There I was. An annual nurse leader conference. Standing there as probably the lone hospital finance/administrative guy in a sea of nursing leaders. I walked into the general session where our Surgeon General was speaking. I was sure happy to see him because I honestly did not see another male in the crowd - I thought that through some strange osmosis of estrogen, I would spontaneously turn into a woman.

The Surgeon General Richard Carmona told a story about President Bush. As the President was introducing the Carmona to the world, Bush mentioned that Carmona was a "former nurse." When Carmona took the stage, he said, "sorry, Mr. President. I'm not a former nurse. Once a nurse, always a nurse." When Carmona relayed this story, the crowd went wild. All the women around me were pumping their fists in the air.

I've always known that nurses saw their professions as a calling. I've always understood in my mind that nurses prided themselves in how deeply they care and show compassion. But at that moment, I really *knew* - I experienced it - the magnitude, the degree that you view your vocation as a higher calling.

But I want all those nurse leaders out there to know, too. As I have interfaced with more and more hospital finance leaders, please know that many finance & administrative folks also view their professions as a calling. They are in it for the patient, too. They have also been deeply touched by the care we and our families have received in hospitals. Sure, finance folks have to view the world very differently than you do (we have to look at the aggregate, you have to look at each individual). But don't we need both perspectives in the hospital?

And yes, the finance guys have to "count the beans," but that's not all they do. Counting beans is just a part of their job, just as taking a patient's pulse is a part of yours. Just like you put together a care plan for each patient, they have to put together a "care plan" for the hospital as an organization, determine priorities, etc. You pride yourself in knowing the needs of the whole patient (not just the disease). We, too, pride ourselves in knowing the needs of the whole organization.

Yes, the finance folks need to get a better understanding of what your life is *really* like, the intensity of the decisions you face, how quickly your day can go nuts.

Yes, the finance folks need to learn to become better leaders and communicators - and not just be comfortable as a functional input.

And yes, not all finance folks realize that they can't get "beyond the numbers" without your help.

But, give them a chance. Finance & clinical leaders have never needed each other more - our hospitals will never be world-class unless finance & nursing truly work together.