In the constant shifting landscape of organizational and system development, leadership requires the bandwidth in which to explore new ways of being in right relation, and leading. Visionary leaders are required to open the pathways for transformative sustainable change. At the forefront of this movement stands Julie Watson, a seasoned leader, entrepreneur, and advocate for social justice or ‘sacred justice’ as she describes it. With a multifaceted background in non-profits, education, and healthcare, Julie’s passion for professional and self-development, coupled with her unyielding commitment to social equity, has made her a driving force in shaping a more caring and compassionate world.

Julie’s remarkable journey began with a desire to be of service and contribute positively to community. Having co-founded and directed a hugely popular educational literacy charity in the UK, mentored by the prestigious 826 National group out of London and San Francisco, she honed her skills in organizational development while nurturing her love for the value of story, and creative teaching/learning. Her experience laid the foundation for her current role as a pivotal figure at Watson Caring Science Institute (WCSI), a place created for our beloved nurses and other caring/mission led people and companies.

As an entrepreneurially minded and socially engaged leader, Julie brings a fresh perspective to WCSI; a global nonprofit, which supports, educates and advocates for the value of caring and love for nurses, nursing, and the wider healthcare sector founded by her mother ‘the rock star of nurses.’ The renown nurse theorist and philosopher Dr. Jean Watson, designated a ‘Living Legend’ by The American Academy of Nursing and with 16 honorary degrees (13 international), founded the well-respected Institute. Realizing the scope for growth, Dr. Watson called on her daughter to contribute her unique expertise to the expand the work, which allowed Watson, coined the ‘Modern Nightingale’ to focus on her visionary work.  The institute, deeply rooted in advocating for the significance of caring and love in nursing, holds a unique position in promoting authentic caring, healing, and holistic approaches to healthcare. Julie’s in-depth understanding of initiating and nurturing new projects has brought about a profound shift in how WCSI approaches its mission.

With expertise spanning innovation, budgets, event management, and volunteer training, Julie is committed to creating and delivering projects that cultivate both creative and social capital. This commitment ensures that the legacy of Watson’s Caring Science Theory and the essential ’10 Caritas Processes®’ (universally agreed concepts of what it means to care for another) endure for generations to come.

Now based in South Florida with offices in Deerfield Beach, Julie continues to champion her passion for supporting a culture of caring within hospital systems and other mission led organizations, ensuring that those who need it most (including nurses and staff) have access to authentic care and its transformative power of system change. Under her leadership, the Watson Caring Science Institute continues to evolve as a global force for positive change, touching the lives of countless individuals and communities.

Free-Spirited Upbringing

Julie’s upbringing was a unique blend of influences from her nurse theorist mother and lawyer father who together had a strong love for the arts. Growing up in Boulder, Colorado during the 1970s added an extra layer of free-thinking and radical values to her early life. This town was home to Naropa University, where Buddhist practices and influential figures like Jack Kerouac and Alan Ginsberg were part of the scenery. With barefoot hippie babysitters and a backdrop of mindful practices, Julie learned to cherish the arts, people, and the planet.

At the age of 13, Julie’s family embarked on a year-long world journey thanks to her mother’s sabbatical. Returning home as a rebellious teenager, she was sent to Fountain Valley School in Colorado Springs, an idyllic boarding school set at the foot of the Rocky Mountains of Colorado that rescued her academic path. This experience guided her to pursue a BFA from Bennington College, in the green hills of Vermont. Later, she found herself in the south of England at Sussex University in Brighton East Sussex, where she earned her master’s degree in ‘Arts and Cultural Management’, perfectly blending her passion for the arts and culture within her educational journey.

Julie’s personal mission, inspired by the term ‘sacred activism’ coined by Andrew Harvey, revolves around creating positive change. Through her work, she aims to be a practical force for transformative change within institutions and systems. Her goal is to foster peace and sustainability, connecting her love for the arts, her concern for people, and her commitment to being a good steward for her mother’s work.

Nurturing Compassionate Healthcare

“We are here for nurses, nursing and other caring, mission led organizations,” says Julie. Established in 2007, Watson Caring Science Institute is an international non-profit 501C (3) organization that advances the philosophies, theories and practices of Watson Caring Science developed by Dr. Jean Watson, Ph.D., RN, AHN-BC, FAAN, LL (AAN). Watson’s Caring Science represents a trans-disciplinary approach that integrates nursing’s art and science with insights from philosophy, ethics, ecology, and mind-body-spirit medicine. The institute provides professional development courses, experiences, and events aimed at nurturing the global healthcare workforce. Through Watson’s development of The 10 Caritas Processes®, tenants or canons which universally define the essence of compassionate care, referred to as ‘Ten Commandments in nursing’, the work has evidentially demonstrated its ability to curtail nursing staff turnover – a substantial cost reduction for hospital systems. Additionally, it has significantly enhanced patients’ perceptions of their care, profoundly improving outcomes.

