Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Achieving Outcomes, Improving Value, and Work Environment - Lessons Learned from the Pandemic

The pandemic highlighted the importance of a healthy work environment for patient outcomes. It also demonstrated the significance of the presence of Maslow's hierarchy of needs for nurses to achieve self-actualization and be able to deliver their best selves. The work of nursing matters, and we must continue to focus on the work environment. Ulrich,17 17 described that 71% of nurses and nurse leaders reported either "just beginning" or "not at all" related to implementing the AACN healthy work environment standards. One of the reasons these standards were not implemented was that "other health care executives were not familiar with healthy work environments."17 17 This is our time to act, communicate, collaborate, and change the work environment together, with all our colleagues in the health care profession, improving outcomes for patients, health care professionals, and communities. Although nursing practice is the sole focus of this article, it cannot go unnoticed that other factors contribute to the conditions of the work environment that must be fixed, including but not limited to, the many operational inefficiencies and their cost. The root cause of these problems and the patient and employee outcomes that have been impacted the most due to the impacts of COVID-19, must be understood. Additional priorities should also include developing health policies to support reimbursements that can reflect care delivery. Focusing on partnerships with insurance companies that help health care organizations achieve health promotion and design programs with incentives. Such as those that stimulate growth, allow health care professionals to thrive, innovate, and reduce harm, while promoting quality at the lowest cost. People should always be first. If we take care of our people, they will take care of our patients and the outcomes will follow, clinically, operationally, and in the end financially. Hospitals will continue to struggle financially if they do not prioritize retention, resilience, engagement, work environment, and leadership. This is our time to shine, collaborate, communicate, engage, innovate, inspire, and deliver outcomes.