Registered Nurse CEOs: The Arizona Experience

Have you ever been wowed? Let us tell you the story of 12 amazing nurses in Arizona. Currently, Arizona hospitals boast 15 chief executive officers (CEOs) who are registered nurses (RNs), three of whom are corporate CEOs—the CEOs of CEOs. This article is about their stories, their visions, and their insights. They are sharp learning machines, visionaries, relationship builders, and they have it. They have a presence that shows they are comfortable in their own shoes and with others. You feel their energy the moment you sit down with them. They all look back and see their nursing experience as a cornerstone of the job, although, historically, nurses who became hospital administrators were characterized as having sold out. 1 Who in the C-suite is more appropriate to align clinician input from the bedside with financial demands?