Dr. McDonnell leads more than 12,000 nurses and patient care professionals across Duke Health’s hospitals and clinics. She is responsible for advancing clinical excellence, workforce development and system-level integration of nursing practice. Under her leadership, Duke Health reduced nurse turnover from 21% to 11% through strategic investments in professional development and care team innovation. She founded the Duke Nursing Innovation Summit to support frontline-led solutions, several of which are now in development or being adopted systemwide. Dr. McDonnell continues to practice as a gastrointestinal oncology nurse practitioner and mentors emerging leaders. Her commitment to compassionate care has earned her several accolades, including the “Compassionate Caregiver Award” from the National Pancreas Foundation. She was shortlisted for Forbes‘ “50 Over 50” list. She contributes regularly to national forums on healthcare workforce transformation and has been featured in HealthTech Magazine, Chief Healthcare Executive and Healthcare IT News, in addition to speaking at various industry events.