The institute’s focus on research, education, practice, legacy, and leadership drives its mission to enrich the comprehension and advancement of Caring Science. This, in turn, invites whole system organizational cultural transformation of caring and healing experiences for patients, families, communities, and the environment. Watson’s Caring Science encompasses a broader perspective in concert with conventional medical science, emphasizing the interconnectedness of all aspects of life. The theory codifies fundamental aspects of human care that transcend cultural, linguistic, and geographical boundaries, encapsulated within the framework of the 10 Caritas Processes®. It embodies a full circle of knowledge and posits new questions for the advancement of Science and caring.

The institute has successfully trained nurses, healthcare practitioners, managers and leaders globally to implement theoretical principles into genuine practice. WCSI’s Caritas Coaches® & Caritas Leaders®, lead and manage 289,000 licensed nurses who in turn care for over a million patients annually within hospital settings alone.

Response to Shifting Landscapes and Emerging Paradigms

Julie found herself attracted to the realm of not-for-profit work due to a significant shift occurring around 2011 and the evident necessity for change within this sector. During this period, there was a decline in the financial resources available to non-profit organizations, spanning areas such as education (excluding higher education), health, and other public and social benefit entities (source: https://nccs.urban.org/publication/nonprofit-sector-brief-2019#growth, accessed on July 28, 2023). This situation prompted a crucial re-evaluation of the modus operandi of non-profits.

Gone were the days when these well-intentioned organizations could solely rely on their past achievements and a solitary funding source that was gradually dwindling and unreliable. The economic climate at the time led Julie to engage with non-profits and charities, urging them to scrutinize their operations and question (for themselves) whether they were genuinely fulfilling their intended mission, catering to the right beneficiaries, and utilizing their resources optimally. This period intrigued Julie as it signaled the sector’s maturation. It seemed to herald a new era of mutual respect among for-profit enterprises, philanthropic contributors, and efficiently administered, purpose-driven non-profit entities.

From Literacy Charity to Nursing Empowerment

Before joining WCSI, Julie co-founded a children’s educational charity in the UK, where she received guidance and mentorship from the 826 National group.The emphasis was on ensuring effective management and unequivocally demonstrating the value being added to the cultural and educational initiatives, factors that resonated with funders keen on aligning with ESG priorities (Economic, Social, and Governance) and (DEI) Diversity Equality and Inclusion at the heart of all, removing barriers at source for underrepresented and underserved young people.

She proceeded to refine her skills in organizational development while nurturing her enduring passion for the arts and literature. Recognizing the profound significance of storytelling, Julie took the initiative to establish and currently serves as the managing editor of WCSI’s modest imprint, Lotus Library. Through this platform under Julie’s direction, WCSI amplifies the voices of nurses, shedding light on the often concealed or underestimated moments of compassion they encounter.

Julie and her team at WCSI are dedicated to advocacy work, resolutely championing and spotlighting the healing practices that nurses hold dearly, in harmonious collaboration with their patients. They walk alongside patients, facilitating their personal journey toward healing and well-being. As Dr. Watson aptly reminds us, “healing is an inside job.”

Nurses as Investment vs Expenditure

Within the financial structures of hospitals in the United States, nurses have typically been categorized as expenditures. However, the pandemic has unequivocally demonstrated that properly nurtured, respected, and heard nurses are arguably one of the most valuable assets a hospital can possess. When the system takes care of its nurses, these nurses in turn feel cared for, leading to reduced stress and the ability to provide patient care with a profound sense of affection and respect. This virtuous cycle has led to increased pride and value among nurses, resulting in greater retention rates. Notably, the introduction of Watson Caritas measures™ tools, which are now being utilized by prominent data companies such as Press Ganey and Qualtrics, serves to substantiate the quantifiable value of these principles. This paradigm shift represents the future of healthcare, an exceptionally thrilling prospect.

Cultivating Growth

WCSI operates as a compact nonprofit organization in terms of personnel and essential expenses; however, its range of offerings and outreach is experiencing rapid and exponential growth. The organization stands distinctive in that it does not receive regular funding, from universities, nor benefit from government financial support, which allows the organization to remain independent and true to their mission aims and values. The backbone of WCSI’s operation is formed by its network of blue chip ‘Affiliates;’ hospitals such as Stanford Health, Cedars Sinai LA, Trinity Health and Ascension St John, and academic settings such as Unitek Learning, University of New Hampshire, and Samuel Merritt now numbering 25, who Watson’s Caring Science use of the professional practice model and educational programs provided by the organization. The pursuit of an endowment is a central goal to ensure ongoing development and expansion.

