Creating cultures of loving care is not just the right thing to do for staff and patients, it’s a leadership strategy and a smart business move.
PENSACOLA, NC, UNITED STATES, February 10, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Valentine’s Day is upon us, and Regina Shupe, DNP, RN is inviting healthcare leaders to rethink what love looks like in the workplace. Not the hearts and flowers kind (obviously!) but the kind that shows up as courtesy, respect, hospitality, and kindness in the everyday moments between leaders and staff and—of course—staff and patients. She calls it “loving care” …and says it can and must become a central tenet of our culture.
If that sounds a little, well, soft, it’s because healthcare is demanding in ways few industries are. The pace is relentless. The stakes are high. And for leaders and frontline teams alike, the days are often defined by urgency, competing priorities, and the pressure to keep moving.
“It’s easy for leaders to interact with staff in a way that’s a bit transactional and task-focused,” reflects Shupe, a nurse with 40 years’ experience under her belt and the author of Rewiring the Emergency Department: Innovative Solutions for Modern Emergency Care (The Gratitude Group Publishing, 2026, ISBN: 979-8-9934298-2-3, $18.00). “It’s not that they don’t care, it’s that they feel like they don’t have time to show it.
“So, when I talk about building cultures of loving care, at first I kind of get the side-eye from people,” she adds. “It’s like, ‘We can’t afford to do that.’ But when they realize the payoff, they see that actually, we can’t afford not to.”
Shupe says when we shift how we think about how we treat staff, it will in turn impact how they treat patients. And there are solid bottom-line reasons for making that shift.
“A culture rooted in loving care has real, measurable impacts on outcomes, satisfaction, and sustainability,” says Shupe. “Perhaps most critically, it lays the foundation for trust and has big implications for retaining talent. Let’s face it: we all want to work at a place where we feel loved.”
In a time of workforce shortages, burnout, and rising patient acuity, Shupe argues that getting intentional around loving care is not a “nice-to-have,” but a leadership strategy and smart business decision.
While her perspective is deeply informed by emergency care (as her book title suggests), she emphasizes that the principles apply across departments and disciplines, creating ripple effects that strengthen the entire organization.
How To Show Loving Care to Employees…
The foundation of any culture is how people treat one another. In healthcare—where pressure is constant and emotions often run high—leadership behavior sets the tone. Shupe argues that loving care must begin with the people who make the organization run. A few tips:
Start the culture shift at the top. Leaders must model empathy, presence, and emotional intelligence…especially on the hardest days. When we listen to understand, acknowledge burnout honestly, and show compassion alongside competence, we give our teams permission to do the same.
Always coach employees with love. Be honest but never harsh. Make sure feedback is rooted in curiosity rather than judgment. This approach builds psychological safety, encourages growth, and reinforces the belief that every team member is worthy of support and development.
Treat well-being as central to the employee experience. This happens via realistic scheduling, accessible mental health support, peer connection, restorative spaces, and meaningful involvement in decision-making that affects emergency care.
Use communication as a tool for loving care. Clear, respectful, compassionate communication strengthens trust and collaboration in high-pressure environments. Shupe encourages leaders to “rewire” rounding practices, moving beyond transactional checklists to questions that explore emotional safety, workload strain, connection, joy, and growth.
Make rounding a trust-building practice. When leaders listen deeply, document themes, and follow up consistently, staff see that their voices matter. Over time, rounding becomes a powerful mechanism for psychological safety, engagement, and culture change.
…And to Patients and Families
While transforming how leaders care for employees is foundational, Shupe is equally clear that loving care must be visible to patients and families—many of whom arrive frightened, overwhelmed, and vulnerable.
Shift the mindset. Loving care begins with an internal shift from “What’s wrong with this patient?” to “Whom can I help today, and how?” This change moves clinicians from judgment to curiosity and from frustration to purpose.
Reframe the narrative around patients. Many patients arrive with complex social, behavioral, or mental health needs. Shupe urges caregivers to resist labels and stereotypes and instead see the person behind the visit—someone’s parent, child, or loved one—worthy of dignity and respect.
Look for moments of connection. Hospitality lives in small gestures: eye contact, introductions, using a patient’s name, sitting down briefly, offering a warm greeting. These moments do not slow care; they deepen it and communicate, “You matter.”
Make sure patients understand. Slowing down, avoiding jargon, and inviting questions are acts of compassion that help patients feel safe, supported, and cared for.
Extend compassion to families. Families are part of the care ecosystem. Including them, acknowledging their emotions, and keeping them informed reinforces a culture of care that extends beyond the gurney.
Close the gap with follow-up. Loving care does not end at discharge. Follow-up calls, referrals, and coordination of care send a powerful message: We haven’t forgotten you.
All of this requires training and practice. And since we don’t live in a perfect world these tactics won’t solve overcrowding, staffing shortages, or systemic dysfunction overnight. But culture is one lever leaders can control, and one that influences every other outcome.
The important thing is to make an honest effort to lead with love, every day.
“Loving care is not about perfection; it is about presence,” Shupe writes. “It means choosing empathy over judgment, listening with intention, and being fully human in our encounters with others, whether staff or patients. The challenges are real—but so is the power we hold to meet them with grace, together.”
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About the Author:
Regina Shupe, DNP, RN—author of Rewiring the Emergency Department: Innovative Solutions for Modern Emergency Care—serves as an advisor, speaker, author, and thought leader for Healthcare Plus Solutions Group®. She brings greater than 30 years of nursing leadership and healthcare operational leadership with expertise in emergency services. She is an innovative healthcare leader driven by the correlation between positive team culture and improved patient outcomes. She leads transformative organizational change by leveraging proven clinical, operational, and leadership development.
She holds a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau International and the Emergency Nurses Association. She holds a certification in LEAN for Healthcare.
About the Book:
Rewiring the Emergency Department: Innovative Solutions for Modern Emergency Care (The Gratitude Group Publishing, 2026, ISBN: 979-8-9934298-2-3, $18.00) is available at https://healthcareplussg.com/book/rewiring-the-emergency-department/.
About HPSG:
Healthcare Plus Solutions Group® (HPSG) was founded by Quint Studer and Dan Collard in 2022. Powered by a team of healthcare industry and talent management experts, HPSG specializes in delivering Precision Leader Development™ solutions to healthcare organizations across the continuum of care and their teams. With tightly customized services that look at the whole health of an organization, HPSG works closely with its partners to diagnose their most urgent pain points; design smart, collaborative solutions; and execute a coaching plan that delivers measurable results. With partnerships across the country, HPSG’s primary mission is to have a positive impact on those who receive care and those who provide care.
Dottie DeHart
DH&C
dottie@dehartandcompany.com
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