Andrea Fernandez, MD, regional chief medical officer and chief quality, safety and patient experience officer for Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist, has been named the executive sponsor of ALL IN: Caring for North Carolina’s Caregivers for Wake Forest Baptist. This new statewide initiative is spearheaded by North Carolina Clinician and Physician Retention and Well-being (NCCPRW) Consortium who partnered with the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation.
Cormac A. O'Donovan, MD, professor of neurology at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, is a founding member and current co-chair of the NCCPRW Consortium.
The ALL IN: Caring for North Carolina’s Caregivers initiative is being launched with a calling to North Carolina hospitals and health systems to remove one of the most substantial causes to health workers’ poor mental health and well-being – the fear of losing their credentials to work due to overly broad and invasive mental health questions on credentialing applications.
These questions are stigmatizing and discriminatory and they often cause healthcare workers to avoid seeking the mental health care they may need. The hospitals and health systems that audit and change language on credentialing applications will be recognized as being ALL IN for prioritizing clinician well-being and be recognized as a Wellbeing First Champion. By launching ALL IN: Caring for North Carolina’s Caregivers, North Carolina is expanding on its leadership and commitment to support the mental health and well-being of its healthcare workforce.
Hospitals and health systems participating in the initiative commit to:
- Making a public commitment to their workforce’s well-being by eliminating local barriers to mental health care access for licensed health workers.
- Participating in a digital curriculum to enhance understanding of the drivers of burnout and successful approaches to improve well-being.
- Creating and implementing a 12-month action plan to accelerate systems change to
The NCCPRW Consortium is a collaborative initiative aimed at identifying and developing strategies to reduce stress and improve well-being among the healthcare workforce at the individual, organizational and state level. Founded in 2016 in response to concerns raised by the North Carolina Medical Society regarding invasive language in licensing renewal materials, the Consortium has evolved into a proactive force advocating for the mental health and wellness of healthcare professionals.
The Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation’s vision is a world where seeking mental health care is universally viewed as a sign of strength for health workers. They believe every health worker should have access to the mental health care and professional well-being support that they may need, at every moment in their career.