From Julie’s perspective, effective leadership in the face of challenges rests in a collective approach, as opposed to an individual ‘I’ perspective. Leading alongside as a strong guide, working shoulder to shoulder, and allowing for each person to be present, show up and feel cared for to live authentically is key. Recently Awarded one of The Top 50 Women Leaders of Miami the organization’s growth transcends Julie’s direct leadership; she acknowledges that stepping back and allowing space for others is integral to leadership. A notable facet of this expansion involves the cultivation of a platform termed the ‘Caritas Community,’ (Caritas is Latin which means ‘Love of all things’ where collaborative efforts contribute to both growth, acting as good stewards of the organization’s mission, ensuring a consistently high-quality offering and experience. Julie perceives her role akin to that of an agent—a container or curator—charged with holding the multifaceted work together in a cohesive manner.

Fostering Healing Through Storytelling

Designated an Honorary Member, Sigma Theta Tau International, Honor Society of Nursing, Julie, a WCSI Caritas Coach® herself, understood deeply how her mother Dr Jean Watson’s Theory integrates the arts, humanities, and different healing modalities within the discipline of nursing. Lotus Library books, with titles such as ‘Spiritual Awakening of a Nurse’, ‘Miracles and Mysteries Witnessed by Nurses’, and Modern Sutras from Nurses; finding peace’ empowers nurses and others to ‘give voice’ to their work and capture often overlooked or ignored (‘women’s work’) life experiences. It embraces the mysteries of existence—life, death, suffering, and joy—aligning with Watson’s philosophy. Julie’s role as founder and managing editor reflects her appreciation for storytelling’s essence and accessibility such as translating Additionally, as a practicing artist, Julie nurtures her creativity by drawing illustrations and paintings as a response to the narrative for Lotus Library books publications, nurturing her artistic side.

Global Covenant with humanity

Part of WCSI’s mission involves the removal of barriers to the work. Through Lotus Library publishing books and e-books in English, Spanish, and Portuguese and offering face to face and online zoom sessions creates access to the understanding of this way of ‘being’ at work and at home/in community. Collaborative efforts are underway with colleagues worldwide, particularly in regions like Latino-Iberoamérica (WCSI LIA), the Middle East including Jordan, Israel, and Palestine, as well as the Far East, including Japan, Thailand, and Philippines. WCSI’s recently graduated their first class of Spanish Language Caritas Coaches.

The global nursing and midwifery workforce comprises an estimated 27 million individuals. The prospect of all these professionals adopting Watson’s professional practice model implies a fundamental shift in value systems. While the nature of nursing demands a focus on tasks, incorporating mindfulness towards the holistic, spiritually enriched individual before them revolutionizes both their actions and emotions concerning their work.

Julie aspires to serve as an advocate, providing a voice and language to the daily efforts of nurses and caregivers. Her goal is to enhance health equity, nurture humane care, and preserve the well-being of both humanity and the planet.

Embracing Transformative Leadership

Julie’s advice to aspiring leaders looking to make a meaningful difference is to develop a diverse skill set. Beyond a deep passion for their leadership roles, transformative leadership skills encompass adept communication, fostering staff development, and strategic leadership. These proficiencies play a pivotal role in enhancing personal and professional quality outcomes (Pearson, Madelyn M. 2020).

The dynamic work environment is undergoing rapid changes, underlining the significance of interdisciplinary teams to maintain operational relevance and stay abreast of healthcare’s swift evolution. Effective leadership entails embarking on a collective journey to attain objectives. Esteemed leaders acknowledge their strengths, talents, and areas for improvement. Self-awareness forms the cornerstone of leadership (Porter-O’Grady & Malloch, 2018), encompassing a more humane approach to leadership, collaborative problem-solving, and a willingness to display vulnerability (Anderson, 2010). Julie firmly believes that leaders should set an example by practicing self-care behaviors themselves.

If you’d like to support the work of WCSI a 501C3 not for profit organization please consider a gift or donation this tax year. Your contribution is tax deductible (Tax ID# 26-0803334) and will help WCSI to ensure authentic caring and healing for the public, reduce nurse turnover, and decrease costs to the system. We sincerely appreciate your support and generosity.

www.watsoncaringscience.org