The last few years have been tough on the nursing profession. Between staffing shortages, high turnover, and overall burnout, nurses, as a whole, are far less forgiving regarding their expectations than they once were. Leadership plays a key role in creating a workplace that reflects the real needs of RNs and LPNs today.
Pizza parties and appreciation weeks are all well and good, but if you want to meet and exceed the expectations of nurses in your facility, then you need to make some adjustments. Today’s nurses have learned from the recent past and are clear about their need for facility leadership that understands the demands of the job, respects the work, and works to build a better workplace culture from the top down. Here are some of the ways your facility leadership can rise to the expectations of today’s RNs and LPNs.
Address Staffing
Today’s RNs and LPNs understand that a chronically understaffed healthcare facility doesn’t just make their job that much harder; it’s unsafe for patients. A short-staffed shift means a higher risk of costly mistakes that can affect patient outcomes as well as the nurses’ licensure and their own health. Safe staffing is the foundation of workplace safety, patient care, and job satisfaction.
As facility leadership, do not rely on mandatory overtime or floating staff. That’s a sure way to encourage turnover. Instead, practice transparency in your staffing and predictability in scheduling. Communication is key, so be open with your RNs and LPNs.
Respect Work-Life Balance
Flexibility in scheduling used to be seen as a bonus; now it’s a baseline expectation. In 2026, the name of the game is communication (starting to see a trend?). Your RNs and LPNs want input when it comes to their schedules. Nurses expect fair notice of shift changes and equitable shift-swapping. Self-scheduling, compressed workweeks, part-time options, and control over their time demonstrate facility leadership that respects the work-life balance of their staff.
Be Accessible
Nurses who feel respected expect their leadership to be accessible. That means they want managers and administrators who show up on the floor and not just in meetings. It’s easy to identify facility leadership who are actively involved. They’re the ones who know the residents by name, can answer questions in real time, and recognize the daily workflow around them. Facility leadership that listens to the concerns of their RNs and LPNs and then follows up with action is trusted and respected over those who drop the ball.
Embrace Your Nurses’ Desire for Growth
There are many ways to demonstrate your dedication to your nurses’ path forward. Beyond fair compensation that reflects the competitive job market and growing inflation, offering tuition reimbursement, a clear path to professional development, and support for bridge programs like the LPN-to-RN program shows that leadership wants to invest in their nurses. This support for your nurses’ desire to grow in their careers shouldn’t be treated like a bonus but rather an opportunity to promote from within. That’s the stuff that earns loyalty from your RNs and LPNs.
Promote Safety and Respect
Much of what led to the nursing shortage today can be blamed on a lack of respect and poor workplace safety. Lack of support from leadership in the face of verbal abuse from patients and their family members, unsafe equipment, unsafe work environments, and workplace violence is not acceptable. Nurses expect facility leadership to take reports of these incidents seriously, offer support after the incidents, and enforce consequences instead of dismissing such occurrences as “part of the job”.
Respect also means you honor the scope of practice. LPNs should be as valued and respected as RNs. There’s no place for the type of hierarchy that dismisses the contributions of one nurse over another.
Put These Tips into Practice
Facility leadership that earns the trust of RNs and LPNs through transparency and open communication, seeing their value, as well as having their back, also earns loyalty, which means your nurses are more likely to stay and grow within the healthcare organization. And that’s a rarity in 2026.
For more on how you can rise to the expectations of today’s RNs and LPNs and support your facility’s needs, contact BOS Medical Staffing.
