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A Pride Month Q&A with Dr. Jeff Doucette on authenticity, leadership, and the future of healthcare

Pride Month is a global celebration held each June to honor the LGBTQ+ community. It recognizes the community’s history, achievements, and ongoing efforts toward equality and acceptance.

Our SVP and Chief Nursing Officer, Jeff Doucette, DNP, RN, FACHE, FAAN sits down with us to share his experiences as an LGBTQ+ leader. He explains the importance of advocating for authenticity and inclusion, fostering a culture of belonging, and what it takes to engage the next generation of healthcare professionals.

Let’s start at the beginning. What first drew you to a career in nursing, and how did that path evolve into leadership?

From a very young age, I knew I wanted to be in healthcare—a trauma surgeon, specifically. But everything changed when I started volunteering in the local emergency department at 14. I quickly saw nurses were at the center of everything.

I hadn’t really considered nursing until then. I began training to become an EMT, and eventually a paramedic, and worked in an emergency department as a tech while I finished nursing school. But I never envisioned a career in nursing leadership until someone tapped me on the shoulder early in my career. When I later stepped into my first nurse manager role, leadership felt like the right fit. And I kept growing from there!

Thank you to the people who believed in me early in my career and took a chance on a not-so-experienced nurse. They changed the trajectory of my life.

You’ve said visibility matters. Why is being an openly LGBTQ+ leader in healthcare important to you, and what impact has that visibility had over the course of your career?

Visibility is everything. As a LGBTQ leader, I show up authentically and aim to create a future where everyone feels safe to live their truth unapologetically—a future where diversity is celebrated, and everyone can thrive. That also means standing up for inclusion with conviction, rejecting indifference, refusing to stay silent even when it’s hard, and being a voice of hope and courage for those still fighting to be seen and respected.

Over the years, I’ve heard from countless people I’ve never met—some just starting out in their careers—who say that seeing someone like me in a leadership role helped them feel safer bringing their full selves to work. If my visibility helps even one person feel that way, it’s a win. Because authenticity isn’t a soft skill—it’s a leadership essential.

You describe yourself as a Gen Xer who identifies as a millennial at heart. How has that shaped the way you connect with younger generations entering healthcare?

As a leader, I’ve always done my best to stay very connected to what my colleagues are experiencing at the sharp edge of care. I’ve worked my way through the ranks—from volunteer to orderly to Chief Nursing Officer. So, I know what it feels like to work in an environment where leaders seem disconnected from reality. But the best leaders meet employees where they are. They embrace the differences and diversity that each generation, and each person, brings to the job.

Our research shows Gen Z healthcare workers are deeply mission-driven, but they won’t stay in systems that don’t invest in them. What do you think healthcare needs to get right to keep them engaged?

Our latest data shows that Gen Z employees are less engaged at work and had the highest turnover rate of any generation last year. While that might sound like a criticism at first, I actually see it as a good thing. They work to live—not live to work like their parents and grandparents did. So, finding better work–life balance is something older generations can learn from.

This doesn’t mean that younger generations are any less committed, work less hard, or aren’t interested in development and growth. In fact, a lot of Gen Zers are asking about growth opportunities during their very first job interview. The organizations and leaders who get that—and lean into it are the ones who’ll see higher retention and longer tenures from this generation.

One of the strongest signals from our data is a real commitment to DEI still matters—and it’s not a bonus, it’s essential. As an LGBTQ+ leader, how have you modeled that commitment in your leadership?

For me, DEI isn't about politics—it's about belonging. In our “Healthcare employee experience 2025” report, we talk about how the organizations that do the best job of engaging and keeping younger employees are those that truly prioritize diversity, equity, and inclusion. This generation wants to be seen, supported, and heard in the workplace.

As a member of the LGBTQ+ community and a healthcare leader, I know how powerful it is to work in a place where people don't have to question whether they belong—they just do. That kind of culture starts with leaders being visible and authentic. I'm open about who I am because I want others to see that being authentic and being a strong leader aren’t mutually exclusive. In fact, they go hand in hand. And I challenge other leaders to do the same: Show up, speak up, and follow through.

Whether it's mentoring LGBTQ+ colleagues, advocating for more inclusive policies, or making sure our data reflects every voice, we can't afford to treat DEI like an add-on. It’s not a box to check. It's the foundation of trust—and trust is everything in healthcare.

Many younger workers are looking for leaders they can relate to—leaders who reflect who they are or who they aspire to be. What messages do you think they need to hear from leadership early on?

They need to hear this loud and clear: You don’t have to shrink yourself to succeed here.

Too often, younger professionals are looking for clues that it’s safe to be themselves at work. This is especially true for those from marginalized communities. I want to remove that guesswork. And that means telling them, from day one, that their identity is something to celebrate.

Leaders set the tone. If we want to bring in the next generation and keep them happy, we need to be honest, human, and inclusive. That means willing to be vulnerable, and backing it up with real opportunities to grow, real feedback, and a real sense of belonging. Most of all, we need to let them know they’re not just welcome—they’re needed.

As you look to the next generation of healthcare leaders, what gives you hope?

Honestly? They refuse to settle.

This next generation isn’t content with outdated hierarchies or check-the-box culture. They want workplaces that reflect their values—where well-being, equity, and impact are nonnegotiable. That’s not a threat to leadership as we know it. But it is the evolution we’ve been waiting for.

The future of nurse leadership looks bold and deeply human. I see rising leaders who are brave enough to challenge the status quo, and just as committed to lifting others as they lead. They bring digital fluency, social awareness, and a strong sense of self to everything they do. That fills me with hope. Because real transformation happens when we lead with both head and heart. 

About the author

Press Ganey, a leading healthcare performance improvement solutions company, offers an integrated suite of solutions that put Human Experience at the center of healthcare enterprise transformation. Delivered through a cutting-edge digital platform built on a foundation of data security, Press Ganey solutions address patient experience, healthcare consumer experience, workforce engagement, safety, clinical excellence and more. Guided by its team of renowned healthcare thought leaders, Press Ganey works with more than 41,000 healthcare facilities to reduce patient suffering, enhance caregiver resilience and improve the overall safety, quality and experience of care. Press Ganey is a PG Forsta company.

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