For direct care nurses, this team-based, 18-month program is focused on advancing nurse satisfaction, retention and healthy work environments through in-person and virtual experiential learning workshops.
About the AACN CSI Academy
The Nursing Workforce Solutions Program, by Johnson & Johnson and powered by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) through its Clinical Scene Investigator (CSI) Academy, equips direct care nurses with the leadership skills, tools, and mentorship they need to create healthier work environments, improve nurse retention, and enhance job satisfaction.
Program Overview
This 18-month program builds on the proven success of AACN’s CSI Academy:
- 12 months of the CSI Academy core program
- 6 additional months of consultation and a train-the-trainer workshop to help participants scale projects across their organization.
What You'll Gain
- Strengthen Leadership Skills: Gain hands-on experience leading meaningful, nurse-driven change while improving communication, collaboration, and decision making.
- Impact Nurse Retention: Implement proven strategies to improve job satisfaction and reduce turnover.
- Develop a Healthy Work Environment: Create sustainable improvements for both patients and staff that enhance safety, quality, and overall care outcomes.
- Scale Your Success: Train-the-trainer model enables projects to expand across units.
- Expert Mentorship: In-person and virtual training guided by AACN national faculty.
Did you know?
Past CSI Academy graduates have demonstrated a 455% return on investment (ROI) through sustainable, scalable initiatives
Building on the 60 CSI teams from the first cycle, this second round will further help spread nurses’ ability to enhance the health of their work environments, increase nurse retention and improve patient outcomes.
Vicki Good, DNP, RN, CENP, CPPS, FAAN
Chief Clinical Officer
American Association of Critical-Care Nurses
Nursing Workforce Solutions Program: 2026-2027 Cohort
For the program's 2026-2027 Cohort, there will be six geographic cohorts, each comprising 10 teams, for a total of 60 teams from the 15 hospitals listefd below.
The 60 teams participating in the initial cycle of Nursing Workforce Solutions are currently implementing their projects and will start reporting their outcomes toward the end of 2026.
The 60 teams participating in the initial cycle of Nursing Workforce Solutions are currently implementing their projects and will start reporting their outcomes toward the end of 2026.
- Atrium Health Cabarrus, Concord, North Carolina
- Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center/Atrium Health, Charlotte, North Carolina
- Bayhealth, University of Pennsylvania, Dover, Delaware
- CommonSpirit Health Mountain Region, Centennial, Colorado
- Harborview Medical Center, Seattle, Washington
- Mosaic Life Care Health System, St. Joseph, Missouri
- Nemours Children’s Hospital, Wilmington, Delaware
- Swedish Hospital First Hill Campus, Seattle, Washington
- The University of Kansas Health Care System, Kansas City, Kansas
- Organization of Nurse Leaders of New Jersey’s Nursing Workplace Environment and Staffing Council Program (NWESC), comprising:
- AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center, Atlantic City, New Jersey
- Cooper University Health Care, Camden, New Jersey
- Deborah Heart and Lung Center, Browns Mills, New Jersey
- Inspira Health Network, Vineland, New Jersey
- Jefferson Health, Turnersville, New Jersey
- Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes, Camden, New Jersey
For healthcare to work, it takes nurses. Nursing burnout, turnover, and vacancy rates especially in acute care and hospital settings continue to be an issue for many health systems. Understanding what kind of work environment is important to nurses is the first step toward addressing the foundational issues that can cause them to leave. Through programs that focus on innovation and leadership skills, we can help support more nurse-led solutions that can transform health systems and create environments where nurses and patients can thrive.
Related resources
Ten nurse-led multidisciplinary health system teams from around the world were selected as finalists for the NurseHack4Health Pitch-A-Thon, with the chance to be awarded up to $150,000 in grant funding to bring solutions for a thriving workforce and healthy work environment to life. Meet the finalist teams below!
Through the Nurse Innovation Fellowship Program by Johnson & Johnson, powered by Penn Nursing and the Wharton School, nursing leaders are immersed in the innovation process to redefine the future of patient care and professional well-being by tackling a real problem at their health systems.
