As chief nurse executive, Julie Balluck, D.N.P., R.N., NEA-BC, has set a course for Texas Health Resources nurses focused on enhancing a culture of ownership, investing in the development of the nursing workforce, harnessing emerging technologies, setting bold goals for performance and building nursing resilience and responsiveness.
“I’m committed to providing the resources, advocacy and environment for nurses to innovate, collaborate and thrive,” said Balluck, who was named to the position in February.
Balluck’s 26 years of experience at Texas Health have helped her step into the new role with confidence.
“I have seen how we have grown, adapted and changed as an organization over the years, and I am proud to be advancing nursing professional practice at Texas Health and working to position us as a model for innovation, quality and patient-centered care,” she said.
Taking ownership
Part of Balluck’s vision for nursing is fostering a stronger culture of ownership, where every nurse is empowered to lead change and drive improved outcomes.
“Texas Health nurses are so smart and so professional, and when we have problems, we need to come up with the solutions,” she said. “When we take ownership as individuals, units or departments, we can develop the best options for facing our challenges.”
Balluck points out the pride that comes from ownership.
“When we own our successes and great outcomes, as well as the challenges we face, we increase our confidence in our skills and resilience,” she said.
Harnessing technology
Harnessing emerging technologies to transform care delivery is another highlight of Balluck’s vision for nursing. She points out the success of virtual patient observation as evidence of the positive impact of technology.
“We want to leverage technology, like we have done with virtual patient observation, in ways that improve patient care, enable nurses to practice at the top of their license and create a more seamless and efficient experience for everyone,” Balluck said. “I think we are ripe to really take our innovative use of technology to the next level.”
She is encouraged by the work that Joni Padden, D.N.P., APRN, BC, chief nursing informatics officer, is doing to reduce the documentation burden for care teams and the virtual care delivery programs developed by Mae Centeno, D.N.P., APRN, ACNS-BC, chief operating officer and chief nursing officer, Virtual Care Delivery, and her team.
“We have great collaboration underway to help advance our use of technology,” Balluck said.
One of Balluck’s goals is to create an environment where innovation can be tested and refined by technology-savvy nurses.
“The goal is to test ideas and innovations before deploying across Texas Health,” she said.
Testing is part of the paradigm Balluck uses in making decisions. She has a reputation as a firm decision-maker who is also willing to test and adapt when needed.
“I’m very open to reassessing decisions,” she said. “I always like to ask, ‘Did we solve the problem we had identified through this decision?’ Sometimes we pivot, and sometimes we stay the course with the decision, knowing that we are eventually going to get to where we need to be.”
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