New Global Solutions Initiative to Inspire Compassionate Leadership in Nursing and Midwifery
The Nursing Now Challenge and the RCN Foundation Centre for Compassionate Leadership in Nursing and Midwifery are delighted to announce a new global collaboration aimed at developing compassionate nurse and midwife leaders.
The partnership will deliver a dedicated Nursing Now Challenge Global Solutions Initiative (NNCGSI), bringing together student and early-career nurses and midwives from across the world to explore how compassionate leadership can transform workplaces, strengthen healthcare teams, and improve patient care.
This four-session programme, running from September to November 2026, will explore why compassionate leadership matters, how it supports cultures where people and care flourish, and how participants can translate leadership principles into meaningful and sustainable change.
At the heart of the initiative is a challenge for participants to develop a plan or model to introduce compassionate leadership within their own workplace. Through a series of interactive learning sessions, expert-led discussions, peer collaboration, and guided project development, participants will be supported to create practical, context-sensitive solutions.
The winner/s will be entitled to coaching to support implementation of their Compassionate Leadership project plan provided by the RCN Foundation Centre for Compassionate Leadership in Nursing and Midwifery.
Professor Gemma Stacey, Programme Director, Nursing Now Challenge and Rebecca Kenny, Head of the RCN Foundation’s Centre for Compassionate Leadership in Nursing and Midwifery, will launch this new NNCGSI on 23rd September. Following the launch webinar, there will be three further sessions when participants will hear from internationally recognised leadership experts including Professor Michael West CBE.
“Compassionate leadership creates the conditions for people to do their best work. In increasingly pressured healthcare environments, it helps teams feel safe, connected and able to learn, innovate and improve care together. Through the partnership between the RCN Foundation Centre for Compassionate Leadership in Nursing and Midwifery and the Nursing Now Challenge Global Solutions Initiative, we are investing in the next generation of nurse and midwife leaders so they can shape cultures where both people and patients can thrive.” Rebecca Kenny, Head of the RCN Foundation Centre for Compassionate Leadership in Nursing and Midwifery.
“The nurses and midwives in our network tell us consistently that the biggest influence on whether they stay in the profession is the culture of the team around them. Compassionate leadership is the answer to that, and it is something they can start shaping early rather than waiting for seniority. Partnering with the RCN Foundation Centre for Compassionate Leadership in Nursing and Midwifery means our members get access to expertise and coaching that would otherwise may be out of reach at this stage of a career, and it means the ideas they develop have somewhere to go.” Professor Gemma Stacey, Programme Director, Nursing Now Challenge.
This initiative represents a significant opportunity for emerging nursing and midwifery leaders to learn from global experts, connect with peers, and develop practical solutions that place compassion at the centre of leadership and healthcare delivery.
