ANA President Dr. Ernest Grant speaks with undergraduate leadership class
September 2, 2022
Friday, September 2, 2022—In an at-capacity room on the ground floor of Carrington Hall this morning, BSN students, including honorary “student” Dean Valerie Howard, hosted a very special guest: Honorary UNC SON alum, veteran of the UNC Health system and President of the American Nurses Association, Dr. Ernest Grant, who came to speak about his nursing career path, leadership, anti-racism and a multitude of workforce issues to a rapt audience.
Nurs 401 (Integrating Principles of Leadership, Quality and Safety, and Informatics into Nursing Practice), taught by Clinical Instructor Ryan Lewis, is an undergraduate course that examines systems thinking and complexity, development of leadership roles and skills, and interprofessional communication and teamwork. It served as the perfect forum for Dr. Grant’s lecture.
Dr. Grant’s colleague and collaborator, SON Clinical Professor Dr. Rumay Alexander, introduced him as a thoughtful leader and advocate, saying, “Everything he does as a leader is in the service of patients” — an approach that reflects the core values of Carolina Nursing.
“Nursing is everywhere; at the bedside, in the community and in the halls of Congress,” Dr. Grant began.
Reaching back to the beginning of his career path, Grant spoke about telling his high school counselor that he wanted to be an anesthesiologist, but changing his mind after a few weeks on the job as an LPN. He was resolved to remain in nursing—the “heart of the health care system.”
He then found his “true calling” at the North Carolina Jaycee Burn Center, an experience that challenged him to apply everything he knew, working with patients aged one week to 104 years. Looking at his career, it would be safe to assume that his other calling is leadership, and he spoke emphatically about belonging to professional nursing organizations.
“If we don’t do it, someone removed from our experience as nurses will make decisions about our profession.”
Dr. Alexander wholeheartedly echoed this sentiment.
“Take your seat at the table. Ask questions. Make suggestions. No matter what your position is, these are your colleagues and you are their equal.”
Dr. Grant also spoke at length about the ANA’s National Commission to Address Racism in Nursing, for which Dr. Alexander serves as the Scholar-in-Residence. He emphasized that it was essential to address the ANA’s own history of racism, relying on those inside and outside the organization to facilitate a reckoning. Dr. Grant is only the 3rd person of color to serve as ANA president since its founding in 1896. In fact, the ANA did not allow for black nurses to join until the 1940s and they were not allowed to hold office until the 1950’s.
When the floor was opened for questions, students were eager to continue this discussion with pragmatic questions about addressing racism and other prejudices in real workplace scenarios, where administrators, nurses and patients can be on either end of racially-motivated aggressions. Dr. Grant has experienced this many times himself, noting that it began on his first day in the burn unit, when someone assumed he did not have medical credentials and asked if he was with “housekeeping”.
The microphone was passed around for the next hour, Dr. Grant answering poignant questions about nursing practice policy, burnout and workforce issues—humbly providing more details when asked about his career, including his service to burn victims of the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks, for which he was presented with the Nurse of the Year Award by President George W. Bush in 2002.
The lecture ended with the SON Undergraduate Student Governance Council presenting Dr. Grant with a thank you gift and gathering outside for a few photos.
Carolina Nursing is very grateful to Dr. Grant for sharing his expertise and to faculty members Ryan Lewis and Rumay Alexander for arranging this inspiring experience for our students.
