. Olga Yakusheva is an economist, a Professor of Nursing at he Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, and Economics Editor for the International Journal of Nursing Studies. Dr. Yakusheva has an academic background in mathematics (BS) and economics (MS, PhD), specializing in economic theory and methods, and big data analytics. She completed post-doctoral training in health services research at the Yale Schools of Medicine and Public Health. Internationally recognized as an expert on the economic value of nursing and its contribution to patient, societal, and organizational outcomes, Dr. Yakusheva is one of the leading economists influencing national nursing policy. In 2023, she was inducted as an Honorary Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing. Dr. Yakusheva has published her work in nursing, economics, policy, and health services research journals; she is currently a principal investigator on two R01s that examine ways to optimize nursing care delivery in hospitals; she is also funded by the American Nurses’ Association (ANA) Enterprise and the American Nurses’ Foundation for her work on the economic value of nursing and nursing payment across the care continuum. Dr. Yakusheva presently serves as an economic advisor to the ANA Enterprise, the ANA Enterprise Research Council, and The Joint Commission’s Nurse Stakeholder Committee. Alongside a nursing colleague, she co-directs the ANA’s new initiative, “Framing and Articulating the Economic Value of the Nursing Profession.” This includes leading the national summit, “Re-imagining the Economic Value of Nursing.” Dr. Yakusheva is the lead author of a recent six-part series in Nursing Outlook titled “Value-informed nursing practice and leadership” and several recent publications proposing alternatives payment models for nursing reimbursement.

Short Break

PANEL DISCUSSION
Integrating Perspectives: Leadership, Outcomes, and Investment

To close Day 1 of the Annual Meeting, we will bring together our speakers Dr. Jeff Doucette, Dr. Martha Curley, and Dr. Olga Yakusheva for a dynamic conversation. Representing perspectives from engagement data, clinical outcomes measurement, and health economics, our panel members will reflect on the ideas shared throughout the day. Attendees will gain insight on how leadership, practice standards, and strategic investment intersect and can strengthen patient outcomes and organizational performance. Engagement is encouraged; time will be protected for in-the-room dialogue. 

Break

Networking Reception and Awards Ceremony

Please join us to connect with fellow attendees and recognize and honor our award and scholarship recipients.

Explore Newport and enjoy dinner with your team or friends

FRIDAY, JUNE 5

Breakfast and Vendors

ONL Business Meeting

The ONL Business Meeting offers a chance to learn more about the core work of ONL to advance nursing leadership and support nurse leaders. Members of the ONL Board and staff provide insight into what ONL has been working on and share key updates about upcoming programs, member benefits, opportunities to get more involved with ONL, key policy and legislative activity in our region, and recent developments and key topics impacting nursing practice and nursing leadership. The Business Meeting is also a forum in which ONL recognizes and celebrates our members' recent milestones and achievements.

Break and Vendors

Passport to Prizes and Vendor Raffle Drawings

The Mask I Wore: A CNO’s Journey Through Depression, Healing, and Hope

In this powerful and deeply human session, Dr. Bob Dent challenges the myth of invincibility in leadership. Drawing on his personal journey through depression and recovery, Dr. Dent will invite leaders to confront the hidden mental health struggles that often accompany high performance and responsibility. This session will explore the impact of trauma — not only in patients, but within ourselves and our teams — and examine how vulnerability, courage, and self-awareness can strengthen leadership effectiveness. Participants will leave with renewed perspective and practical insight into building workplace cultures that protect both performance and mental well-being, fostering resilience for themselves and those they lead.

Bob Dent, DNP, MBA, RN, NEA-BC, FACHE, FAAN, FAONL
Nurse, executive, and coach

Dr. Bob Dent is a seasoned healthcare executtive, executive coach, and founder of DBD Coaching and Consulting. With over 35 years of experience as a Chief Nursing Officer and health system leader, he holds a DNP and MBA, is an ICF-Certified Executive Coach, and is a Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach. He is a fellow of ACHE, AAN, and AONL. He partners with individuals and teams to build resilient cultures, sharpen strategic focus, and accelerate growth through evidence-based coaching and consulting.